Sinus Woes

I have been suffering for the past two weeks from a horrible, and my first ever, sinus infection. I am guilty of overusing Afrin over the winter. My family and I try to avoid unnecessary medicating and I justified my Afrin usage to myself with tons of excuses about needing sleep and whatnot. The fact is I know there are safer ways to use those kinds of nasal sprays without getting totally hooked and I constantly ignored the signs that I was damaging my nasal passage ways. Every day my nose would hurt like I had burned the skin inside.

I also a few years ago received as a gift, a Neil Med Sinus Rinse bottle. This thing works wonders and i neglected to use it over the winter. The resulting situation - a simple sore throat and cold that moved into my sinuses for a killer infection.

Thankfully I still had my sinus rinse bottle! Here it is:

Amazon link to bottle kit.

It is so cheap! And such a miracle little invention. Unlike the Netipot, which I have never personally used, you hold your head straight forward and the bottle forms a seal over one nostril. Then when you gently squeeze the bottle the pressure pushes the salty fluid and anything else in the way, through one side and out the other. As long as you hold your head straight and forward that is all it will do. The Netipot works similarly but you hold your head sideways and kind of pour it through instead of squeeze.

Well my infection was so bad I was using this seriously like 6 times a day to rinse out the cavity. I even did what they advise against and held my head back and to the side to let the rinse go straight into my upper sinuses. I do not recommend this! I was extremely careful and my infection was pretty severe so this is not something I ever wish to do again or think anyone should just try.

Now it didn't cure me I had to turn to some OTC allergy medicine to dry it out but I have been much more comfortable and I feel i have sped the healing with the use of the rinses. And I did manage to avoid a trip to the urgent care center, we have no insurance, and I avoided the dreaded nuclear bomb antibiotics. Also the area I live in is known for normally having high levels of allergens and this year has been the worst in a long time, most folks i know have had colds and allergy issues even if this isn't their norm. I am hoping to not have to take this medication long.

And perhaps if i had been using the rinse through the winter instead of foolishly turning to a medicated nasal spray I never would have ended up with the infection to begin with! No way of knowing for sure at this point but i assure you next winter I will be using this more regularly to stay clear and keep my medicine cabinets clear of nasal sprays.

I cannot recommend this product enough as a natural remedy for allergies, stuffy noses, drippy noses, just about any ailments. But like anything it can be over used so if you don't have any symptoms there is no need to rinse your sinuses. There are "good guys" in there too and you don't want to needlessly rinse them out when they have a job to do. Only use the rinse as an aide when your guys need a little boost of help.

Fabric Softener?

While we're talking laundry let's finish it with a fabric softener chat.

I spent years in retail selling clothes. During that time I went through extensive training both by the companies i worked for and on my own to learn about fabrics. And across the board one of the most common themes is avoid fabric softener! It ruins fabrics. It clogs pores and just reduces the lastabilty.

With that said most of us still prefer it. So here're some tips.

I once tried this recipe that didn't work for me but might for you. You take a liquid softener, I even found one that's fragrance free! Take a lidded storage container and put about 1 part softener to 3 parts water in it. Then take some ordinary unused kitchen sponges cut in about 1 inch squares and drop them into your liquid mixture. Do not over fill, all the sponges need to be covered by liquid. Then just throw one in your dryer with each load!

I didn't like this for a couple of reasons. First and most importantly I do NOT recommend using this if you have small children, like under 3. The sponge squares get lost in each load and i assure you a baby will be able one to find it and pop it into their mouth! Perfect little choke hazard. After we pulled about 3 of those out of our 9 month old's mouth I did away with it. Also, I stored mine on my dryer and it got yucky. Like mildewy and clumpy. Perhaps if I'd stored it on a shelf above the dryer the heat wouldn't have bothered it. Or perhaps it wasn't the heat? Still might be worth it to you to give it a shot.

This left me with almost a whole big bottle of liquid fabric softener so I started experimenting. I found that for my HE machine I used about a tablespoon to 2 per load and got great results. That bottle lasted for months! The manufacturers tell you to use a lot more than is necessary with most products. You can take the angle that they are trying to get you to buy more but it could also be that they want to make sure it works really well. Whatever the reason, you can probably use a fourth or even less. Play around with your particular brand.

