Lo and behold, the herbalist gets sick. Yup, it has been years since I last had a Urinary Tract infection, and back then, i was young and clueless. I let it go until I was in great discomfort, and then submitted to antibiotics to fight off the infection.
This time around, I was better prepared. I've been under a lot of stress, with school ending, trying to move, being broke, work, getting ready for summer travel and more. And my diet has taken a turn for the worse, and the insiduous white sugar powder has made its way into my body on more occasions than I care to admit. So, while suprised that I came down with a UTI, I'm not totally shocked. But I knew what to do.
It started in the middle of the night with my waking every 2 hrs to hit the bathroom, and when I gained an idea of what was going on ( partially through dreams) I rummaged around in one of my half packed boxes of tinctures for my little bottle of Manzanita juniper and yarrow. Specifically made for Urinary Tract troubles. I took the tincture during the night every time I woke up, and the next morning I was quick to be on top of my remedies.
Manzanita, related to uva ursi, and juniper are famous for treating the urinary tract, but I hadn't noticed any improvement in the first 24 hrs, so I brewed up a nice strong decoction of echinacea root, and marshmallow root, with a touch of goldenrod and monarda thrown in at the end.
this soothing brew started it's work immediately. I took around 12-16 oz of that decoction over period of several hours between dinner and bedtime, and then filled my jar of water to the brim, and put a good glug of about 1 oz of echinacea tincture in there for good measure. This was the water I drank all night.
it's been about 48 hrs, and it is all but gone. There are no more symptoms, but I plan to continue with the echinacea and manzanita compound for a couple more days, to prevent any reccurance from rearing up.
ahh...isn't it great to be an herbalist. I knew what to do, did it, and took care of the problem, almost before it fully manifested.
So ,next time you have an impending urinary tract infection brewing, here's a few formulas that worked for me.
tincture:
equal parts of
Manzanita (arcostaphylos pungens) or uva ursi (arcostaphylos uva ursi)
urinary astringent and disinfectant
Juniper berry
aromatic disinfectant, stimulant and diuretic
Yarrow
diuretic, aromatic disinfectant, diaphoretic, anti inflammatory
Tea/decoction:
1pt Echinacea- immune stimulant, lymphatic, disinfectant, vulnerary
1 pt Marshmallow- vulnerary, demulcent
1/2 pt goldenrod- diuretic, aromatic disinfectant
1/2 pt monarda- disinfectant, diaphoretic, anodyne
also, don't forget unsweetened cranberry juice, plenty of water, and plenty of sleep. And NO sugar!!
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