My family has had our bouts with cold and flu season. A few months ago I became ill with a sinus infection, followed immediately by STREP, all while my husband battled an upper respiratory infection. That was a rough couple of weeks! Of course life didn’t stop because mom and dad were sick, the kids still had to have their needs met. Even though they pitched in to the best of their abilities, having us both out for the count was really hard on our family. I knew that life would get infinitely worse if the kids got ill too. I did everything I could to prevent them from catching any of the germs we were carrying, let alone anything their classmates and teammates had to share, yuck.
They had to wash their hands twice as often, vitamins could not be skipped, and wipes and sanitizers were always handy. Those measures seemed to work for a while, but when my youngest still came up with sniffles and a scratchy throat, I was concerned and pretty frustrated! I thought I was doing everything right?! The truth is, I can’t do much. The only thing I can do, is try to keep the sickness from worsening or spreading.
I am not opposed to traditional medicine in a severe situation. At this stage, I thought there could be something natural I can do to keep his cold from worsening.
As we’re gearing up for another cold and flu season, I remembered the advice a friend of mine had given me last year. She turned me on to Essential Oils when my son had a cyst under his kneecap as a result of a sports injury. Oregano Oil worked like a charm in reducing the swelling pretty quickly. It was definitely an eye opener for me, and the world of Essential Oils became one I wanted to explore. If you’re not familiar with them, essential oils are natural. They are typically obtained by distillation, and extracted by a plant or other natural source. My thought was, why not look into them to stifle this cold?
DIY Cold Prevention Blend
So…I did my research. I dug online for which essential oils would work for these symptoms, and I asked my friend again, which is a Wellness Advocate for the Doterra brand of oils, for her recommendation. She suggested blending these oils:
Oregano Oil, an amazing natural antibiotic and has anti-inflammatory properties.
OnGuard Blend, a combination of wild orange peel, clove bud, cinnamon bark/leaf, eucalyptus leaf, and rosemary leaf/flower. It is designed to support the immune system and helps kill off harmful bacteria and viruses.
Lemon Oil is known for anti-infection, astringent, detoxifying, antiseptic, disinfectant, and antifungal benefits.
I’m no expert in essential oils, but I wouldn’t recommend anything that I haven’t tried. This formula works for my family!
A Few Ways To Use Essential Oils:
Apply Topically
I reused an old essential oils glass bottle and combined all the oils to make the blend. CAUTION: Oregano Oil is considered a ‘hot’ oil. This means that it may have a temporary burning sensation when applied directly to the skin, so it is very important to dilute with a carrier oil such as coconut, almond, olive, avocado, jojoba, or grapeseed. For every drop of the Oregano, add 4 drops of the carrier oil.
If you don’t have a bottle, you can just put a drop of each essential oil onto the palm of your hand, add the carrier oil to it and blend with your fingertips.
Rub on to the throat, chest, up and down the spine, and the bottoms of feet (under socks), every few hours.
Ingesting Options
- Add a couple drops of each oil into a full glass of water, and drink up.
- Put several drops of into a spray bottle and spray directly to the inside of the throat, swallow.
- Mix a few drops with a small glass of water (i.e., a shot glass), gargle and swallow. Do not spit it out.
- If your kiddo won’t drink it or want it sprayed into the throat (it’s an acquired taste haha), you can put a drop of each in a capsule. Find some here pretty inexpensively.
Diffuse
Apply several drops of each oil into a diffuser, and add water. If you aren’t familiar with what a diffuser is, it’s a handy little device that disperses the essential oils into the air, so you can breathe in the aroma. I have one set up in each bedroom so the essential oils are breathed in as we sleep. Of course, you can diffuse any time of the day or night.
I use the spray option on my hubs and myself, while the boys get them topically. The oils seem to be absorbed into the skin pretty quickly, so they don’t feel gross!
After using this oil blend for several days on my son, his sickness was cut short. It never became worse! In the past, when detected early enough, it has even prevented the illness from coming on at all. That makes this mama very happy!
There is no way I can control whether any one of us gets a cold or the flu. I’m thrilled to have found a natural remedy that has worked for us, so that life can go on as usual with no lengthy interruptions (insert ‘clap’ emoji here)!
Do you have any experience using essential oils? Let us know how you use them in your family!
Barbara is the mom behind the blog. She began writing in 2012 as the creator of Hello Life, a craft & lifestyle blog. As life evolved, and her kids became more involved in sports, she aimed to create a site that would resonate with moms like her, and in 2017 Modern Sports Mom was born. Like many of today’s mamas, she loves being creative, cooking, and fashion, and when there are a few minutes to spare, a good book. A baseball and football mom, she is fueled by her strong faith, dedication to her family, and coffee. Lots and lots of coffee! Barbara lives in California with her husband, kids, dog, and cat.
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