I suppose it was inevitable - I came down with a chesty cough, had to cancel 2 things I was really looking forward to and then AF strikes - again! Then the downward spiral as it affects everything so typing with one, half open eye, little or no voice and very painful what feels like - trachea which kept up awake so no sleep either. Can’t decide which is worse?
Oregano oil - been mentioned a few times as an anti-bacterial - but how do you use it? Been steaming with Olbas oil every few hours which does relieve the chesty cough but desperate to avoid antibiotics if I can.
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CDreamer
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I make a drink and also gargle with a thyme infusion, 1 heaped teaspoon dried thyme pour on boiling water steep for 5 to 10mins then strain, add honey and lemon. Ginger or garlic can be added too, I always keep some root ginger in the freezer. Wonder if you could add a few drops of your oregano oil too, though I cant imagine that mixing in well. Do you have some dried oregano?
I bought some oregano capsules last year, but I believe they triggered my AF.
Hi Jean - thanks for the tips - I have all in my cupboard. Currently sipping lemon, ginger and manuka honey. I will make up the thyme infusion later - good tip - thanks. All the research shows positive results - the Oil of Oregano has
One reason oil of oregano is considered an essential oil hero is the presence of carvacrol, one of the most bioactive components of this herb. Carvacrol has demonstrated its anti-disease potential in preclinical trials, but human trials are still lacking. That said, its antimicrobial, antioxidant, and anticancer properties have been documented by researchers.
Breakfast was toasted oats with almond, almond milk, ginger, cinnamon, carrot, sunflower seeds and pear - covering all bases!
My breakfast was 2 dessertspoons of buckwheat flakes (not a wheat but a seed) and 1 level of ground oats, 2 chopped dates, about 10-15 sultanas. pinch of cinnamon (alternated with ginger), level tspn ground flaxseed and 1 level dessertspoon each of pumpkin and another of sunflower seeds. All mixed with lactose free milk and microwaved for 2 mins, then stirred, more milk added if required and then back for another minute. Everything organically produced.
My daughter would tell me off for saying the above, she did on holiday. Someone told me what they ate for breakfast at home, so I said what I have, she told me it was boring! Lol. I like to hear what people have, I may be able to pinch an idea for something different.
They're not a trigger for me, perhaps it was the preservatives in the ones you had? Think it may be sulphur that's added. That's why I buy the ones without.
I've had AF attacks in the past at least twice after eating blueberries, so never have this so called super food now
Yes I also believe it was the preservatives so sulphates is a good call. I think blueberries are OK for me but I will see if I get any funny beats after I next have some. It's really difficult to know what is and what is not a trigger, getting a little paranoid comes with condition. I am convinced that my nails grow at twice the rate during periods I was susceptible to having attacks but all logic tells me that this just cannot be right. That said they have been growing at their normal rate for the last 8 months that I have been symptom free.
Very often it is the sulphates used as a preservative which is the problem - I was similar until I started to buy organic without sulphites and am now fine with them.
I just wonder if the microwaving is depriving you of the full value of what you are eating? I just pour on boiling waterto a similar mixture and let it stand.
Ours was the height of indulgence today. 2 rashers of grilled streaky ( the only bacon you can get here) a fried egg and a big fried mushroom on a wholewheat roll. Topped off with a squirt of HP fruity sauce! We have this every 8 days and I have to make it as it is too much multitasking for my husband who normally makes the breakfast.
Thanks - I have done a lot of study around various oils and am aware of their potency - evidently you can use a couple of drops on pad in steam inhaler or put 1 or 2 drops under the tongue - which is what I did - then used olive oil to ‘pull’ through mouth. Actually feels quite a lot better already. It has been mentioned a few times recently on threads - which is why I asked.
Oh snap! Cdreamer - have had the same and also struggling to get rid of it. I have just consulted Dr Google and all sounds positive except I found 1 reference to oregano oil may cause bleeding in people taking anticoagulants - so may be better to try Jeanie’s thyme infusion? I will be carrying on with honey, lemon and ginger plus steaming - I seem to be predisposed to chest infections so it is always a worry for me when I get anything like this - mostly I just wait for the AF to kick off and then I know I have a chest infection (again). Hope you find something that works for you! Liz
Sorry I can't comment on treatment other than good hydration, honey for the throat etc . So sorry you are suffering as if you haven't enough going on.
