Damp Pestilence and COVID-19
At this point in time there have been no reports of COVID-19 in the state of Virginia. We’d like to keep it that way. As there are few guarantees in life besides death and taxes, we at The Elderberry have been scouring good reliable herb sites and respected, knowledgeable herbalists to come up with a toolkit focusing on viral protection, prevention and assistance.
Much of it is well documented, is widely available (Elderberry leaves are NOT commonly available as an herb) and can make a big difference on how easily and quickly, relatively speaking, we can get through this. We are all on this planet, at this time, in this place, for a reason. Our work is cut out for us and we need all hands on deck, so let’s begin.
The following is not intended to replace or be a substitute for medical care. None of these statements have been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). This information is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent disease. We do not recommend using any ideas found here without first consulting a medical professional or qualified health care provider. Seek medical help if your fever gets above 103 F or lasts for more than 7 days.
From Jan Wolfe, RN,MS,FNP:
You can NEVER hear it/do it enough: WASH.YOUR.HANDS. Your new best friend is the small travel hand sanitizer bottle with 60% alcohol. The CDC developed a Get your Household Ready for Pandemic Flu resource that covers in-home things to do during a pandemic such as: stock up on tissues, hand sanitizer and masks; designate an illness room for those who are ill to stay in; when in public, keep 3 feet apart, etc. While it has not been officially declared a pandemic, it never hurts to be prepared, to at least think through YOUR specific situation and prepare for the worse while hoping for the best. The alternative? Denial. And we know how that works (hint: not well).
UPDATE: I have attached 2 good recipes for making your own hand sanitizer from herbalist Lorna Mauney-Brodek.
From Heather Wetzel, AHG:
As you can imagine, the Coronavirus was quite the topic of conversation this week at The Elderberry as the CDC warned people to prepare for it to proliferate in the US. Since it’s such a big topic, we decided to divide this newsletter among us with each addressing a different area of preparation.
In what can feel like an overwhelming time, I’ve found it immensely important to make time for self-care and spiritual practices. Epsom salt baths, moving/dancing, and meditation have been my saving graces to resist the immense fear and negativity that seems to have a grip on our country. This is the time to fortify your tool-kit as stress negatively impacts the immune system. The immune system is all about harmony and it will have an easier time detecting and deleting a threat if one is well rested, nourished, and calm. I’m focused on getting to bed on time, unplugging earlier in the evening (did you know there are studies that show EMFs from cell phones etc. actually make pathogens proliferate faster?), and continuing to keep sugar levels as low as possible. Getting serious about eliminating excess sugar from your diet will go a long way to making you resistant to all viruses, not just COVID-19.
The following are some basic foods/supplements to consider:
Veggies: Our moms were right. Now’s the time to pump up the volume as our immune systems need minerals. I’m loving roasted Brussel sprouts this week! My personal challenge is to get 4-5 cups of veggies a day. Cutting them up on Sundays and doing some cooking of greens and chopping of raw veggies for lunch all week makes it easier.
Fat: Those pesky viruses can’t invade if they can’t get into our cells and our cell walls are made of fat. Healthy fats are part of a healthy diet. Salmon, grass-fed butter and bone broths are a few examples.
Vitamin C: Not high sugar orange juice! High doses are needed, so I’m using a combination of true Vitamin C Complex that’s food based and liposomal C that won’t cause diarrhea in high doses.
Vitamin D (more of a hormone than a vitamin) Responsible sun exposure would be ideal but it’s winter so a daily combination of vitamin D3 with vitamin K2 helps support the immune system. Many people have low levels so it’s not a bad idea to get your vitamin D levels tested.
Zinc is an important trace mineral for the immune system. I don’t supplement this every day just when I’m run down or didn’t get enough veggies. 50 mg per day would be my max as you can overdo this one.
As for the kitchen medicines: raw honey, garlic, ginger, cayenne, horseradish, apple cider vinegar, and lemons/limes have strong antimicrobial components. I use them as is or if I have time, make medicinal honeys and fire cider.These hot, spicy remedies warm our center and help resolve fever and mucus, allowing the body to push it out through the channels of elimination (sweat, urine, feces, expectoration).
