Treating First Aid Situations Naturally
I have used my NaturoKit natural first aid kit more than 5 times in the past two weeks. I usually think of first aid kits as getting more use during the outdoor, summer months, but our family is rapidly disproving that theory.
What did I need it for?
- An upset stomach due to travelling and bizarre food options. Twice. (Thank goodness for activated charcoal!)
- My 4 year old burned his finger on our gas fireplace. Apparently he didn’t believe me when I said it was actually hot. (Calendula Success drops, Cantharis and some Crisis Calm saved the day)
- I accidentally gave the 2 year old something with whey protein in it (she is very sensitive to dairy). She promptly smeared her food-covered hands on her face, and broke out in hives. (Apis helped to calm down the allergic reaction and the hives were completely gone before bed)
- I cut my fingers while trimming rose hip hedges with thorns. Two of the cuts got infected. (Wild Weed Salve helped to heal it faster)
- A nerve-wracking event left this mama just a bit flustered. (Crisis Calm helped to take the edge off beautifully)
- A constant stream of owies, bumps and bruises have caused our Arnica pellets to be the most-used remedy in the whole bag. (I refer to them as Owie Pills, and my kids gladly accept)
I had no idea how much I would be using my kit when I agreed to share about Naturokits or when I planned the date of this post. I can’t say I’m happy to have used it so much recently, but I am always so relieved to have it available for when these situations occur.
Aren’t We All Looking for Better Solutions?
Just today, this email landed in my inbox:
I just have to write and say how thankful I am for your blog and these AWESOME, WONDERFUL, FANTASTIC, WORTH-MORE-THAN-A-MILLION-BUCKS posts about natural healing. From the ear infection post (which I had to refer to yesterday) to this one. I am always uncomfortable giving my children antibiotics and using OTC remedies, such as Vicks, but any homemade recipe I’ve seen always requires much more time than I have and the ingredients and instructions just kill me.
I was just so encouraged to know that the natural remedies that we share on this blog are truly meeting a need (and I didn’t even write those two posts she mentioned, so 3 cheers for truly awesome writers!).
I get the time limitations, and the struggle to research on your own, and then figuring out what to buy and how to make and use it… when you’re a busy mama, you’re constantly on the go and in demand, and having someone else give you a nudge in the right direction (or do the work for you) can just be so. very. helpful.
Last year around this time, we talked natural remedies for a full month, and it was amazing. I loved sharing about the things that I do, and I also learned so much from others. Coming up with simple and gentle ways to treat discomforts and illnesses is a valuable thing to share and learn about, for sure.
One resource that I’ve talked about multiple times on my blog is the NaturoKit, the natural first aid kit I was referring to above. I got mine over a year and a half ago, unsure of how valuable it would be. After all, I’m a resourceful, research-capable, crunchy granola health-freak who is capable of making and coming up with my own remedies, right?
Yet in those crisis moments, I pull it out again and again, because it removes the thinking element and allows me to simply administer something to relieve the one in pain or distress, and focus on comforting instead of flipping through home remedy books and scrounging to see if I have what I need.
If you, like me, are seeking to keep your first aid treatments more simple and natural, and avoiding conventional and over-the-counter medications as much as possible, you may love it as much as I do. Or maybe you know someone else this winter season who is looking to make some changes to how they treat mishaps and owies in their own home, and you’d like to bless them with a simple way to do just that.
Each kit comes with 9 remedies, carefully chosen by Naturopathic Doctors, intended to treat a very wide array of injuries and emergencies, yet in a gentle and holistic way. Each one is neatly packaged in a zippered, cotton bag, and comes complete with instructions for use and a very helpful alphabetical list of specific uses (for a burn, use this. for an insect sting, use this.) They have also created a MiniKit with 3 common remedies, for those who want something small and simple to carry around in the car or in a purse. Both would make a very thoughtful Christmas present (or stocking stuffer) for someone naturally-inclined or beginning to head in that direction.
For our family, it comes down to a resolve to seek natural treatments before other options, and making sure that we actually have those options readily available to us.
How do you treat first aid situations? Are you moving towards more holistic, natural remedies in your home?
Disclosure: This post was generously sponsored by NaturoKits. All opinions and the concept behind this post are my own. I genuinely use this kit on a regular basis (you can come and peek in my “medicine” cabinet if you like, to see the half-empty bottles!), and I am very purposeful to only share products and companies with you that I sincerely believe in and do/would use for my own family. Additionally, any information shared by myself or NaturoKits is not intended to treat any illness, nor to take the place of consulting with a healthcare professional.
