Staying Well in the Fall and Winter

It's time to start thinking about how we want our lives to look for the upcoming cold weather months.

Comforting casseroles... Fires in the fireplace... Good books to read...

It's wonderful to think about, isn't it?

But on the top of my priority list is staying healthy and feeling well this fall and winter.

I practiced several health habits last year, and we had a very healthy winter.

I'm excited to try them again this year!

I would like to share them with you in today's post.

Because falling ill sure is miserable as a mother, isn't it?

And watching your children take to their beds sick is even worse!

Let's have a healthy year!

The best way I know to do that is by way of prevention.

As the famous saying goes, Prevention is the best medicine.

Well, everything I will mention here would be considered preventative. 

(I will warn you that I'm about to show you some products. I do not make money from my blog nor do I sell any of these products. The following is just a few tricks that have worked for us.)

When taking care of my family during cold and flu seasons, I like to think in terms of staying on top of our health, and being in control.

So, there are a few things I do everyday...

I start by giving each of my children one multi-vitamin and one Airborne every morning with their breakfast.

Even while we're healthy, we all get an Airborne a day.

I like them because they are packed with vitamin C, and keep our immune systems strong while germs are flying around.

Once the breakfast dishes are washed, I start up my diffuser with a few drops of Thieves.

I run it everyday, even when we're healthy.

Remember, the thought is to build up your health so that your immune system can fight off illness.

Diffusing oils has become so commonplace now that hopefully you already have a diffuser on hand.

I had a cheap one for a couple of years and it recently broke. I told Micah about it one morning and he came home that night from work with a new one for me.

He had stopped at Walmart and said he picked this one because he knows I like birds. Bless his heart.

I know you can get very beautiful and good quality diffusers, probably on-line. But for now this one works just fine for us, and I'm happy to have it.

Another thing I have done with Thieves, and it worked very well for me, is to mix a few drops of it in coconut oil to keep by my bed.

I had put the mixture in an old lotion container that I cleaned out.

I had read an article about how the pores on the bottoms of feet can absorb anything into the bloodstream quicker and better than other areas of the body.

So last winter I would put it on my feet each night.

I plan to do it again this year, because I remained pretty healthy last winter. 

Another great thing to have on hand is raw, local honey.

As you can see, I have already begun stocking my pantry, and we've already begun using it!

This is not to be confused with your everyday supermarket honey.

Even honey labeled 'local', may not be local to you!

(I read the fine print on a bottle of honey at Walmart recently that said "local' on the front, and it was manufactured two states away from where I live!)

I get our honey from a family friend who is a bee keeper in our area.

I drink it in my tea and feed it to my children.

Honey has a long medicinal history.

I have read that it has antiseptic and antibacterial properties.

When my children tell me they have a sore throat, I will make them warm honey water to drink.

I've also just given it to them to eat, straight from a spoon.

It soothes sore throats and can even act as a natural cough suppressant.

Speaking of sore throats, whenever I feel I am coming down with a sore throat, a handy trick that's worked for me is to gargle with hot salt water.

It kills the sick germs in your throat.

I like to put a pinch of baking soda in the water, too.

This works really well!

If I feel I'm coming down with something, but have an event or obligation on the calendar that I cannot miss, I will gargle with this mixture (I make the water as hot as my mouth can stand it!) and then take an ibuprofen.

I feel better almost instantly!

The last few things I'd like to mention have nothing to do with products - they're more habit and lifestyle tips.

But I feel they are just as important!

For me, protecting my and my family's health includes these two things - lots of fresh air and a low-stress life.

What good is eating well, using oils, and taking vitamins, if you're breathing stale, germ-y air and your nerves are on edge?

I know everybody's different, so take what I write and use common sense by comparing it to your own situation. I just know for myself that I break down quickly if I allow too much activity to stress out my life!

I stay home as much as I can. We go on nature walks and I am mindful about opening windows to air out the house.

I also sleep with my bedroom window open, even on very chilly nights.

"You would rightly think it horrid if anyone tried to drink dirty water or eat swill, but it is just as nasty to breathe bad air, even though you cannot see how bad it looks. Now there are many people in this world who are very clean and particular about everything, except about the air they breathe. Some of these people are afraid to open the windows and change the air because they say they catch cold so easily. But if they opened their windows often enough, and breathed nothing but fresh air, they would soon grow so much stronger that they would cease to catch cold so easily."

- H.A. Guerber, Yourself and Your House Wonderful 

A large part of what can add stress to my life is being around negative people.

I love to surround myself with uplifting people.

I am lucky that most people in my circle are lovely to be around.

The people who are not, I limit my time with.

"He who walks with the wise becomes wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm."

- Proverbs 13:20

Sometimes you cannot avoid such people entirely.

Perhaps it is a co-worker, a boss, or an extended family member, so you don't have the luxury of limiting your exposure to them.

When I am in such situations I do two things - I depend upon the Lord to give me the strength to be around these people. And then I focus on being kind to them, even though they are not kind to me. Because who knows? I may inspire and uplift them by my good example. 

But if I can avoid them, I certainly do!

I have politely declined invitations to social gatherings because of this.

Not because these people have control over me, but because I know the value of a peace-filled life.

For me, being around negativity can cause an inner turmoil to happen inside me. That leads to stress, and stress can potentially break down my immune system, leaving me vulnerable to getting sick.

It's best to pour my time and energy into my own family, anyway.

My husband and my children are my favorite people in the world!

"Learn what it means to be happy, and to make others happy in your own home."

- H.A. Guerber 

Of course, there are certainly other ways to stay healthy. Faithful hand-washing and regularly eating fruits and vegetables have great health benefits, too! This was just a post about what's been on my mind lately, and what I know has worked for me in the past.

You are welcome to give me any tips about how you stay healthy in the comments!

We can learn from each other!

Let's stay well this fall and winter!

xo,

~ Courtney ~

Some of the photos in this post were taken from Yourself and Your House Wonderful and A Child's Garden of Verses.