Ditto from me, no real helpful advice because I’m not into alternative stuff although I’m sure it can be beneficial. You are so good at helping others, just wanted to wish you better ........
Thanks - I’ll try the reflexology one - unfortunately I am quite restricted with what I can take as I am on immune suppressants and echinacea is out but I take Vit C & D & a complex which contains Zinc.
Normally when you are unwell your body uses much more vitamin C than usual, so you can take 1 grm am and pm, or, for 48 hours, take 1 grm every two hours (when awake). This will do a lot to enable your body to fight off the illness/chest infection etc.
Taking 1 grm of vitamin C at the first sign of a problem can often prevent it developing altogether.
Sorry to hear you are unwell and have AF as a visitor to boot . My gp told me to drink twice as much plain water as usual ,as it thins the mucus on the chest wall. I hope you feel better soon. Xxx
I don't have experience with the oregano however I just went through an upper respiratory infection and also an ear infection and ended up taking the antibiotics I was trying to avoid. When I went to the doctor after eight days he told me from now on if it's not getting better after five days come see him. I hope you feel better very soon.
I gargle with a couple of drops of teatree oil in a glass of warm water and use a drop or 2 in a bowl of boiling water to inhale. Purported to be anti viral and anti bacterial. Don't swallow most people/ books say poisonous. Another fan of manuka honey the highest strength you feel you deserve us blackcurrant jam and a little water melt gently and store in a glass bottle. Take as often as you like and lots of fluids.
Thanks to everyone who replied - my heart has settled somewhat thankfully.
The oregano oil did help but I am being very cautious. If it was a sore throat I think it would be easier as I would gargle but the pain is lower down and during the night it was very uncomfortable as I felt spasms and was almost choking. I am pretty sure that was the Myasthenia - muscle weakness after coughing so much. I am just feeling so wiped out - slept a lot of yesterday and don’t feel any more energetic this morning.
The manuka honey is out and taking lots of warm drinks - lots of ginger, lemon, cloves and drinking plenty of water to flush things through and if no improvement by tomorrow I’ll book an appointment with a GP.
I do not have anything to offer except my sincere wishes for you to get better soon and so sorry you have to go through this. Life isnt easy at times is it! Hope you feel better soon and glad to hear that your heart has settled a bit.
I have used oregano oil capsules to combat a UTI with success. I did get an attack of afib several days after finishing but I was feeljng extremely tired that day which was probably due to fighting the infection. Nothing while I was taking them. I took them according to the instructions on the box which I bought at the local pharmacy. I have also taken them at the slightest suspicion of a sore throat and have successfully warded off any lurgy . You could try NAC for the cough. N acetyl cysteine. It was recommended by our pharmacy the last time I had a cough ( March 2016) and works a treat as it fluidifies secretions. I take it every day as a preventative for colds and flu. I have read that it has an anti aggregant effect but have no idea how strong that is. However having just read that you are on immune suppressants it might not be ok longterm. You could consult a pharmacist though I am not sure pharmacies in the UK would stock it. Is that for the Myasthenia ? Garlic is also very good for coughs - chewing the raw cloves is not easy but it works. Chopped up on cheese on toast under a layer of tinned toms helps disguise them!
Thanks - I use a lot of garlic - it’s good in an oil dressing to put on Veg instead of butter. Most pharmacists are useless on herbal remedies - France & New Zealand & Spain are much better informed & helpful - yes I’m on 1g/bd Mycophenolate - it’s the maximum dose - for the Myasthenia. It depends upon which part of the immune system the NAC works on - I’ll research.
Sorry to hear you are ill. You help so many people on here. Honey, Honey and more Honey. Its anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory and full of vitamins. I always gargle with TCP three times a day with sore throat. Keep warm, rest and get well soon.
