Moving

Just to let you know that I've moved over to my new website! It's a work in progress but I have a few pages up. Come for a visit and bookmark it as new pages are added weekly.
In the upcoming months you'll find all kinds of helpful information on herbs, herbal remedies, growing your own herbs, and making your own herbal remedies for your family.

Thanks for visiting here on Grandma Farm's!

Live life healthy and whole!
Grandma Farm

Herbs for Insomnia

Well, I'm back. Sorry to have taken such a long time. I needed time to recover and to enjoy Easter. I still have a lingering cough but am able to carry on with life as usual.

Heather had asked about how to treat insomnia. After living on the face of this earth for a few decades I think I've discovered the best treatment for insomnia. Don't have kids. Hey, don't laugh, I was up at 2:30 last night with my little guy who had a bad dream. Awake for 2 hours.


However, I noticed Heather has 4 boys so I guess my advice is a little untimely. Seriously, children are so precious that at times they are worth the loss of sleep.

For any condition I like to look at not only a herbal remedy but also prevention and lifestyle changes. Here are some tips for prevention and lifestyle...

• Have a set routine before bed.
• Keep the computer and TV off for an hour before bedtime - all the stimulation is detrimental to our shut-eye.
• Many times we are awake at night because we worry. I've heard this reason causing insomnia in older women quite often. Realize what we can change, what we can't, give things over to God who cares more deeply for our situation than we realize. Stress plays a major role in our overall wellbeing and our rest at nights.
• Keep the caffeine intake to a minimum and drink it in the mornings, not late afternoon or evenings.
• Having a whole foods diet is beneficial. I read that if our bodies are properly nourished it will produce a sound sleep. Undernourished bodies wake up during the night looking for nourishment. This doesn't mean the amount of food, this means nutrient dense food.
• I like to drink nourishing herbal infusions throughout the day. My favorite to keep my mind relaxed and body nourished is an oatstraw/nettle/alfalfa blend. I find if I skip this infusion for more than 2 days I'm awake a lot more during the night. What is a nourishing infusion? I've alluded to it in the past but I really should do a whole post on it soon!
• Valerian, passionflower, chamomile, and lemon balm are all great herbs to help us go to sleep. Using these herbs in an evening tea may help or look for a valerian tincture through a health food store. Add the valerian tincture to the evening tea just before bed. Warning: valerian smells like dirty socks but it works! In Germany a sedative is sold containing passionflower, lemon balm and valerian.
• The above herbs are safe for children as well, with the exception of valerian. I would only use valerian as a last resort with restless children at bedtime.
• I have never used melatonin but my herbal teacher has. It is not herbal but it is natural and safe. Just be careful of the dosage. One dose may be much more than our body needs. Start off with a quarter or a half a pill.

All the above measures for insomnia are safe, natural and effective without any dependency issues that over the counter sleeping pills may pose.

Need to purchase lemon balm, chamomile, valerian, and passionflower? Visit Mountain Rose Herbs and Creations From Eden on the sidebar. Very good suppliers!

Live life healthy and whole!

Grandma Farm

Down with a cold

Just a word to let you know I haven't dropped off the face of the earth. I've been down with a really nasty cold for almost a week now but am on the mend now. I just let myself get too run-down with things and working on a new website. (I'll let you know when it's up and running!)
Rest assured I used many of my remedies described under colds and flu with good results, albeit slow, because of my busy-ness!
I'll be back soon!

Live life healthy and whole! (and don't get too run-down!)
Grandma Farm

Hayfever

In a few weeks our surrounding area will be witness to "poplar fluff" floating through the air. This tree pollen and lies thick on the ground in places giving the appearance of freshly fallen snow once more. For some this pollen is an exteme allergen, causing red itchy eyes, nasal congestion, runny noses, and sneezing. Other plant pollens, especially from the ragweed family, cause hayfever as well.



Drinking plenty of water is said to prevent the severity of hayfever. As well, my occurence with hayfever is lessened when I am consuming nutrient dense foods and eliminating empty calories and harmful things in food such as artificial colors/additives, preservatives, refined foods, hydrogenated fats. In other words, eating a whole foods diet! Our immune systems become over taxed when we have all the above toxins in our systems and really aren't able to handle the extra allergens from the environment around us. When we help our immune systems by not overloading it with toxins from our foods it may in turn help us to better handle the pollen flying around us!



