green living

My Health Struggle

~ lilthingsmama ~ 1 Comment

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I have mentioned that my health is not good, but decided that I wanted to write an honest post about what has been going on. In the beginning of 2015 my health declined rapidly. There were some things that had been happening for years but immediately were so much worse after childbirth.

Backstory: Throughout my childhood and into college I was a competitive softball player. In 2005 I was hit by a softball directly in the mouth during a practice drill. Three teeth were knocked out and I had a concussion. I had multiple surgeries and procedures done, and I was on antibiotics and painkillers with every procedure.

About a year after the injury, I started dealing with what I was told by multiple doctors was “Overactive Bladder Syndrome”. Medications never helped with the symptoms, so I just had to live with OAB limiting everything I did in my life. About 2 years after the injury my immune system weakened a lot. I was getting migraines, was nauseous 24/7, was physically getting sick way more often, and was struggling to get sleep. This continued through high school, college, to now.

March 2015, after having my son, my bladder and every other symptom got even worse than it was (I never thought that was possible). I started talking with doctors and urologists about my health issues because it was effecting every area of my life. I couldn’t leave the house without having an “accident”, physically getting sick, or having anxiety attacks. The doctors that I talked with did a bunch of tests on my bladder and wanted to treat the symptoms of OAB, but I felt like no one was listening to me about EVERYTHING that was happening in my body. I went through a year of trying medications for the bladder which I was told was the only problem. Nothing worked, symptoms kept getting worse, and I was becoming extremely depressed. I wanted a healthy whole body, not just a cover up for all my symptoms.

In February 2016, I decided to see a naturopath that a couple friends had recommended. As soon as I described all the symptoms, the doctor asked if I had been injured in the past. Well yes I had! In one visit I felt heard, and like I was finally on the road to better health! My softball injury and the multiple rounds of antibiotics mixed with painkillers completely wiped out my body. My body never bounced back from them. My naturopath diagnosed me with “Interstitial Cystitis” which means that my bladder was irritated and inflamed and not functioning like it should. My gut/other organs were also inflamed and struggling to function properly. Combining that with a hormone imbalance, extremely low iron levels, and lack of sleep, it was causing all the health issues.

My treatment is taking many natural supplements (prescribed by my doctor), a strict diet treatment, and trying to improve my sleep. I have heard it said many times that “health starts in the gut”. This is definitely true in my case. My strict diet treatment is to reduce inflammation in both my gut and bladder, get rid of migraines, and also stop the constant nausea by cutting out irritating foods. This means that I have cut out gluten and dairy, along with a long list of other foods. Along the way, I found that chicken was making me sick as well; so weird! Within the first 4 weeks of my treatment I stopped having migraines, I had more energy, and was significantly less nauseous. My bladder has been slow to improve, but I know I am going to get better.

“My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak, but God remains the strength of my heart; he is forever mine.” -Psalm 73:26 (NLT)

This is a verse that I have been holding on to during this long health struggle. When my body is struggling to function properly, and I am feeling down and lonely; I remind myself that God loves me, wants me to be whole and healthy, and will give me strength. Nothing is too big for Him!

I wanted to share what I have been going through, and hope that it helps and encourages others to continue to seek answers in their own health. We aren’t meant to live like this, we are meant to live full adventurous lives. We can do it!

What helps you stay positive during struggles? Comment below 🙂 thanks for reading!

Homemade Air Freshener

~ lilthingsmama ~ Leave a comment

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Did you know that your aerosol, plug-in, and candle air fresheners can be loaded with toxic chemicals?  They are FILLED with chemicals that you should not breathe in, and definitely not your little ones. Just a couple are phthalates, formaldehyde, and benzene. After researching conventional and natural air fresheners, I decided to make my own. There are so many recipes out there for homemade options! I read some that had rubbing alcohol in them, which can still be bad for you to breathe in. Others had Vodka in them (didn’t try those). I chose to use recipes that used just water or small amounts of witch hazel. My family has 2 favorite recipes that I am going to share below. Enjoy!

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Lavender-Peppermint Spray

-4oz glass spray bottle

-fill 3/4 of the way with filtered water

-add 2 Tbsp. Witch Hazel (optional)

-add 10 drops Lavender Essential Oil

-add 5 drops Peppermint Essential Oil

-Shake bottle before each use!

