LIVE SWINE FLU BLOG

OK, I've got a great opportunity to write about Swine Flu. I've got it!
It is now Wednesday evening, and Tuesday afternoon I started to feel the classic flu-like symptoms coming on - body aches, headache, dizziness, chills, tightness in the chest. By late Tuesday night it was full blown, adding a fever to the list of symptoms. This time around I started out right away with Echinacea tincture. Normally, if I feel I'm dealing with a virus, I'll go with St. John's Wort tincture for a few days, and if that doesn't do the trick or secondary symptoms develop, I'll go to Echinacea, but since we are in the middle of the Swine Flu pandemic, I wanted to go right to Echinacea, whether or not it turned out to be the flu or not. All the while I'm still using St. John's Wort in massive does, too. Remember, the St. John's Wort is the main viral fighter, the Echinacea is to keep away secondary infections, especially lung infections.

I felt immediate relief from the Echinacea, and I think I've learned something new: There really is no reason to wait to use Echinacea as it seems to have a strong effect on the general immune response, whether or not it specifically is fighting that particular virus. Really, if you suspect it can help you, go for it. As long as you are not taking Echinacea on a daily basis where it could have serious negative effects, similar to overusing antibiotics, you really have no worries.

The most amazing quality of the Echinacea is how it dries/clears out your lungs and keeps them safe. As far as all the normal coughing, sneezing and phlegm in the lungs, there has been little to none of it. The only symptom I'm currently left with is the body aches; you really need to take a lot of St. John's Wort, and I will try upping the dosage and frequency, because I've been surprised not to receive much relief in that department. I can also try drinking more fluids, and, if I'm up to it, getting a little exercise, perhaps tomorrow. But I'm amazed at how clear my lungs are. What a comfort and relief to someone with the flu to have that wild card taken off the table. The healing process now just involves a lot of rest until my immune system clears out the virus.

Remember: I'm using tinctures made from 100 proof alcohol. The dosage for Echinacea is half my body weight in drops, in my case 100 drops, 4 droppers full. With St. John's Wort, the dosage I've been using is 4-6 droppers full about 100-150 drops, but I may need to up that. I started out using the Echinacea about every 1/2 hour to an hour and now I'm down to every three or four hours as I have felt relief. I will continue to taper down the frequency, but not the dosage, as I start to feel better and better.