So, once I arrived at work yesterday, I realized my lymph nodes in my face and neck were quite swollen and very painful...ack. It hurt to talk or chew, plus I had some upper back, neck and shoulder tension. Not having much on hand, I just kept hydrated, took some Vitamin C, and made up an herbal remedy when I arrived home. Thinking I may have the start of the flu, or worse, I knew I needed to act to hopefully nip it in the bud since I am leaving for a trip in a few days.
This is what I did, along with a Zinc lozenge.
Using what I had on hand (meaning I may have used other herbs had I had other herbs on hand), I decocted, in about four cups of water, a few tablespoons of Red Root and a small handful of dried Elderberries to which I infused a few small handfuls of Red Clover. I strained this and saved the marc to re-use the next day. I split it into two doses, having one before I went to bed. To each dose, I added a dropper each of Usnea and Propolis tincture and a spoonful of raw honey.
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| Golden Propolis from my Bees. |
When I awoke the next morning, the swelling and pain was reduced to less than half. I drank the other dose and made my second decoction with the leftover marc, making two more doses, one of which I will have tonight, the other tomorrow morning. I will make another batch if needed tomorrow afternoon.
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| Look at that beautiful, rich, full color. |
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| Here is a photo of the beautiful Usnea I harvested for the tincture. |
I will harvest some Lemon Balm from the garden today and add it to a bath tonight to help relax the muscle tension. I'll also infuse it in my evening dose above for its anti-viral effects.