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Citrus-Mint Spray

-4 oz glass spray bottle

-fill 3/4 of the way with filtered water

-add 2 Tbsp. Witch Hazel (optional)

-add 5 drops each of orange, lemon, lime, and peppermint essential oils

-Shake bottle before each use!

 

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Honey! Honey! Honey!

~ lilthingsmama ~ Leave a comment

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Today I’m writing all about that sweet gooey golden goodness that we all have in our kitchen, and the little buzzing friends that make it. I never realized just how much bees do for our environment! In past years, I heard that bees were dying and that it would have a great impact on us, but never truly understood why. Well, I was researching about honey and found out a lot about bees.

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Bees are vital to sooooo many crops around the world and plants that we grow in our yards. Apples, Avocadoes, Oranges, Pumpkins, Onions, Almonds, coffee, cotton, alfalfa, etc (Fox News). Bees are helpful to “30% of the world’s food crops and 90% of wild plants [that] grow” (The Ecology Center). These little creatures do so much more than I ever thought that they did. They help pollinate your food, AND they help pollinate most of the beautiful things in your yard and neighborhood. They also help livestock by pollinating the wild plants that they eat (New AG) Crazy!

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In researching why bees are dying, it seemed that there is no one reason why this is happening. The main culprits look to be neonicotinoid pesticides/ insecticides, Colony Collapse Disorder, parasites and mites, and changes in habitat. Neonicotinoids are agricultural insecticides that resemble nicotine; they are water-soluble and can be absorbed into plants and the soil (which the bees are exposed to). “Although these low level exposures do not normally kill bees directly, they may impact some bees’ ability to foraging for nectar, learn and remember where flowers are located, and possibly impair their ability to find their way home to nest or hive” (Texas A&M). Colony Collapse Disorder is when the majority of worker bees disappear, but the queen, food, and nurse bees are left. This is said to reduce the bee hive population by 30% every winter (EPA). Parasites and mites are apparently becoming more and more of a problem. Some mites can drain body fluids and weaken the immune system of the bees, they also leave bees vulnerable to viruses through an open wound they leave (Reveal News). However, if you treat your hives the miticides can build up in your beeswax. Lastly, habitat change of farming, lack of wildflowers, and drought are all affecting the lives and health of bee hives (Reveal News).

Now about the golden goodness that these little guys produce! Honey is such a great natural sweetener. According to organicfacts.net, honey is 69% glucose and fructose which makes it easily digested into usable energy by our bodies. They also say that honey is naturally full of vitamins and minerals such as: Vitamin C, Calcium, Iron, and much much more. Another great benefit is that it is full of antioxidants and it also has antibacterial properties (Organic Facts).

When I have heard about honey and what is healthiest for you, I have heard “organic raw” is healthiest. So I decided to research what that meant. Organic honey means that the hives are not contaminated with pesticides and insecticides, also that these buzzing little guys have not been treated with antibiotics (Organic Facts). I thought that if you had a hive and your yard was pesticide and insecticide free, that your honey would be organic. I was totally wrong. The plants within about a 4 mile radius of the hive are all accessible to the bees. So all those plants would have to be untreated to be able to say honey is organic (Scientific American). Raw honey means that you haven’t filtered or heated it. There is an initial filtering to extract the honey from the comb but that is it.

I want to say congratulations to my in-laws for getting a second place ribbon at the Washington State Fair for their honey! 🙂 They have hives in their backyard and create such a great environment for the bees. Their plants are never treated with pesticides or insecticides. I cannot say their honey is organic because the bees could pollinate plants off of their property, but their honey is raw. They do not heat their honey at all, and is minimally filtered. This honey tastes AMAZING! It tastes different than any honey I have bought at a store, and I would honestly describe it as “more wild”. It is thick and has a rich honey flavor. I would definitely recommend for anyone to support local bee keepers and look for organic raw wildflower honey. So so yummy!

What is your favorite honey? Comment and share your favorite. Don’t forget to subscribe to the blog with your email to receive updates! Like and share 🙂

 

 

My Deodorant Switch

~ lilthingsmama ~ Leave a comment

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One of the first things that my family switched to in order to lessen our chemical exposure was deodorant. Conventional deodorant can be chocked full of harmful chemicals! I am not a doctor, so my decision was based on research I have personally done on the topic. This blog post will go through why I made the switch from conventional deodorants, that you can buy anywhere, to organic options.

