Germ Fighters

It struck our home again. This is the fourth time this year. The stomach virus. Ugh! With three little kids in our family, it is difficult to keep germs out of our home. Everywhere we go, they touch EVERYTHING. They know when we get home to hang their coat, take of their shoes, and wash their hands. However, sometimes germs find their way into their little bodies anyway. Fortunately for us, when my kids get this awful virus, they still act normal. They continue running, laughing, and playing. It doesn’t slow them down much at all. I like to think it is because they have a strong immune system, but who really knows. They are sick one day, and fine the next. Seriously. Just as we strip our beds to rid the germs and put fresh sheets on…boom. Sick again. (This is not an easy task I tell you. My kids are still in the ages where they play musical beds at night. A few hours in their bed, a few with siblings, and ultimately in mom and dad’s room.) If you counted, that is three sets of sheets that need changing every night during the stomach virus invasion. As we wrap up this round of stomach virus #4, I ponder about why it doesn’t slow my kids down much at all. I’d like to think it is the natural remedies I use with them throughout the year to build their immune systems. We are so used to them, that we don’t think much of it, but really it has made a difference in our health.

Daily, my kids reach for their probiotic, vitamin D and fish oil. During the winter season, we brew up some homemade Elderberry Syrup on the stovetop as a family. We take it every night to fight off colds and flu. In the last six months, I have started also using Young Living Essential Oils. I learned about these at a Monthly Wellness Workshop we had in the Midwives of NJ classroom. As we fight off this terrible bug, I have been rubbing Digize oil on their little bellies, Thieves on their feet and diffusing Peppermint Oil in the air.

It is often humorous to think that ten years ago, if an illness hit our home, I would have stopped at the pharmacy to pick up $20 worth of over the counter meds to clear up an illness. Wow. How things have changed. I am so grateful to have the support, knowledge and resources right here in Hackettstown, NJ to help me along my holistic journey as a mom. The Midwives of New Jersey offers a great number of programs to likeminded moms. Specifically, our Free Monthly Wellness Workshop and Free Playgroup give many opportunities to connect and learn from each other.