There it is, that dreaded word: the spots, the itching’ the sleepless nights…I remember it so well seems as I caught it off my children. It was one of those childhood diseases I never managed to pick up and back when I was a kid, you played with anyone who had something catching just to get it over with!! This childhood illness strikes with no warning. The child has been infectious for a couple of weeks before you realise so everyone you know who hasn’t already had it will soon have caught it. I was 33 when I got it and was covered from toe to neck…never went out of the house for weeks!!
By the time my 3rd child caught it, I knew what to do to prevent what we went through.
Calming the itching and avoiding scarring is the main issue so here is my magickal bath and lotion remedies to help…
BATH:
To a warm bath, add 1 cupful bicarbonate of soda. Then, dissolve 8 drops each tea tree & lavender in 5ml vodka, full fat milk or bath dispersing oil and add to bath. This dose is for 8-12 year old, so adjust down for younger children and up for older. Let them soak in the bath for 20minutes.
LOTION:
Dissolve in 5ml alcohol, 10 drops tea tree, 10 drops lavender and 5 drops chamomile and add to 50ml rosewater and 50ml witch hazel. Shake well and use as a lotion on the spots, applying it with cotton wool over the entire rash. It will help stop the spread of the infection whilst helping to speed the healing process of the spots, greatly reduce the itching and prevent scarring.
This wonderful mix of bath and lotion should be carried out 3 times per day with extra lotion every time they start to scratch. It is very effective, my son having no itchiness at all by day 4, (day 1 being when the 1st spot appeared) the rash having stopped and all areas healing, most of which never even went into blisters. In fact the only blisters turned out to be those spots that appeared before we realised what was happening and started with the remedy. If only I had made up the mix when I contracted it, I wouldn’t have had lots of sleepless nights itching!!!
SUPPLEMENTS:
Vitamin C is natural anti-histamine so give your child 500mg daily to also help internally with the itching on top of a child’s multi-vitamin as soon as you think they may have even been in contact with the virus. Ensure plenty of fluid in-take, especially when they have a raised temperature and keep them cool – they will be less itchy if in a cool room as opposed to a warm one.
SHINGLES:
This is the same virus that remains dormant in the body and when run down, it can come back as shingles. It used to only strike elderly people but it seems to have changed now as I have known much younger people coming down with it, which show how deficient our bodies can be these days.
Shingles can be extremely painful, and sensitivity to an area of the body followed by pain and a rash is the onset of this disease. The pain can go on for months!!
I have found one of the best things for the pain and stopping the spread is Ravensara essential oil added to St Johns wort oil and applied 3 times daily to the area of pain. Ravensara can also be added to the bath with Epsom salts.
Boosting your immune system is essential. Ravensara does this from the outside whilst fighting the virus but take St Johns wort tincture 3-4 times daily. This is extremely good for nerve pain and so taking it on the inside as well as applying on the outside will help tremendously. It will also boost the immune system too. My “Kill-or-Cure” with its echinacea, goldenseal and myrrh is another help if you are really struggling with it as it will majorly kill the infection and get your own immune system back on track. Take 2-3000mg Vitamin C throughout the day (up to bowel tolerance), plus B-complex and Vitamin E (it reduces the long term effects of shingles)