Respiratory mucus and edema are part of the morbidity factor of COVID-19. There are reports of people rejoicing they got through the illness, then having mucus increase and dying from pneumonia related complications. We need to be ready to support the body with sweating/hot baths/steams, skin brushing, back/chest percussion, etc. to clear the mucus. We also need to allow ourselves to take time to recover and regain our health instead of immediately rushing back to work or school.
I remember a story about the famous mountain folk herbalist Tommie Bass saving everyone living on his property during one of the early 1900 flu epidemics by making sure that he gave their back a thorough percussing every day to assist them in clearing the mucus. These old hands-on techniques are important to remember and are easily done.
I love Oscillo by Boiron. It’s a homeopathic remedy available at any grocery store. It’s helped me ward off flu-like symptoms more times than I can count. It’s an important remedy to have during the flu season. As soon as I get that “uh oh, the flu” feeling or someone comes in the store with the flu and coughs on us, I take a vial.
I like to have a few spray bottles of water and essential oils stashed in my bag, car, and office. I like the “Thieves” blend of Rosemary, Thyme, Clove, Cinnamon, and Lemon. This blend helps keep air-borne pathogens down. If you want to conserve essential oils, you can smudge and sanitize your space with plain old garden sage (it works just as well as White Sage and helps us preserve the White for future generations).
Light and love, Heather
From Sydney Batson, Herbalist:
Which herbs should you choose when tackling a flu this season? There are several herbs you could use when you get the flu, but some are better suited for certain situations than others. The tactics that we will introduce in this article were chosen using our collective knowledge with inspiration from Traditional Chinese Medicine and herbalists Matthew Wood and Stephen Buhner. We fall back on herbal energetics as our guide. A basic understanding of energetics tells us that a health disturbance could be caused by heat/cold, dryness/dampness, or tension/relaxation. Energetically speaking, the flu typically has heat and/or dampness as a driving factor. In some cases, the heat is more important to clear, and, in others, the dampness is more important to clear first.
This specific flu system requires a slightly different approach. While it might seem intuitive to counteract the flu/fever with cooling herbs that drive out heat, these may not be the best approach for this condition. Matthew Wood describes the coronavirus as a condition of “damp pestilence.” Instead of trying to eliminate heat, we need to support the body by giving herbs that are warming, dispersing, and diaphoretic (open the pores to allow sweat to bring pathogens out of the body). Giving cold herbs will exacerbate dampness. Warm, spicy herbs will dispel dampness and keep the periphery of the body open to encourage sweating and urination, the epitome of draining dampness.
So, what are the signs of prevalent Dampness?
Fever, feeling of heat
Greasy/oily skin
Face pale/yellow
Feeling of heaviness in head
Poor appetite
Watery or copious stools
White/yellow tongue coating
Slow pulse
Yellow, odorous mucous/phlegm (damp-heat)
What Are the Signs of Prevalent Heat?
More fever/heat signs
No oily skin, dry skin, little sweat
Red face
Red eyes, dizziness, headache
Hungry, but no desire to eat
Constipation/scanty, dark urine
Red tongue, yellow coating
Rapid pulse
Little mucous/phlegm, but what appears is yellow/odorous
The following herbs would be consumed in frequent and consistent amounts for a specific time period.
Some examples of warm, dispersing, herbal allies:
Lomatium/Fern Leaf Biscuitroot (Lomatium dissectum)
Angelica (Angelica archangelica)
Lobelia (Lobelia inflata)
Cayenne (Capsicum annuum)
Cinnamon (Cinamomum spp)
Clove (Syzygium aromaticum)
Ginger (Zingiber officinalis)
*Osha (Ligusticum porteri)
*endangered, use only when access to the other is limited
Other supportive herbs:
Antivirals:
Elderberry (Sambucus nigra)
Elderflower (and the classic tea blend of elderflower, yarrow, and peppermint)
Echinacea (Echinacea angustifolia/purpurea)
Boneset (Eupatorium perfoliatum)
Andrographis (Andrographis paniculata)
Lymphatics – these will support the lymphatic system in clearing away pathogenic gunk:
Red Root (Ceanothus americanus)
Calendula (Calendula officinalis)
Immune support for later in the illness, when you’re starting to feel better:
Astragalus (Astragalus membrenaceous)
Cordyceps (Cordyceps spp.)
