Living Naturally

Trailer – Fed Up! Sugar as Addictive as Cocaine

My journey into integrative health began with our grandson David’s cancer journey.  Seeking to find the best of traditional medicine and naturopathic, herbal and other natural forms of healing, coast-to-coast searching, interviews and internet research led us to Envita, a health center in Scottsdale, AZ.    In 2009, EnvitaLifestyles was established to educate people across the world about sensible and proven integrative health care. Some of my posts to the blog will be about integrative health.  My Health Story, and A Grandmother’s Story share our experiences and why I am so passionate about total health care.

Our family has many allergies and sensitivities, and a number of reactions to medication has led me to expanding my outreach to naturopathic care and homeopathic remedies.

Our oldest daughter, Laurie, taught me to make a healing lotion out of plantain, comfrey, olive oil and beeswax. An older crockpot specifically for that use works great. It was fun to discover the plantain I needed was actually a ‘pesky weed’ in my daughter’s front yard, so every once in a while, you’ll find me rooting out her yard so I can make some salve. If I have extra i will either store the leaves and oil in a jar until I need it, or dehydrate the leaves into a bag which I can add to the oil and beeswax in the winter.

Other natural things I’ve learned from my daughters and my daughter-in-law are how to make my own yogurt (in yogurt maker i found at Goodwill or in InstantPot), how to use various teas, essential oils, cell salts, and homeopathic remedies for health purposes. Of course, you now can this information and more online and from the companies that sell these products (I’ve used Young Living, DoTerra and Rocky Mountain oils), Hylands cell salts, especially their little homeopathic melt under the tongue instant remedy for muscle cramping. Amish Remedy also works for muscle cramps. Instantly for me. I also discovered a natural product, Rootology (made of several plant roots) which has been more effective for my seasonal allergies than prior treatments and no side effects. Cheaper too.

I had a kidney stone and never want to go through that again, and questioned some professionals and found that a prior diet of green smoothies likely had an effect on the occurrence. I was told that I should try not to consume raw spinach, especially not daily so I began blanching it.

We are all different and a remedy that works for me might not work for someone else. Some foods which have a particular effect on me have the opposite effect on some of my children, so we don’t assume ever what works for one is necessarily for all, but often will share what worked for us, and they also find great relief.

It’s pretty cool when I find out things my elderly relatives did that are currently respected such as reflexology, massage, diet, and natural remedies. When I had a concussion, shingles, kidney stones, insect and spider bites with big reactions, etc. it was great to test out grannies remedy for it and see if it also worked for me.

I know there is a risk of being laughed at such as when I told a friend that until they could get to the dentist clove oil should greatly lessen or stop the pain (kind of like teething for a baby). I shouldn’t have been surprised to discover that granny’s remedy was exactly the ingredient in the prescription the dentist ordered, but with a fancier name – and price.

Natural remedies are my first resort. And I always carry a little container of what works for me as remedy to food poisoning. It has saved me several hours of pain and potential trips to the hospital.