Warm summer days and nights can sometimes be a struggle if you are hurting from too much sun, poison ivy, poison oak, mosquito, fire ants, bug bites, or jelly fish stings. So, here are a few emergency remedies that may help you have a smooth sailing summer of fun!
What’s bugging you?
While summer is the optimal time for showing off toned skin and flaunting revealing fashions, it’s the absolute worst for bug bites, sunburns, and itchy rashes.
Whether it is a mosquito or beach fleas, some of these bites can be downright painful. They can also itch so much you almost want to scratch the skin off, which can create scars and wounds. Stop skin blunders from ruining the way you feel or look with any of the following natural skin relief treatments.
Mosquitoes don’t normally sting through loose fitting clothing, so this is a good preventative measure. Mosquitoes are attracted to dark colors, while wasps and bees are attracted to light, bright, floral colors.
Non-Toxic, Bug Repllant Recipe
A bug bite deterrent that is easy to make yourself is made of a blend of one or more of the following ingredients.
Choose one or two of these organic essential oils (2 tsp. total oil):
Lavender essential oil
Myrrh essential oil
Rosemary essential oil
Juniper essential oil
Lemon essential oil
1 cup of 180 proof grain alcohol (you can buy this at a liquor store.) You could also use pure water, if you don’t have alcohol.
Directions:
Combine a total of 2 tsp. of essential oil and combine that with 1 cup of 180 proof grain alcohol.
Place it in a bottle with a tight-fitting lid.
(You can also put it in a spray bottle to easily spray on before going outdoors.)
Shake well.
Test it on a small patch of skin first to make sure you are not sensitive to the oil and alcohol.
If you are ok with the test, use it on your skin to avoid bites. If you are already bitten and you are itching and wanting to scratch the pain away, here are a few remedies.
1. Rub aloe vera (either freshly cut or from a bottle) on bites and stings to ease burning.
2. Get relief from itches by applying a few drops of lavender oil to the affected area as needed.
3. I like homeopathic remedies. There are a few options that you can add to your natural remedy medicine cabinet for these itchy situations. A homeopathic you can choose for crazy itching or hives is Arsenicum album 200. When it’s a painful bee sting or insect bite, the Ledum palustre 200. (You may wish to take the Ledum plustre 200 about every few hours until the pain has subsided.) If you have a bite with swelling, apis mellifica 200 can be helpful.
4. “Deep Freeze,” CBD Topical roll-on is very calming and cooling, by Pharm Organics.
- Organically Grown, Premium Quality CBD Hemp
- Organic Aloe Leaf
- Menthol
- Infused with Capsicum, Camphor and other Essential Oils
- Proprietary Muscle Treatment Blend
5. Vitamin B can help calm, reduce nervousness and insomnia. Anxiety can cause itching and/or aggravate it. Try to calm yourself by deep breathing, taking some magnesium and vitamin B’s, to help relax and alleviate nutritional reasons that could cause extra stress and help reduce the pain of the itching. Most people are vitamin B and magnesium deficient. A deficiency in these can result in itchy flaky skin, anxiety, lack of energy, and insomnia.
Once, I was bitten by some kind of small black bug or flea in Panama. It was absolutely miserable for at least a week. I thought it was never going to stop. I read that sometimes these bugs lay eggs in your skin. I also read that it could have been parasites.
Since I had been all over the jungle and visited wild animal rehabilitation places, I was not sure where I received all the bites, or if they were even all the same type of bug or flea bite. It seemed to get worse a few days later and it wasn’t stopping. I was overwhelmed with the itch and was getting quite desperate to find a natural remedy.
For the most extreme cases, where you can’t get the itching to stop, I have found that food grade hydrogen peroxide can be dabbed on the itching spots with a cotton swab or a cotton ball. This solution will kill any parasite that may be inside the skin, but also oxygenate and destroy any infection in the bite.
