Ok, so let me do the little blub first.. this is advice only, try a small amount yourself to make sure you don’t have a reaction and if anything gets worse etc discontinue use..
Now on with the show.. its spring, we are busy, its getting hotter and this means that at least for me, I am starting to deal with that wet, hot, painful rash that can appear where skin meets skin. Now in flat out terms this is happening because my skin rests on my skin and it allows yeast to grow and its a pain to be sure..
Its also something that is very, very hard to “cure” because the very suitable growth medium is done over and over again daily, the doctors will write you a cream for this and it does work, my mom uses it at the first hints of red and treats faithfully.
The internet will tell you things like use over the counter fungi treatments, but have you read the backs on those, if it was treat once and be done, I can see if being worth it, but given that even the doctors will admit that its a treat as needed, going to be a issue.. I think not..
Then there are those that use baby powder, keep it dry and it will help, and it does, its a great idea for those that have minor issues with this, average size person that only needs to treat because of pinched cloths or the odd spot.. There are warnings out there now in regards to using to much babypowder (scented more then non-scented) but given that babypowder is made from corn starch and that the corn being used is the GMO corn, I has certainly given me pause on that one.. ( If you can find non-GMO babypowder? please share the link with me?!)
Which brings me to the last way I know folks deal with it, which is the hand cleaner or any other rubbing achohol, and you will be doing the dance and hiss of pain after putting these on! it does help, in the short term, it helps dry the area out, it helps knock down yeast to a point, but it does not help the redness, the soreness or the swelling. And now in many countries in Europe, they are banning different chemicals used in those hand cleaners used in N.A. for having possible cancer causing issues.
So that brings me to this homemade salve..
Healing Salve 1
- Plaintain – Fresh picked twenty to twenty five average spring size leaves with stems.
- half a cup of nettle leaves (no stems)
- 1 full cup of wild violets mix of leaves with flowers
Bring in the house, clean them, wash them in truly needed otherwise, don’t.. Roll them into bundles and chop them and then bruise them with the back of the knife or rolling pin if you don’t know how to use the knife correctly for that..
Into a steel pot or even better a double boiler, just cover with the best quality oil olive you own, low, low, LOW heat, gentle warm and allow to steep.. ideally at least an hour or two..
Add in 4 tbsp. of coconut oil and 1 oz of raw beeswax, allow to melt into the mix.. strain and jar the mix into small canning jars, put your lid on and allow to cool.
You can add to the mix while hot if you want to, example a few drops of tea tree oil per jar and mix with a clean dry spoon. This is a hot method of making this salve, you can do the same salve with the cold process but you will need to dry your fresh plants and then allow them to soak in the oils for four to six weeks in a cool dark dry place before straining them and making the rest of the salve.
You can make your salves like a massage oil, just leave out the coconut oil and beeswax or you can make it firmer by adding in a tiny bit more beeswax, or you can make it melt at body heat temp, remove the beeswax and it will still be firmer with the coconut oil at room temp but will melt right in from the room temp..
Mine is a meet in the middle, its firmer but still easy to get out and will start to melt on the skin and is easy to apply. The perk of this salve is that it helps treat the infection, it helps with the pain, and the inflammation, and it is soothing and at least for me, helps remove the pain within the first use.. it does require regular treatments but no more so then the doctor’s treatment, and because its so lovely, It can be used as a lotion as well as a preventive once you have it cleared up.
Ideally, you should only make enough for a 3 month supply but I have had the salves last at least six months at a time. I recommend putting the different plants into the list to be dryed and therefor you can make this salve fresh even when its winter time, the fresh made is excellent, the dried is very good.. both will get the job done..
Just another Day on the Farm 