Now I do not use fabric softener at all. I use white vinegar. That's it! About half full in the fabric softener spot on my machine. It works just fine and there is no smell that I notice and i have a super nose.

But if you do choose to use real fabric softener, do not use it on towels or cloth diapers. It will ruin them by doing just what it does to all your clothes and clogging them. On those things particularly though it stops absorption. Use white vinegar instead to help with softness and static and it also helps clean a little.

Plus if you happen to have invested in some of those fancy workout clothes that are made with a driweave or similar material that is supposed to help keep sweat off you while you exercise, fabric softener will ruin the function of these fabrics also.

I will keep on the lookout for ways to make your own and if i find any i will test them and post about them!

Laundry Soap - Frugal and Environmental

I used to "make my own" laundry soap. It's a little time consuming but can be done in a few hours and supplies you with tons of soap that can last a few months depending on your usage and is super cheap. However a year ago we switched to a high efficiency machine and I was not sure the quantity to use safely and i am not willing to risk my machine. So I had to find another alternative. I read in the comments section of one of my favorite frugal websites hillbillyhousewife.com a good trick i now use.

I purchase regular powder laundry soap, take a clean jar fill 1/3 soap, 1/3 Arm and Hammer Washing Soda and 1/3 Borax. The washing soda and borax are the ingredients used to make your own soap! This really extends my detergent. I also feel like the carbon footprint is smaller because io go through less packaging. I use 2 tablespoons per regular load and 1 tablespoon for cloth diapers. Works great!

For those interested, here is the recipe and directions for the laundry soap I used to make:

You will need a bar of soap, laundry specific or Ivory is what I always used, 3/4 cup each of washing soda and borax and lots of water

Grate your bar into a large pot, the smaller you grate the faster this goes and this is the longest part. Pour on top 6 cups of water.
Over a low to medium heat melt all the soap. You must melt it completely before continuing to next step.
Once it's melted add the borax and washing soda and melt into mixture completely. I think this is a step most people rush. If you do not melt these powders down completely your final product will not gel.
Take a large bin and put 4 cups of cool water in bottom, the bin needs to be able to hold 3 gallons.
Pour over cool water hot mixture from pot and stir.
Add 1.5 more gallons of cool water and stir stir stir.
Here you could also add some essential oils if you'd like a scent, I do not recommend that if you are using this to wash cloth diapers. A few drops of any oil is plenty.
Stir stir stir.
Let sit overnight and it will gel up though it is ready to use immediately. I found thus mixture needed about a cupful per load. Which to me is way too much to put in a HE machine and why I stopped using it. Once the soap is gelled you can stir it to loosen and pour it into smaller containers, like leftover laundry soap jugs, for easier storing and easier pouring.

I hope you all try to find a way to save some green, think money and Earth, by experimenting with ways to extend your laundry soap.

Intro Post

I have so much to share with you about my ways of life I do not even know where to begin. So I will begin with who I am.

I am Lea. I am a wife to a very lucky man and the mommy to 2 beautiful boys, at this time they are 1.5 and 3.5, born exactly 2 years and 2 days apart.

As a mom it has become increasingly important to me to care for not only my family but our mother earth. On this journey I have learned a lot. I am also a stay at home mom with no income so it is also my journey to save my family money. Fortunately a lot of times those two paths cross each other and I can do two things at once. Which any parents out there know is so necessary when living in the circle of a family.

I am mommy. I am a princess or a ninja or a superhero. I am a feeder of bodies and minds and souls. I am a milk maker feeding my chidren as the Earth feeds hers. I am a screamer and a crier. I am a laugher and a crier. I am a cleanser of bodies and cleaner of kitchens and bathrooms. I am a goddess and a slave. I am a small cell of the body of the Universe and a universe to the cells in my body. I give and I give and I give and I wouldn't want it any other way. I am blessed and I am grateful.

Please join me as i show you and share with you some of the gems of my life the way I live it.
Namaste.