Dang Quai (Angelica sinensis)
From Meg Madden, Herbalist:
Skin Care During Virus Season
In addition to supporting the body through virus season with herbs and nutrition, it is important to remember to externally support the skin. Our skin is an organ that plays a critical role in immune function. In the words of herbalist Matthew Wood, "keep the skin open; sauna, steam bath, skin brushing, diaphoretics because...if the water can't leave by the skin, intestines, [or] kidneys, it will flow into the lungs."
Skin care is another tool to help best support your body through a compromised state, and great in helping maintain a healthy one, so feel free to start these practices before you feel it coming on! These methods below help the body to detox through sweat and stimulate the lymphatic and capillary systems.
Dry Brushing:
Before you get in your shower or sauna, with a dry body brush (natural bristles), begin at the ankles and take long swipes up the lower leg (around ten strokes per area) front, back, and sides, and work your way up. Arms are done the same way, starting with wrists and moving toward the body. Abdomen and back are done likewise and last, brushing toward the heart. Tender skin can be avoided or brushed lightly, but don't be alarmed by a little redness and dry skin flaking in general! That will go away shortly.
Dry brushing stimulates the flow of lymph and helps the lymphatic system to process metabolic junk and infection if bacteria do settle. Additionally, dry brushing stimulates all of the superficial capillaries (hence the redness!), which helps to cool the blood in case of fever and helps facilitate these fluids in expelling toxins through the opened pores by sweat.
Sauna and Steam: NOTE: If you're sick, or if there's sickness in the area, don't use public facilities!
High heat is an age-old method of stimulating the opening of the pores in order to really break a sweat, and it doesn't take much effort. Just relax into the heat and allow your body to become wet with sweat. Keep in mind sweating in extreme heat can be drying, so be sure to keep yourself well-hydrated and maybe utilize a shorter time than if you were well. If you become dizzy or woozy, stop immediately, hydrate, and stay low to the ground. Be sure to replace lost electrolytes as these are critical to hydration and fluid regulation.
Hot Shower:
A good option for if you don't have access to a sauna or steam room and can be a little less fatiguing on the system. Again, it helps to open the pores and capillaries. It’ll also help loosen mucus in the lungs and head. Using warming and drying herbs such as Rosemary, Sage and Thyme are good allies to help address this. A hot shower feels great after dry brushing and if you're fatigued, you can set up a folding chair or just take a regular bath.
Hot Bath:
Similar to the above, it helps in opening pores and capillary beds and soothing chills. The added benefit of a bath is that herbs and oils can be added to the tub in order to help address other complaints such as aches and respiratory issues, to name a couple.
Cold Shower:
After you're exposed to heat, a quick shock with cold water can be helpful to give the immune system a jolt and ramp up cellular metabolism. It’ll also give some relief to the hot and scorched-feeling of inflammation. Remember to do this only after you've gotten nice and warm in the shower or sauna when you're sick. Don't stay in it until you get cold! Just a quick blast to awaken your systems.
Body Oiling:
When you've finished your brushing and showering, a really good way to nourish and protect the skin is through body oiling. Oils create a protective barrier to your skin helping it to function and shield it from other pathogens. Oils help maintain fluid balance by: allowing the pores to remain open to sweat ; keeping it moisturized; maintaining warmth; and is an excellent vehicle for topical nutrients and medicinals.
Herb- and mineral-infused oils excel in helping with aches and pains, temperature regulation, sleep, and just plain functioning optimally. Your herbalist can help you find the right ones! Simply rub small amounts all over the body, just like lotion. Following the application of oil, you can wrap up in old flannel jammies, or an old sheet if you're afraid of getting everything oily, and relax with your cuppa herbal tea.