It can hurt and burn a lot, so I would apply the hydrogen peroxide immediately before getting into the shower to scrub with tea tree oil soap and a body brush. It was very effective and stopped the extreme itching. (I used a 35% food grade hydrogen peroxide, which is extremely strong compared to the 3% grade sold at the pharmacy)
You may need to do this each day, until you are sure it has stopped the itch, killed the parasite, or stopped the infection. With much relief, you can be on the road to healing.
I order food grade hydrogen peroxide through the internet. It is extremely strong. You will need to be very careful when handling this and keep it out of the reach of children. You may want to use normal over the counter (3% grade) hydrogen peroxide, but the food grade is much stronger (35%) for more extreme cases. You can water it down a bit, if it’s too strong for you.
Two brands of food grade hydrogen peroxide I have purchased are: Oxygen Wellness Co. and Pure Health Discounts.
After I do did the hydrogen peroxide, scrub it off, and dry off, then I would put the Pharm Organics Deep Freeze, topical roll-on with hemp, aloe vera, or apple cider vinegar, etc. and it would feel so much better.
Poison Ivy or Poison Oak
Once I went with my husband to hike in the woods with our dog. Our dog was running around in the woods and got poison ivy on his fur. I was petting him and brushing off the sticker burrs, and unknowingly got the poison ivy from his fur. I used tea tree oil on the poison ivy and it was almost gone the next day. I used tea tree oil shampoo on the dog also.
A few years later, one of our house remodeling contractors had a terrible case of poison ivy. He had used cortisone, medicines from the doctor, and everything he could think of for more than four months. He was absolutely miserable. I gave him my tea tree oil to try.
The next day, he came back absolutely astounded at how well it had worked. His poison ivy was gone in a matter of days. Tea tree oil works extremely well for poison oak, and fire ant bites as well.
I use the tea tree oil on any itchy place, bite, or rash. It is especially good for bites that have a fluid in it. Tea tree oil has antibacterial properties. It is not supposed to be used on an open wound.
I used it on a large swollen bite my son had on his back. It was the middle of the night and we were staying in a remote hotel built into the side of a mountain in Greece, with no medical care nearby. I didn’t know what to do, so I kept putting tea tree oil on it. The next day, the swelling had gone down to half, then the next day it was almost gone. We were so thankful.
Another use for tea tree oil is for chicken pox. My son got chicken pox when he was four. He is a redhead and has very sensitive skin. I put tea tree oil directly on each spot all over his body. I thought it would help him not to itch or scratch. In the morning, his chicken pox outbreak was gone, with no scars, no itching, and no complications. It was amazing. His doctor was completely astonished, as was his preschool teacher. I have used it on just about everything ever since.
In my opinion, the New Zealand variety of tea tree oil smells better than the Australian type, but both work really well.
You can also use aloe vera leaf gel on the rash to soothe and promote healing.
Oatmeal baths are also good for calming us down, as well as calming the skin irritation.
If you go to the beach, a jellyfish sting can really hurt. If you have some lemon or limes, rub the cut fruit on the place that hurts. The citrus can help take the pain out.
Drinking carrot juice or eating carrots or sweet potatoes is a natural way to protect yourself from too much sun during summer. The beta-carotene in these vegetables gives the body some natural sun protection.
You can also wear thick clothing that covers your skin but doesn’t contain chemicals. Clothing treated with chemicals such as titanium or zinc oxide will break down in the wash, enter the water supply, and create hazards to the ecosystem.
So, whenever you are outside, get some natural Vitamin D, put on some natural bug protection, wear natural clothing to protect yourself from too much sun, eat beta-carotene-rich foods, and get into the shade if you feel you have been out too long. Enjoy your sunshine and fresh air!
I hope this helps make your summer adventures more enjoyable!
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The information from Nancy Addison and Organic Healthy Lifestyle LLC is not offered for the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of any disease or disorder nor have any statements herein been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). We strongly encourage you to discuss topics of concern with your health care provider.
Medical Disclaimer: Information provided in this email is for informational purposes only. The information is a result of years of practice and experience by Nancy Addison CHC, AADP. However, this information is NOT intended as a substitute for the advice provided by your physician or other healthcare professional, or any information contained on or in any product label or packaging.