Everyone has their own opinion and this blog is outlining the reasons why I personally switched the products that I use on my body. Sterling and I had watched a documentary that mentioned the toxicity of deodorant, so that made me look at the ingredients on the deodorant that I used. The deodorant that I was using, prior to switching to a homemade deodorant, had some very harmful chemicals in it. The first ingredient was “Aluminum Zirconium” which (through research I did on the internet) has been linked to kidney and nerve damage and over time linked to breast cancer and Alzheimer’s disease. That alone was enough to make me want to switch deodorants. If you continue to look at your deodorant’s ingredients, you may find more harmful substances. Due to my deodorant containing aluminum zirconium and artificial fragrance, I switched to making my own deoderant.

When researching how to make my own deodorant, I discovered many recipes with baking soda and without. I found that baking soda can actually cause irritation on certain people. I tried a recipe that did contain baking soda and did not have a reaction to it. After trying other organic deodorants, there were no negative reactions. Personally, I like that I can pronounce every ingredient in my deodorant and that it is all natural and organic. I would much rather put coconut oil and essential oils on the delicate skin of the underarm than a form of aluminum.

I have heard from friends that “natural deodorant does not work”. I understand there is a frustration that comes with trying multiple natural products to find one that works for you, but the peace that comes with knowing I’m not putting harmful chemicals on my body out weighs that for me personally. The first natural thing I tried worked great for me though, it was a homemade coconut oil deodorant with essential oils.

I will give you all the recipe that I used to create my homemade deodorant on my next blog post. I encourage you to look at the products you are using to see if they could be harming you. I want you all to be happy and healthy!

Thanks for reading! Click the follow button and sign up for email updates of new blog posts! 🙂

 

DIY Baby Wipes

~ lilthingsmama ~ Leave a comment

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I Just made a new batch of baby wipes yesterday, so I wanted to share the process with you all!

Supplies:

-Seventh Generation “unbleached” or “recycled” Paper Towels

-Large sealable container (that can fit half of a paper towel roll)

-2 1/2 cups hot filtered water

-2 Tbsp. Dr. Bronner’s Unscented Baby Castile soap

-2 Tbsp. Organic coconut oil

How To:

  1. Cut the paper towel roll in half with a sharp serrated knife.
  2. heat 2 1/2 cups filtered water in a bowlimage
  3. Add 2 Tbsp. organic coconut oil, stir, and melt completely.
  4. Add 2 Tbsp. Dr. Bronner’s unscented soap and stir.image
  5. Place one half of the paper towel roll in the wipe container/tupperware.
  6. Pour the water/oil/soap mixture directly over the paper towel roll.
  7. Press down the saturated paper towel roll.image
  8. Close the lid tightly, and flip upside down.
  9. After a couple minutes flip back over and open the container up.image
  10. Make sure the entire roll is saturated, then gently pull out the cardboard tube.
  11. Lastly, transfer to the container you use for wipes. Pull up the middle so that it feeds through the container opening easily.image

*The whole process takes less than 20 mintues

*Wipes will not last as long as store bought wipes. Mine usually last about 1-1 1/2 weeks.

Ok that was a longer post! It is worth going through this process, because you do not have to worry about what ingredients are in your wipes. These are safe and mostly natural ingredients. Like, follow, share, and comment! Thank you!!!

DIY Dryer Sheets

~ lilthingsmama ~ Leave a comment

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The very first change that I made in my house, to go a little greener, was to throw out dryer sheets. Dryer sheets are chocked full of dangerous chemicals! So I started experimenting with making my own safe dryer sheets.

Supplies:

-Mason Jar

-Distilled White Vinegar

-Filtered Water

-Cotton cloth/t shirt

-Thieves Essential Oil

Instructions:

The first step is taking a cotton cloth/t shirt and cutting it up into pieces. I cut mine into about a 4in. X 4 in. square.

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Next, in a mixing bowl, add 1/2 cup white vinegar. Then add 1/4 cup water and 10 drops of Thieves essential oil. Stir them all together, and then pour into the mason jar. Side note: Thieves is an anti microbial essential oil. It will help fight bacteria and give your clothes a good scent.

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Once you pour the mixture into the mason jar, add your pieces of cotton cloth/t shirt. Seal the jar tightly, and let the cloth soak for a minute or two. Then you want to turn the jar over so that all the cloth is soaked. And that’s it! A Super easy way to cut down on harmful chemicals!

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When using a dryer sheet, ring out excess vinegar mixture before throwing it in the dryer. Thank you so much for reading!