Natural Recipe: Post Partum Herbal Sitz Bath

Immersing yourself in an herbal bath anytime is such a wonderful thing. After giving birth and becoming a new mother, taking time alone to soak in a healing bath is truly heavenly. And a handmade jar full of beautiful, wonderful smelling, healing herbs makes a lovely gift for a pregnant friend. I made this recipe for my friend who had a baby very recently. There are so many ways to make an herbal sitz bath. I've made these up many times for friends and for myself over the years and I don't think I've ever made it the same twice. This is the recipe I used most recently.

Typically, a sitz bath is one in which only the buttocks and hips are immersed in hot water in order to generate energy and circulation to that particular area of the body. You can use this recipe as a sitz bath or you can add it to a regular bath. For a traditional sitz bath, you will need a large tub or bucket to sit in.

 

Ingredients

1 part yarrow

2 parts lavender flowers

1 part chamomile flowers

1 part comfrey leaf

1 part marshmallow root

1 part uva ursi

1 part calendula flowers

sea salt   

 

Directions

You can decide how much of the mixture you would like to make. I used 1/2 cup quantities per each part to fill the large jar I had chosen. If you are filling a smaller jar, use a smaller amount for each part.

Mix all of the herbs together in a large bowl. 

Fill up your jar with the herb mixture.

I finished my jar off with a small square of fabric that I cut with pinking shears and then just fastened it to the top of the jar with an elastic band.

For the Bath

Add one cup of herbs to 8 cups of boiling water. Cover the pot, remove from heat and let stand for 30 to 60 minutes or so. Strain and add this infusion to your bath along with a 1/4 cup of sea salt.

This herbal recipe is used to assist the healing process after birth. It works wonders on the physical body and the ritual of taking time out for a warm lovely aromatic bath is also incredibly healing mentally and emotionally. Just writing this is making me want to go and have one myself. In fact, I think that's just what I will do!

You can purchase these herbs at health food stores who carry bulk herbs or you can order them through The Herbal Clinic and Dispensary and have them delivered right to you. You can also have herbalist, Celina Ainsworth, make up an herbal recipe for you if you don't want to make it yourself. Call the Herbal Dispensary at, 416.537.5303, to place your order.

Leave me a comment if you have any questions!

♥ Andrea ♥

Natural Recipe: Sweet Citrus Calm Tea

Sweet Citrus Calm Tea

1/4 - 1 tsp Natural Calm Magnesium Citrate Powder 

1 cup warm water (Go slow when adding the water- the magnesium powder is fizzy)

1 tsp raw honey

squeeze of lemon

I recently had the great fortune to hear the lovely Susan Gianevsky speak. Susan is a very inspirational woman. Her passion for homeopathy and tissue salts is quite exciting to me because I too am so in love with these methods of healing. At her talk, Susan recommended Natural Calm Magnesium Citrate supplement. I've been feeling lately like my body needs a bit more nourishment and as soon as Susan suggested this product, I knew that myself and my family could benefit from some additional magnesium. I brought it home and we have begun a new ritual.

In the evenings after a particularly hectic day, or just when I feel we can use some extra nourishment, we are all enjoying 1 teaspoon (quarter to a half a teaspoon for the kids*) of magnesium powder in a cup of warm water with some raw honey and a little squeeze of lemon. The kids call it our 'special drink'. This beverage is soothing, nourishing, alkalizing and as the name of the supplement indicates, calming as well. Especially at this time of year, I notice my nervous system and immune system can use a bit of extra support. A cup of this tea seems to be just what my body is asking for. This also makes a great after work drink to help settle body and mind of any hustle and bustle that may be lingering on in there after coming home.

I love that this supplement is called Natural Calm because that is just what magnesium is for the body. I have long been a believer in Mag Phos Tissue Salt which I recommend often to my clients and I keep next to my bed and take anytime I feel that I need a little help falling asleep or if I wake in the night with a leg cramp (these can be signs that the body is depleted of magnesium). When needed, I'll continue to take Mag Phos Tissue Salt along with the addition of my Sweet Citrus Calm Tea ritual. Now that I've been doing this for a little while, I notice a real difference in my body. My nervous system feels stronger, I haven't had any leg cramps or difficulty falling asleep and I generally I feel more grounded, centered and relaxed.

This has become my new favorite ritual.

♥ Andrea ♥

*The information in this article is for educational purposes only and is not intended to be used as a substitute for medical advice from a qualified health care practitioner.* 

Natural Recipe: Lavender Oil

The lavender is blooming in our garden so I decided to make some simple lavender oil.

It's really easy to make! Just take some fresh lavender flowers just before or as their flowers are starting to open.

Place them in a bag and bash them a bit with a spoon.

Shove as many as you can fit into a clean glass jar.

Cover them with an extra virgin oil. I used olive. In this small jar I needed about half a liter.

Let sit for a day but no longer than two because your fresh flowers can get moldy. Drain the oil with a cheesecloth and you're done! 

This oil has a lovely subtle sweet lavender scent and can be rubbed right into your skin or added to a bath. This would also make an excellent relaxing night time massage oil.

♥ Andrea ♥

Natural Recipes: Cough Syrup and Minty Chest Rub

Our wee man was sick for the past week! Goodness it's hard to watch your children suffer with an illness. This particular illness was a really intense cough and chest congestion. I gave him his homeopathic constitutional remedy along with several others that seemed indicated as his illness progressed, tissue salts, plantain/thyme/raw honey and lemon tea, lots of rest, plenty of liquids, healthy food and a little bit of my favorite natural herbal cough syrup Nin Jiom Pei Pa Koa. I also made up a couple of homemade remedies that I want to share with you.

The first recipe I made was a homemade cough syrup because I didn't want to give the Nin Jiom too often. This recipe is really easy to whip up in a jiffy.

Yummy Homemade Cough Syrup 

2 Tbsp raw creamed honey (I always have a huge bottle around)

squeeze of lemon juice

1 drop peppermint essential oil

1 capsule of bee propolis (do not give if there is any concern about allergies to bees and bee products)

I just stirred this all up and gave it to my son (and my daughter because she had to try some too). This will keep for a couple of days in a sealed container in the fridge.

Minty Chest Rub 

2 Tbsp coconut oil (I'm going to use beeswax next time!)

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

15 drops eucalyptus essential oil

7 drops peppermint essential oil

7 drops wintergreen essential oil

1 drop thyme essential oil

The second recipe I made was a minty chest rub, reminiscent of the Vapo Rub that my mom would have used when I was small. I was pretty excited to do this for Eamon because I thought it would be so soothing and I have such fond memories of my mother caring for me when I was ill as a child. Instead however, he was far too grumpy to let me give him a chest rub, so my daughter who wasn't ill got one instead. She loved every minute of it!

I think this recipe would be better with beeswax instead of the coconut oil so that the rub would solidify at room temperature. Once you've melted your coconut oil (or beeswax) in a double boiler, mix all of the ingredients together and pour it into whatever container you're going to store it in. If you try using beeswax and you don't find your final recipe to be a consistency that is to your liking, just gently heat it up again in the double boiler and add more or less oil and beeswax to the mix before cooling again. This smells lovely and will keep in a cool dark place for a long time. Lots of experimenting can be done with this recipe. Camphor, pine needle, balsam fir needle or a number of other essential oils would be very nice in this recipe too. Just please be sure to do your research so that you are aware of any cautions that may come with some essential oils- I added some clary sage essential oil to a bath once and it didn't end well.

I am so happy Eamon's feeling so much better now!

♥ Andrea ♥

*The information in this article is for educational purposes only and is not intended to be used as a substitute for medical advice from a qualified health care practitioner.*