Herbal Household Remedies

The article I picked these from informs us that ob/gyns have taken to prescribing Prozac against severe forms of PMS… oh well. Read the whole article here:
Choose Nature Instead of Prozac for PMS and PMDD

Here’s what’s known about the effectiveness of some of the more common natural products and remedies used to soothe the symptoms of premenstrual syndrome:
* Calcium. Consuming 1,000 milligrams (mg) of dietary and supplemental calcium daily, such as chewable calcium carbonate (Tums, Rolaids, others), may reduce the physical and psychological symptoms of PMS. Regular, long-term use of calcium carbonate also reduces your risk of osteoporosis.

* Magnesium. Taking 400 mg of supplemental magnesium daily may help to reduce fluid retention, breast tenderness and bloating in women with premenstrual syndrome.

* Vitamin B-6. A daily dose of 50 to 100 mg of vitamin B-6 may help some women with troublesome PMS symptoms.

* Vitamin E. This vitamin, taken in 400 international units daily, may ease PMS symptoms by reducing the production of prostaglandin, hormone-like substances that cause cramps and breast tenderness.

* Herbal remedies. Many women report relief of PMS symptoms with the use of herbs such as black cohosh, ginger, raspberry leaf, dandelion, chasteberry, St. John’s Wort and evening primrose oil.

* Colloidal Gold. Colloidal gold is one of the least known yet most effective mood and mental enhancers.

* Natural progesterone creams. These are derived from wild yams and soybeans. Some women report that these creams relieve symptoms. Combine one handful of chamomile and one handful of dried orange flowers in a cheesecloth or muslin bag and hang from the bathtub faucet. The warm water will release the fragrant oils and relieve PMS discomfort.

Other topics that may be helpful:

Cramping

* Pumpkin Seeds. Eat pumpkin seeds about a week before your menstrual period (a handful - 1/4 of a cup a day) and your cramps should be non-existent. Also eat them as a snack during the period.

* Hot water and ginger. Boil the water and stir in two to three tablespoons of ginger and drink it up. You should feel better in 30-45 minutes.

* Dill pickle juice. Drink a half cup when you feel a cramp coming or as soon as it strikes.
One heaping teaspoon of salt in water (1 to 2 to one glass) may also do the trick if you have no pickle juice handy.

* Yogurt or calcium. Eat two cups of yogurt a day in the days or week leading up to your period and you should not be moody or have cramps when your monthly period comes. If you don’t like yogurt, take a calcium supplement… Continue during the period. With either one, you should see a big difference in your time of the month.

* Oregano and water. Take three tablespoons of oregano and mix with one liter of water, then bring to boiling and continue to boil for five minutes. Strain and drink as a tea. You should feel better soon and continue to feel well for an entire day.

Menstrual Cramps

* It should be no surprise that an herb named cramp bark (Viburnum opulus) would work wonders for menstrual pain. It contains at least six compounds that relax muscles, as well as salicin, the pain-relieving compound from which aspirin is derived. Take one teaspoon of the liquid extract every hour until your cramps subside. If they don’t ease within 48 hours, stop taking cramp bark.

* Supplements. Take 1,000 mg calcium and 500 mg magnesium daily. Calcium and magnesium work together to regulate muscle contractions and the conduction of nerve impulses.

* Ginger tea (for cramps). Grate two to three teaspoons of fresh ginger root and simmer in two cups of water for several minutes. Add lemon and honey to taste. Drink as much as desired.

* Acute cramps. Combine equal parts of ginger, valerian, and cramp bark tinctures, to be taken in half-teaspoon doses every twenty minutes until the symptoms subside.

* Aromatherapy. A couple of days before menstruation begins, massage the following combination into the abdomen once or twice a day, as well as using them in the bath. Blend together equal parts of chamomile, an anti-inflammatory; clary sage, which relieves depression; lavender, a relaxing herb; and tarragon and marjoram, which are anti-spasmodic.

* Hot ginger poultice. Make a strong ginger tea or add a half-teaspoon of ginger essential oil to a quart of hot water. Dip a towel in the water and wring it out, lay it over the abdomen, and place a hot water bottle over the ginger towel to retain the heat. Relax for fifteen minutes.

catnip, ginger, marjoram, mustard, oregano

Warm or slightly coolish tea from marjoram and organo, a tsp each added to a pint of water that just stopped boiling, and let stew for half an hour and strained, helps with fever and relieves cramps too.

Grandma’s Old Time Mustard Plaster still helps for a variety of disorders, just like it used to do, fever among them. Mash leaves and stems of fresh mustard plant into a pulp.  Coat the surface of the skin with petroleum jelly (Crisco lard or Vaseline) before applying the pulp to prevent serious blisters or raising welts on the skin.  Bind into place with gauze and adhesive tape and keep on for several hours or overnight for best results.

Ginger tea breaks high fever:  Grate enough ginger to equal about 2 level tbsps, the add them to 2 cups of boiling water and cover.  Let steep for 30 minutes, drink 1 cup while still warm every 2.5 hrs.

Catnip tea reduces fever and the misery that comes with hayfever and nausea:  Bring 1/2 cup of water to a boil, add a tsp of freshly cut or dried catnip after removing the water from the heat and let steep for 20 minutes. Drink lukewarm, and you can add honey to taste.

cabbage, cumin, ginger, marjoram, oregano, thyme

For external usage:

• Cut out the midribs from several large green cabbage leaves and iron them with a steam iron until they are soft as velvet. Rub a little olive oil on one side and put them on the area of pain, covering them with a heavy towel. Leave for a while before changing again. GUARANTEED relief, every single time.
• For a cumin poultice that relieves stomach cramps, gall bladder and liver pains, soak 2.5 tbsps of cumin seed in hot water for two hours, then crush them with a rolling pin or something else heavy. Then add some drops of peppermint oil to some hot water, and mix a little white flour, the crushed cumin seeds and hot water to form a thin paste. Spread the paste on a piece of clean cloth and apply to the abdomen.
• Hot ginger compresses relief pains of many sorts, abdominal cramps, muscular aches and pains, even neuralgia and kidney stone attacks: 1.5 grated unpeeled ginger roots need to be tied in a small cloth, then hung for 7 minutes into a gallon of hot water that just stopped boiling. The ginger juice colors the water golden. Towels dipped in the still very hot water, then gently squeezed and applied to the aching spot, should stay warm for 15-20 minutes and grant relief. The procedure might be repeated for a total treatment of about 45 minutes, and repeated after 4-6 hours.

For internal usage:

• A tea made of cumin seeds relieves muscle spasms: Steep 1 tsp of cumin seeds in 1 pint of water for half an hour, strain and drink as warm as you wish.
• Warm or slightly coolish tea from marjoram and oregano, a tsp each added to a pint of water that just stopped boiling, and let stew for half an hour and strained, relieves cramps too.
• Thyme tea relieves stomach cramps as well as migraines. Drink one cup of warm thyme tea on an empty stomach before lying down for a while. Here is how you brew thyme tea: Bring 1-3/4 pints f water to a boil and steep a dozen sprigs of fresh or dried thyme in it. Remove from heat, cover, and let steep for half an hour.