I have heard wonderful things about a neti pot. I have yet to use one but people use this handy little pot to pour a special saline/herbal solution in one nostril, and out the other. This washes the offending dander or pollen right out providing instant relief. Your local health food store will sell these pots and the providing saline solution.



One source I've come across recommends a drop of white thyme essential oil mixed in 1 tablespoon honey and eaten once a day. This is reported to help nasal congestion. Make sure you look for white thyme e.o. as it is less irritating than thyme e.o.



Making a garlic and/or onion honey is beneficial as well. Onions and garlic contain quercitin, which can lessen or prevent attacks. Make this honey stronger than for the colds and flu by letting it sit for a couple of days before straining. Store in the fridge and it should last a while. Take a tablespoon of garlic/onion honey several times a day. I would recommend this as a preventative before the allergy season starts.

In the aromatherapy department our peppermint essential oil or any mint oil with menthol will help make breathing easier. Use these essential oils in a diffuser or place 1 or 2 drops in a small pan of warm water on low. Make sure you are in the same room as where the oil is diffusing!

Live life healthy and whole!
Grandma Farm

Cold and Flu Remedies for Little Ones

In this transition from winter to spring there are a lot of colds and flus going around. As I'm writing this my little 4 year old has a runny nose and is coughing. Last week my little grandbabies were down with a cold and had some nasty coughing going on. It seems so hard to watch our little ones suffering with a cold. Thankfully there are some things that moms can do at home to make our children comfortable and to help their bodies heal.

The best way to help our children during this cold season is to strengthen their immune systems. When they get super busy and don't eat as well as they should, their immune systems are weakened and susceptible to viral illnesses. An astragalus root supplement is helpful to build the immune system during times like this as well as Joy of the Mountains Oil of Oregano. Oil of Oregano is best used over the age of 6 months. Children under the age of five should not take it internally but rather have it diluted in small amount of olive oil and rubbed on soles of feet and along the spine. Staying away from refined foods and sugar is always a good preventative measure for our kids when everyone around them is coughing and sneezing.

However, we don't live in a perfect world and our children do come down with a cold. I always use Oil of Oregano at the first signs of a cold and continue with astragalus root. This is especially nice in a good soup for little ones. Elderberry syrup is beneficial, especially for coughing. Slippery Elm Lozenges helps with sore throats. Any of these remedies should be available in a health food store. I make a Children's Composition Honey containing yarrow, echinacea, peppermint, elderflower and honey during this time. Limited Edition Herbs sells Children's Composition Formula which contains similar ingredients. This formula is very beneficial in activating a child's body to heal itself. The honey version I make tastes good, too!

When the nose or chest is congested essential oils in a Steam Inhalation can help. Just this afternoon my two boys were sitting on the counter with their heads under a towel and over a bowl of steaming water with a few drops of eucalyptus essential oil added to it. They were old enough to remember to keep their eyes closed because the oil can make their eyes burn a little. Their chests were congested so I had them breathe in their mouth and out through their mouth. If their nose was congested breathing in and out through the nose would be required. Taking a break every few breathes helps them to endure this process a little better. If a baby were congested, sitting in a small bathroom with a sink full of steamy water and a few drops of eucalytus oil will help with his or her stuffy nose. Other good essential oils for Steam Inhalation are peppermint and spearmint.

Hydrotherapy is useful for children as well. Try the Warming Sock Treatment I described in an earlier post to relieve head congestion, coughing and upper respiratory infections. The same method can be used as a Throat Treatment:

Soak a thin bandana in cold water and add a few drops of lavender essential oil. Wring it out.
Then warm the neck with a warm cloth and wrap the cold bandana around it and then cover with a wool scarf. Tuck the ends in to keep it in place.

Some kids may not like a scarf around their neck but give it a try. It will decrease congestion in the throat and head and will offer some pain relief. Either of these two treatments can be used nightly on children as it is safe and supportive.

Proper nutrition, avoiding sugar, getting lots of rest alongside natural remedies should see the duration and intensity of a cold lessened in our children.

Live life healthy and whole!
Grandma Farm

What I Wish I Knew Then

Just the other day a fellow student announced she was expecting her first child. I was thrilled for her and remembered my excitement with each of my pregnancies. I was doubly thrilled for her that she was learning how to effectively and safely care for the needs of her family with herbs and natural health early on.

