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Natural Allergy Management

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There are three steps to managing your allergies naturally: stopping the allergic response, managing your symptoms and repairing your body’s mucus membranes. Here is a guide that will help you avoid over the counter meds that may induce drowsiness and other side effects. 

Step 1: Stop Allergic Reaction

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Here are some herbal remedies that can stop an allergic flare up:

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  • Histaminum hydrochloricum homeopathic remedy (12x children/30c for adults/100c for long-term, ongoing allergies/1m for extreme situations)

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  • Classic herbal antihistamine/allergy formula:  mormon tea (ephedra/canutillo/ma huang), nettles root, nettles leaf, peppermint, mullein, lobelia. You can find these as teas, tinctures, and capsules in most natural food stores

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  • Chinese herbal Pe Min Kan Wan

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  • OTC antihistamine

Step 2: Manage Symptoms
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Here are some natural remedies for the most common symptoms of allergic reactions​

Fluid/pressure in the ear 

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  • onion over the ear: cut an onion in half and steam it so it's warm, but not hot. Put the flat side over your ear and hold it in place with a headband for at least ten minutes (longer if desired). This acts as a desiccant which pulls out excess fluid and alleviates pressure and pain.                                             

  • garlic/mullein ear oil: place 5-15 drops of ear oil in the ear before bed at night. Cover with a piece of cotton ball and leave overnight.                              

  • ear coning; infusing the ear with warm smoke from healing herbs which lowers inflammation and gently suctions debris from the ear (https://www.coningworks.com)

Itchy Skin​ 

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  • Allergy oil applied topically will help             

  • tea or oil made from Lavender, chamomile, calendula, plantain, chickweed, and arnica can all be applied topically to calm the skin. You can add them to an unscented lotion.                                                                   

  • Add aforementioned herbs to a cool or lukewarm bath for more widespread relief.

Eye itchiness/discomfort

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Make a tea from calendula/marigold leaves  (chamomile is also effective).  Let sit until lukewarm or cold. Pour the tea into a clean and disinfected glass eyecup (a shot glass will do in a pinch). Place eyecup over eye, tip your head backwards and blink for 5-10 seconds . Repeat 3x each eye. Store unused tea in a clean glass jar in the refrigerator and rinse your eyes several times/day or as needed to relieve swelling and irritation.  Tea will store for 3 days in the refrigerator.  You can also just drink the remainder.

Lung congestion

Take a hot steamy shower with essential oils or Allergy Oil  

Cupping: use a percussive motion on your lungs using cupped hands. This will loosen phlegm. Best to do after you have completed previous steps. Many natural healing traditions use warm glass cups to suction which performs the same function more effectively.  

Use an expectorant: peppermint, nettle root, and mullein are the most common herbal expectorants. You can also buy an over the counter expectorant (guaifenesin is the most common).

Diffuse Essential Oils

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Essential oils are sold in small bottles at most grocery stores. Many of these herbs can be found in tea bags or loose tea as well. The following herbs are extremely helpful in opening up the lungs and nasal passages:

  • Mint (all kinds)

  • Eucalyptus,

  • Rosemary

  • Helichrysum

  • Tea tree

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The following technique can be done any time there is lung or sinus congestion. Doing this before you shower or do breathing exercises will maximize the effects of those techniques as well.

  1. Place herbs or essential oils in the bottom of an empty bowl.

  2. Pour boiled water over them

  3. Place your head over the bowl, covering your head and the bowl with a towel. This traps the steam, making the herbs more potent and effective.

  4. Breathe deeply for about 5 minutes to open up the lung passages.

Gum/Sinus Infection: Oil Pulling​

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Allergies often have the same symptoms and underlying issues as dental and sinus pain. Sometimes taking care of one thing will help with another.

Swishing about a tablespoon of oil in your mouth for 10-15 minutes helps with chronic teeth issues, weak gums, and moving food particles caught in unreachable spaces. It will also hydrate gums and soft tissues in the mouth, preventing infection and managing pain. It is also a natural way to whiten teeth.

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Check out this short video for an example.

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Step 3: Repair Mucus Membranes.  

 

This is a more complex component of healing which deals with the root causes of allergic reactions.  Each person is different.  This is a long-term health journey which is best undertaken with the support of  a trained herbal natural healer.  It will include changes in diet, guided herbal formulas which cleanse the internal organs and will support the body to heal at a deeper level..

Nasal /Sinus Congestion: Neti Pot​

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A Neti Pot is a traditional Indian tool for clearing the sinus passages when there is inflammation and infection. You can find them at any drugstore, and they usually come with a buffered saline solution (½ tsp sea salt and a pinch of baking soda OR ¼ tsp each of xylitol and sea salt can be used as a replacement for a commercial solution).

 

Check out this short video for an example

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Allergy Kit

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