Maybe All I Need is a Spoon Full of Sugar... or is it Honey?

   Hello all!
   I am writing this post while currently home sick from work (it finally got the best of me) on one of the most gorgeous Fall days I have seen in a while.  The sun is shining, there's a warm breeze, and I have all of my windows open letting that lovely air whisk away any germs that may be lingering in my apartment.

   Remember how I mentioned in my last post that I've been dealing with some annoying health issues?  Well, here's the lowdown of what's been going on with me and how I've been trying to heal myself naturally while also desperately seeking some help/advice from my Family Doc.  Oh, in case you are wondering, the latter was very ineffective.

  About a month ago I went to the doctors because my ear was clogged up.  I figured it was just build up and needed to be drained which, I tried doing myself without any success (Damn!  I was really counting on my mad skills for this one!).  Unfortunately, at this time, the only doctor available was the on-call doctor, or shall I say the most evil person on the planet.  What should have been a gentle experience was excruciatingly painful and left me feeling completely wiped and very shaky.  What a jerk.  Oops, sorry (but not really).  Anyway, after he "cleaned" out the ear he found an infection by my eardrum.  My initial reaction was bullsh*t!  I figured he probably irritated my ear beyond repair and he's calling it an infection.  I have never had an ear infection before - not even when I was a child.  He writes me a prescription for ear drops and sends me on my way.  I curse him up and down in my head and then leave the building.

   Even though I am feeling thoroughly violated by my experience, I am so thrilled that I can finally hear again!  I hate going to the doctor's so I have been dealing with a clogged ear and loss of hearing in my left ear for two weeks.  I use the drops as soon as I get home and guess what?  They immediately clog up my ear!  No joke.  I cannot hear out of my left ear and it feels like something is swishing around in there.  Stupid doctor!

   I make an appointment to see my doctor, and because I am so good at making people feel sorry for me, (ha) I get in right away.  I retell my story to her and because them doctor's need to stick together, I get no real sympathy from her.  Plus, I think she really wants to scold me for not coming to see her instead.  She doesn't though, and I think it's because she figures I've suffered enough.  Anyway, it turns out that he's prescribed the wrong thing for my ear.  His drops would be more suitable for someone with swimmers ear.  What a knob.  She prescribes me an antibiotic which I fill and take willingly because I just want to be able to hear again.  After a few days my ear seems to unclog and I have my hearing back.  But I still have popping and swishing going on in there and I have no idea if that's normal.

   Meanwhile, I've developed this insane straight-from-the-chest cough and it hurts!  It's almost like a smokers cough without the smoking.  Back to the doctors I go to have it checked out.  My doctor is not impressed with how it sounds and prescribes me a second round of antibiotics.  Yikes!  She also checks my ear and says she doesn't like the looks of it and is hopeful that this round of antibiotics will help it (I should have run screaming at this point).  She sends me on my way but says that I have to come back if the pills don't help.  Guess what?  Five days later I'm back at the doctors!  This time I'm sent for x-rays and given a prescription for two different kinds of puffers.  Because I am desperate, I take the puffers for a few days but notice that I am just getting worse so I stop taking them.  I have a follow up appointment with her the following Friday so I step up my own "home remedies", which I'll talk about later.  When I see her she says that I sound much better then the first time but that she can still hear some congestion in my lungs.  She's not sure what it is and figures that it must be some sort of super virus and a 100 day cough.  She's happy that my x-rays were clear and that I don't have pneumonia.  She also mentioned that she really didn't think that the puffers were going to help me but that she wanted to try, just in case.  By the way, I'm fuming a little bit at this point.

   After we're done discussing the cough, we move on to my poor ear.  She takes a look and says she is really not happy with how it looks and is thinking of referring me to an Ear Nose and Throat doctor.  Yes please!  I didn't even let her finish her sentence.  Then she sits down and says that she stills sees an infection and would like to try me on one more antibiotic.  Are you kidding me!? Then she taps her foot and wonders aloud which one should she prescribe.  No joke.  I was so disappointed with her but at the same time I couldn't fault her because that's all she knows.  In case you are wondering, I never did fill that last prescription.  I had poisoned my body enough already.

   By the way, if you're still with me at this point YOU ARE AMAZING.  I apologize for taking so long to get to the point.  I feel like I've been through a lot with two health issues that should have been cured with the snap of a finger.  It's so frustrating to not know what the problem is and what's causing it but, it's even more frustrating to see how easy it is for the doctor to just write a prescription.  Each time I went to the doctors she was with me for less than 15 minutes.  How much could she get out of that?  And what if I didn't have a health plan and had to pay out of pocket?  How much would all of those prescriptions cost me?  Was it really necessary to prescribe three different antibiotics and two puffers?  Oh, and let's not forget the ear drops.  At the end of the day, I'm still coughing and my ear is no better.  Score 1 for the pharmaceutical companies and 0 for me so far.

   Anyway, here are some of the things that I have been doing to help strengthen my immune system while also trying to rid my body of whatever germs are hanging around in there.

Raw Organic Honey - I eat a spoonful first thing in the morning and then add it to a cup of hot water and lemon.

Hot water with lemon (and a pinch of cayenne pepper)

Oil of Oregano - it's kinda gross but I swish with it a couple of times a day.  I noticed a difference as soon as I started to use it.

Zinc and Vitamin C lozenges - I tried to eat these like candy but they taste kind of gross as well, so I only take them when I remember. 


Raw Garlic - I am adding this to everything... but only after work!  Ha.

Soup - It's so warming and comforting.  I've been making raw green soups as well as hot thick soups.

Whole foods - especially raw veggies and lots of greens

Green Juice - I've been stepping up the green juices to rid my body of whatever toxins are lingering from all of the drugs I took!

Thanks for reading and if you have any remedies that you'd like to share I'd be happy to hear them!
Have a happy and HEALTHY day!

Love,
Ves xx