I wish I was learning about natural ways to raise a family 25 years ago. I would have loved to have had a home birth with a mid wife present as this young mom is planning for, to deal with morning sickness with natural herbs and prepare my body for labor with a pregnancy herbal tea. To be somewhat knowledgeable in when to take my baby to the doctor and what I could treat at home with natural remedies.

Traditional knowledge of remedies used to be passed down from one generation to another. Your mother would have taught you not only how to make bread and sew but what plants to look for in the wild that would treat a cough, a fever, or a rash. We look outside now and we see pesky weeds. We spend millions of dollars on herbicides to kill those pesky weeds so we can have immaculate lawns and profitable crops. And then we turn around and spend millions of dollars on health care and drugs to treat the illnesses that the pesky weeds we just killed could have helped us with.

Don't get me wrong, I do see the need for allopathic medicine in some cases, it has prevented many illnesses. I would love to see what is common to see in Europe. A blend of allopathic and herbal or alternative medicine in the health care system. However, we can prevent up to 80% of visits to doctors and hospitals if we can learn what in days past our mothers would have taught us about herbalism and health. We could confidently turn to our herbal medicine chest for the next cold, for our child's ear infection, for skin disorders and other illnesses. Knowledge is empowering, especially when it comes to our family's health.


But it is what it is, my days of pregnancy and birth are long over. I'm taking charge of my and my family's health now with what I know now. Oh, we still consume stuff that isn't the greatest but I'd say 80% of the time we eat real food. And that's pretty good in my opinion. I feel I have gained enough knowledge to know how to effectively deal with illnesses that come our way with herbs and natural remedies instead of reaching for drugs first.

This is a little bit of why I have this blog, to share what I know with others. To be somewhat like a "mother" of long ago, showing what herbs or weeds to use for your health and well-being. To show when a visit to the doctor may be necessary and when some honey and garlic might just do the trick.

Which brings me to ask:

Is there an illness you'd like to treat naturally at home?
Would you like to learn more about how to make some remedies at home?
Do you have any questions about herbs in general?

I'd be happy to post answers to specific questions you may have. Feel free to email me if this is of a more confidential nature.

Live life healthy and well!
Grandma Farm

Calendula Salve

This beautiful flower I would not do without either in my garden or in my medicine chest. Calendula is prized for its anti-inflammatory properties, making it very useful for cuts, scrapes, rashes (including diaper), eczema, and healing surgical wounds. Calendula is super easy to grow, just throw sow the seeds directly in the ground in early spring and it promises to deliver cheerful orange/yellow flowers all summer long and well into the fall. Around here, we can have killing frosts in September but these plants just continue to bloom well into October. Picking the flower heads and drying them on a continual basis ensures continuos blooming. If you want to go the route of having dried calendula ready to go, be sure to check out the wonderful sources for organic, dried calendula in the side bar.

A great way to make use of calendula is in the form of a salve. This is very easy to do and reaps results within a day. The salve is easy to spread on the skin and keeps a long time in the fridge.

Calendula Salve

1/2 cup calendula flowers, cut up

1/2 cup coconut oil
1/2 oz beeswax, optional (see note below)

cheesecloth

4 oz jar

Place calendula and coconut oil in the top of a double boiler or in a 1 cup pyrex measuring cup.

Put in a small pan of water that goes half way up the sides of the measuring cup. Turn the heat on and let it simmer very gently for a couple of hours.

Remove from heat and let it cool. Don't let it cool too much or the coconut oil will harden again, let cool just enough to be able to handle without burning yourself.

Put a large piece of cheesecloth inside a small strainer over top of a clean bowl. Strain the herb out through the cheesecloth and squeeze any remaining oil out of the herb. The cheesecloth comes in handy for this purpose.

Discard the herb in your compost. What you have remaining is beautiful, golden calendula oil.

Pour into a small jar and place oil in the fridge to harden...(I didn't put it in the jar in order that you couldsee a little better what it looks like when it hardens) Simple, isn't it?

Note: Coconut oil turns liquid at 76 degrees F, thus you need to keep this salve in the fridge for it to remain in a solid state. If you are going to be having this salve at temperatures above 76 degrees above you might want to add 1/2 oz of beeswax to the calendula oil, put it back into a pan of simmering water until the beeswax is melted and then put into the fridge.

Live life healthy and whole!

Grandma Farm