These sound like great weapons to have in the arsenal. I once had a friends’ mom who attempted to treat my dislocated finger with some sort of peanut butter concoction, and so when I hear “Natural remedy” I think of silly things. But these sound a bit more sane…:)
@Wick, Oh, I had to laugh out loud when I read that. I’m not exactly sure how peanut butter would help with something that was dislocated!
I agree, there can be a lot of kooky stuff out there, but I love this kit because these remedies are actually tried and true in the natural community, AND put together by naturopathic doctors who actually know what they’re doing. So no more nut butter remedies… 🙂
I love reading about what other people use for natural healing and I’m so amazed that there are several options out there. We use essential oils for our healing. I’ve done a lot of research on them lately so I’m prepared when something comes up and know how to use and what to use. I keep a note on my phone with info as well so if we’re out I still have my info.
Here’s a link to the post with all my info on it about essential oils. http://marixawillis.blogspot.com/2011/10/essential-oils-how-i-use-them.html
Thanks for all the great info!
I appreciate reading your posts on natural healing. I was raised in a medical home and when my children were small I was submitting to the mainstream thinking. I have made a complete change in my thinking! I wish I would have known years ago what I know now!
A close friend came over one day and was infested with leech bites. I gave him some citronella and some activated charcoal with which to make a paste. He was amazed at how these remedies worked! I’m so thankful for a local friend who teaches me.
Those sound great!
I’m very interested in the Crisis Calm.
I do have to say though, that if someone has a dairy ‘sensitivity’ enough to break out into hives, I wouldn’t be without an EpiPen. One reaction may be mild and the next one very severe.
Linda
I love love LOVE my naturokit. I think the arnica and wild weed salve are what we use the most. We used to have another arnica calendula cream that I would use on cuts and scratches, but my kids BEG for the “brown stuff” instead because it is soothing and evidently doesn’t sting like the other stuff did. I was grateful for the crisis calm at the start of school season for myself since the preschooler had a rocky start that tied me to the parking lot! I have also used the hypericum frequently over the summer for some crush/nerve injuries. And a few sunburns took the cantharis. I found I could mix the charcoal into chocolate pudding to get it in my girls. I am going to make up a homemade chest rub as soon as the rest of my ingredients arrive next week. With strong chemical sensitivities, I think avoiding the petroleum is a good idea. It’s so hard to find children’s medications that aren’t full of corn syrup or artificial colors, flavors and sweeteners – all of which make my kids crazy. I love having working alternatives!
@hobby baker, I do charcoal in applesauce. 🙂
I love all your posts Stephanie. 🙂 I”m just now starting to delve into natural healing, so I find them all helpful. I’m printing most of them to keep at home in a “medicine book” so that when we do get sick, I won’t freak out and wonder what to do. 🙂 And sometimes I need to know something and I don’t have a computer or internet. I love paper….it’s so user friendly. 😉
@Stacy Makes Cents, What a great idea to print them out. Gosh, I should do that, because goodness knows I never remember them all! 🙂
I am happy to see homeopathic remedies becoming a little more “main stream!” I started using homeopathy exclusively almost two years ago and am absolutely amazed at how much healthier I have become. I love that I can actually help my kids bodies heal themselves rather than give a medication that covers up the symptom. I’ve started a blog to share information about homeopathy and share my personal experiences as a mom using various remedies. If you are interested in learning more about what homeopathy is, how it works, how effective it is for treating ailments and even chronic conditions, please give my blog a peek! Thanks for the great information Stephanie! We tried your recipe for vapor rub and I posted about the results today! http://www.livingcrunchy.com/category/homeopathy/
My child has just been diagnosed with ADD and we are changing our entire life to a more Whole, Natural, Clean approach. From our diets, to cleaning supplies to the things we use for health, it’s all got to be natural. I was so glad to see this post because I was at a loss for what to do about bumps, bruises and other things and now I have the answer. Have you ever read the ingredients on a bottle of acetominophen? It includes artificial dyes, and high fructose corn syrup, in addition to some other questionable ingredients. Thank you for being out front on natural remedies and being so honest about using them! I’m ordering my kit now.
@Barbara, You’re right, the ingredients are atrocious. We try so hard to stay away from that sort of stuff, but it was initially hard for me to know what on earth to use instead, which is why I’ve been grateful for learning more about natural remedies and having a kid like this to use.