Catching a cold makes you feel run down and sick, and want to be in bed all day. It's not nice for normal healthy and fit people to experience cold/ flu, and it's even worse if you are pregnant (like me!) and trying to fight off a cold.
Last week, I've managed to catch Mr Holiday's cold and suffered from it as a result! I have a few tips I wanted to share with you all pregnant ladies, and perhaps those who like to fight off cold/ flu the natural way.
My doctor has told me that I can actually take paracetamol (follow the instructions and seek individual medical advice) during pregnancy, although ibuprofen is a No-No! She also advised me that if I have a temperature, it's best if I take paracetamol to bring the temperature down, luckily I didn't. Your little one inside your tummy isn't going to be affected by the cold/flu you are suffering from, so that's one piece of very good news!
But for those of you who are like me, who is a little sceptical about taking medications during pregnancy, what can you do to make yourself feel better apart from drinking plenty of water and having lots of bed rests?
I have two tips for you:
Lemon & Honey for the Sore Throat: The good old trick to cure nasty cold. This combination is known to help soothens the sore throat. I don't have it excessively though, instead I have it around 3 times a day. A couple of pieces of freshly sliced lemon, together with 2 tablespoonful of honey (any honey will do); mixed with very hot water (some might say hot water actually makes honey tastes sour but you've got the lemon in there anyway so who cares?!), sip through it whilst the drink is still quite hot, with cautious though. It really works to soothen the sore and dry throat.
Eucalyptus Oil and Tissues for the Blocked and Stuffy Nose: This time round I had particularly bad blocked nose and there were a couple of nights I could only breath through my mouth which was quite difficult when trying to fall asleep. A quick google search, and a private consultation with my friend who is a qualified medical herbalist, Eucalyptus Oil is what you need to help unblocking the blocked nose the natural way (again please seek medical advice before using it). I have never heard of this essential oil before, and the good news is that it's very accessible in your local pharmacy, and I got mine from Boots. I dropped a few drops of it onto my tissue to inhale and when I needed to blow my nose. It's got quite a pungent minty scent so do be careful before sniffing it. As it's quite strong it seems to have the power to send the scent down my nostrils to unblock what's been blocked. It also helps to 'awake' the head and clear the mind a little bit just when you feel you are dying!
I don't know whether it's the cold or the pregnancy that has weakened my immune system, it's taken a good whole week for my cold to clear! I've certainly had worse cold/flu in my life before but having had to rely on my body to fight against it is a bit of a first for me. I'm glad to report that I am now well, and the two things mentioned above that I tried were of great help!
How do you fight off nasty cold/ flu? Do you turn straight to medications or are you a natural kind of girl who likes to fight against it organically?
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