Let's look at neuropathy

It's Friday,and not quite so peaceful here. I brought home a new tiny kitten last Monday, and my eight year old is not a happy camper. She is getting better but still growls at the newcomer. Will be glad when she accepts her as a friend. The new girl is Siamese mix, and talky, and very cute, loves to snuggle. Her name is Lilly. It's also still summer, warm and humid and we still lack rain we need, it's in the forecast almost daily but on a hit and miss basis. So my son in Nebraska has a sister in law that did an extensive amount of painting in her home and did some damage to her shoulder and neck. After seeing a doctor, she was diagnosed with neuropathy and put on pain pills, which don't do anything to help cure the problem and could end up causing an addiction to the pills. I have been reading a lot of articles on things that help, and also checked with my aryuvedic site. The problem is caused by decreased blood flow to an area of the body. Diabetics also fight with this problem often. There are 3 vitamins that can help circulation, all can be found at Swanson vitamins. The first is one my daughter and I have used for numb tingly hands when we were doing stuff that over used them, B-6. 50 mg will do , a day, and cost about $2.38a bottle. The next is L-Arginine, at $4.99 a bottle, and the third is Alpha Lipolic Acid, also at $4.99 a bottle, most of these are 100 capsules and will last almost 3 months, so quite reasonable. I also found an alternative medicine you can check out, called Nervestra. It says it soothes pain, increases blood flow and builds back nerve function. This is one you would want to check out carefully for yourself. There are other things that help too, massage, maybe acupuncture and eating Omega rich fatty acid foods. Like avocados, one of my favorites. I refilled my hand soap containers yesterday, 1/2 cup of water, 1/4 cup of liquid castile soap, 15 drops of lavender essential oil and 20 drops of tea tree oil. Easy. Lathers well, smells nice. Summer is coming to a close, the kids are back in school next week here. Some went back last week. Those three month long summer vacations we had seem to be a thing of the past. I like summer better than the cold of winter so am not in a hurry to see it end, and we will have more very warm weather in August, but after that winter is approaching. Six months til Christmas, have you started shopping? Have a good week, stay well.

Golden Calendulas

Doug has a lovely patch of calendulas in his garden, and has been picking and bringing me the golden flowers for a while now. First I dried them, then I soaked them in sunflower oil for 2 weeks and this morning, I strained out the resulting oil, added a bit of borax and beeswax and a healthy amount of essential lavender oil. Not that simple of course, takes heating gently several containers to the same temperature, them whipping them together til thickened slightly before pouring into containers. My sis recently was scalded and suffered some nasty 3rd degree burns which are healing nicely and this got me working on the salve, as it is known for relief from burns and itching. Need to get some mailed to her. Also learned a lot this morning from articles Doug has been studying about elderberries. I planted some last fall as buying the flowers and leaves is costly and they are what I make bronchitis tea out of for my daughter and sis. If you eat raw berries you can get really sick. They are almost like poison. My Gram grew them over her back porch, and made jelly and wine, and now I am told these grow to over 30 feet tall if not regularly clipped. Yipes. Maybe I could have a trellis built and make it into a garage for my car, with the berry bushes growing a shelter. They are right at the end of my driveway so hope they do not become a problem. We have finally been blessed with rain, and some minor storms, and wind, nothing bad at all, and it helps keep temperatures down plus the boon of not having to water the garden every day. The plants are thriving, rain water is so much better than hose water. We had a power outage night before last, lasted almost 3 hours, and it was warm enough to really miss the fans running. And dark. Power went off about 7:30 pm and was nearly 11 pm before it came back on. I am really addicted to radio, fans, lights etc, and you find out real fast when they are gone how much you miss them. For a while now I have put peppermint oil where I have little ants in the house, or put it on a cotton ball and refresh it every few days. Here is a spray you can use that makes it easy and of course is safe around pets, food, kids etc. In a small spray bottle, put 4 ounces of water and add 30 drops of peppermint oil, and 30 drops of clove oil. Shake and spray. Repeat as needed. If you drink soda of any kind that comes in big plastic bottles, cut the top third of the bottle off, put some of the soda in the bottom and invert the cut off top creating a funnel, sit outside where mosquitoes may be and they will be drawn into the container and unable to get out. I have seen this used with wasps etc too, but different liquids used to trap different bugs. Got a package in the mail this am, cat food for Libby. And of course, she likes the box better than the contents. It had brown paper packing in it which she has claimed to sleep on. Yesterday when I was shopping, the store was full of back to school displays and lists of needed supplies, only a few more weeks and the kids go back to class. Wow, that makes the summer feel like it is ending hardly before it began. Have a good week, be thankful for your blessings and good health. Til next time be well.

Grow your own Pain Relief

It's the first day of July, and hot enough lately to feel like it. I know its summer because I made my first small batch of dill pickles this morning. Yesterday I picked zucchini and last night I sliced them up and put them in ice water in the frig overnight.This morning I got jars ready, made the brine and canned them. So easy, in the sterilized jars put a clove of garlic, 4 peppercorns, and 1 head of dill or 1 teaspoon organic jarred dill. Pack in the drained, dried zucchini, add another clove of garlic and a sprinkle of dill seed, pour the brine, half water, half white vinegar and pickling salt over the top, put the lids on and process for 12 minutes. All sealed, and cooling on the counter now and the mess cleaned up. Good thing too, just opened my last jar from last year. These need a 3 week cure time and they will be ready. By then, there will be more. The vines are heavy with cucumbers and zucchini so will keep me busy. Most of the aches, pains and illnesses we suffer from are caused by inflammation in the body. And you can grow herbs that will ease those aches and keep your body inflammation free. Bet you never thought of Basil as one of them. You use the leaves of course, and its listed as anti inflammatory, antispasmodic and antiviral. Dry the leaves and use as a tea or make a tincture, a bit more complicated. Also relieves tension. And of course is good in lots of cooking areas. Black cumin is second,its an annual, and you have to harvest the seeds which have a peppery taste, you can toss them on salad, even put them in pancakes. You can make a tincture or just add the seeds to your food. If you want to make a tea, use 1 teaspoon of peppermint leaves, 1 and 1/2 teaspoons of cumin seed oil, available at health food stores, 1 teaspoon of honey and add a cup of boiling water to steep.Those are the easiest, and you know about ginger and turmeric. Been out and worked in the back yard a bit this am, yesterday was garden day. Takes a lot of water right now, the heat sure evaporates it out fast. No complaints, like this much better than winter. Somehow the older I get, the more I feel the cold. Can handle being warm much better. So here we are, looking at the fourth of July. Somehow, America has slipped and no longer feels like it did 20 years ago. We have lost so many freedoms, and the government does not seem to represent us now, it just hems and haws and makes big bucks at our expense. Sad. I miss the days of saying the Pledge of Allegiance, singing our patriotic songs, having a prayer in school to start the day, and its made a difference in how we live. I hope we can gain back the pride we had before all the terrorism, taking out of our rights etc . Planning a quiet day at home, gardening most likely. Hope your day is all you want it to be. See you soon.