Resistence

The number one health issue that we have dealt with over the last three years with Nora Lee is impetigo.  It's a bacterial infection that can cause little blisters that itch and hurt and it can spread easily on your own skin and onto others.

Apparently impetigo is very common with kids ages 2-6.  We are hoping that Nora Lee will grow out of it soon but it seems like very frequently (Matt estimates 4 times a year) we are dealing with it in our house.  These last two times she has had it, I've gotten it too - delightful.  Mine have not blistered as noticibly but I've had the horrible itch.

I notice that Nora Lee seems very vulnerable to getting it when her body is out of balance.  Other people seem to be able to get away with being out of balance for longer.  If we leave food on her face too long, she eats a ton of sugar, or she eats dairy, she seems to get it.

When she does get it (and now me too) we ingest vitamin concoctions throughout the day and put apple cider vinegar and special creams on our faces, wash the pillow cases each day and wash our hands a thousand times a day - it's an ordeal.

We are both at the tail end of it now and I've been watching the inner resistence I have had to the whole thing.  Up until 3 or 4 days ago I was so "against it" and obessed with controling and minimizing it.  Although there is nothing wrong with taking care of a health situation to the best of my ability, I realized the inner battle I was also waging.  Thoughts like "this shouldn't be happening as often as it does, what if it starts to spread and takes months to go away! This takes so much energy" and on and on.

So I decided to let down that uneeded burden and just be present with the situation.  This freed up so much energy!  It's truly amazing how exhausting my mind can make things when really there is no big problem.  

When something comes up and I don't know what to do and have to try a bunch of different things, I can feel a strong desire to be in control.  I want to say "Just tell me what to do and I'll do it!!"  But that feeling of not knowing and having to experience trial-and-error has been very uncomfortable for me in the past.  

So, I started focusing on all the benefits of what we were experiencing and it helped me get centered again.  I hope if/when we deal with this again, I will be more peaceful in it.

In case any of you experience impetigo, here is what has worked well for us.

Be sure to wash hands frequently and launder bath towels and pillow cases daily (or 10 minutes in the hot dryer).

Apple cider vinegar (ACV) is a miracle cure for many, many things.  Apparently, impetigo, like other bacterial infections can live in the nasal passages and come back again when your immune system isn't at its peak.  This was more than Nora Lee could handle, but 3-4 times a day I would use several Q-tips dipped in ACV and swab inside each nostril and anywhere on my face that seemed to have impetigo.  For people with blisters this can really burn but the stinging goes away in a few minutes and it really helps to heal them.

This is the product that worked for Nora Lee's rash.  It's gentle on the skin but has tea tree oil and oregano oil to fight the bacteria.

I would empty a capsule of this in orange juice once  a day for Nora Lee.

I took 3 of these capsules each day and gave one in orange juice to Nora Lee each day.  This fights the bacteria internally.  This is also great for fighting any bacterial infection.

Matt and I swear by this.  We take a lot of this if we feel a cold coming on or are fighting anything.  It tastes terrible if you break open the capsule so it's not good for kids, but for anyone who can swallow the capsule with water, it's awesome!  We always have this in our cupboard!  Good luck!