Stuck at Home Sick

November 29, 2011 by

As wonderful as it was to spend Thanksgiving with my nieces, those sneezing, coughing, puking stinkers covered me with their germs. And now I’ve caught whatever they had.

It started with rawness in the throat, which progressed into a stuffy nose and a congestion headache. Now, I feel the way it looks outside — just yucky. Rainy, dreary days are always the best ones to be sick, because you’re stuck inside anyway and at least you’re not missing anything outside.

As someone who’s been stricken with migraines for the last half of my life, I’ve probably ingested more ibuprofen than some pharmacies sell in a week. But now I’m trying to avoid chemicals whenever I can and feed my body naturally instead.

Curled up with Nacho on the couch during Sick Day

So my first line of defense was Tazo green ginger tea, which combines the tummy-soothing powers of ginger with the all-around goodness of green tea into one warm, comforting mug. Then, it was the cold-fighting combo of vitamin C and zinc.

For headache, surprisingly, I turn to Bath & Body Works. Their Aromatherapy Pulse Point Headache Relief with peppermint oil works wonders. As it tells you on the tube, “Ancient Romans crowned themselves with wreaths of peppermint to awaken the mind and alleviate headaches.” It’s blended with cedarwood and spike lavender to help “calm the nerves and ease tension” with every inhale. Their headache mask, a disposable patch you stick on your forehead, also works great, but I tore through that package long ago and Bath & Body has since stopped making their Headache Relief products. This Daily Migraine blog covers the products and offers some more current alternatives. 

Then, of course: chicken noodle soup and ice chips (found out the dog enjoys the latter)(found out even later that feeding dogs ice cubes can actually ‘freeze’ their digestive systems). Laying on the couch with mom’s old heating pad plugged in and wrapped around my shoulders. Drinking lots of water and tea and Naked Green Machine, which I just recently discovered. Looks gross, tastes good.

What are your natural cure-alls for a sick day?

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Blogs from Battle Zone & Homefront

March 19, 2011 by

If my sister, who’s caring for three young girls and teaching while her husband is deployed to Afghanistan, can blog every day, and he can blog every few, then dammit, so can I. This is my motivation.
And they are actually what I wanted to blog about, because I think it’s really cool what they’re doing.
They’re keeping coinciding blogs (Aaron’s and Heidi’s) to document the experience of separation by war from both sides — a loyal husband/father staying connected with his loved ones from the war zone while his busy counterpart plays Wonder Woman on the homefront.
Even if you’re not related to them and reading the blogs for the obvious family update aspect, there’s value in this project, I reckon. What a rare, raw glimpse into the emotions and daily lives — not to mention cute kid quotes — of a family separated by sacrifice. To boot, my sister is an English teacher and published poet, so her writing is sometimes even better than mine, which is saying quite a lot. And her hubby, who beats us at Trivial Pursuit every single time, is pretty bright himself, and his writing is just as wonderful.
It’s a personal journey for both of them, but I think the lessons are broader. The courage of every member of their family is admirable. It really makes you appreciate what people do so you can run around drunk on St. Patty’s Day, even if you’re not Irish at all, or sit there and read a blog on your laptop. Thank you, Congers.
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