My wife swears by it. Not only is it antibacterial, but also anti-fungal and anti-viral too. She started using it about 15 years ago when plagued with sinus infections that would begin in December and end in May. After repeated rounds of antibiotics, she never got any better. She heard a radio program about the benefits of using Oil of Oregano and called in. The doctor on the show suggested that because of all her antibiotic use, what she was probably suffering from was a fungal infection.
She called her ENT the next day and went in for a swab, results were not due back for 7-10 days. She went ahead and started using the Oil of Oregano, figuring she could not feel any worse. . When she went for her follow up appointment and to get the test results, the doctor was amazed because she was completely clear. And, yes the test proved it was a fungal infection and yes the Oil of Oregano had cleared it up, so no need for the anti fungal prescription the doctor had already written and put in the chart.
Ever since then we have exclusively used Oil of Oregano for any illness, regardless of the cause and all of us have had great success and been able to avoid antibiotics. My son and I both have MTHFR gene mutations that causes us to have bad reactions to every prescription we have ever taken, so the Oil of Oregano has been a godsend.
She has also added Olive Leaf Extract to the regime as well as Sambucol if she suspects a cold or flu. We also take Sambucol daily in flu season as a preventative.
My wife uses the North American Herb Oreganol brand of liquid and capsules. One capsule two times daily and 3 drops of the liquid under the tongue daily. Results are usually pretty quick, unless we wait to long to start.
You also need to take a probiotic at least 30 minutes before or after the Oil of Oregano because like antibiotics, it wipes out the good gut bacteria.
Thank you for that info. I first heard about Oregano Oil in US, it is less well known here in UK. I am certainly no worse & I feel less congested today & phlegm is breaking looser. Today was better than yesterday.
I’ve been using 2 drops under the tongue & then rinsing with Olive Oil & putting 1 drop in the steam inhaler.
I also have to be very careful with prescription meds - almost anything with an anti before it is out as are all the heart meds.
PS I take kefir daily & prebiotics but thanks for the warning - I didn’t realise that - but thinking about it - makes sense.
I hope it works for you and that it clears it up. I think we Americans are fed up with Big Pharma and have turned to alternative methods in increasing numbers. Many of us have figured out that the pharmaceuticals were making us worse, not better. Thankfully, there are increasing numbers of functional medicine specialists who actually want to get to the root cause of what is wrong and do not look askance at complementary or alternative medicine.
I remember well when our son was having extreme fatigue and was diagnosed with liver problems which were from the medications used to treat his misdiagnosed drug induced lupus. (It was mistakenly diagnosed as systemic lupus, but was in fact drug induced from Minocycline, an antibiotic prescribed like candy for acne in the US. My wife immediately started researching and found a protocol developed at Johns Hopkins and implemented it. She gave him Milk Thistle and put him on a specific low carb organic diet that they recommended. After 6 weeks when they retested his liver enzymes they had come down dramatically and were at the lower end of normal, which the doctor said was perfect for his age.
My wife tried to tell the gastroenterologist how she did it, but he told her not to tell him what she was doing, but to keep doing it, as our son was doing great. He told her that if he endorsed something that was not "standard of care" his malpractice insurance would not cover him. Such a shame that people are being denied treatments that work and unless they do their own research they will never find out about them.
As I have posted before I ended up in the emergency room getting an IV with morphine for the unbelievable pain caused by 2 doses of Cipro for a urinary tract infection. I was unable to walk for 6 weeks because of the severe pain it cause in my back and legs and the Tramadol given for the pain did absolutely nothing. Thanks to all the opiod addicts the doctors are loathe to prescribe something that will actually work, so the rest of us have to suffer. I try to avoid pharmaceuticals if at all possible, and if I do have to take them, try to get off of them as soon as possible.
Not sure if it an art or skill or a bit of both deciding when Pharmaceuticals are appropriate & when Complimentary/Lifestyle Medicine? Luckily one of our GPS qualified in Functional Medicine & I see an NHS Consultant also FM trained but as you say they also have difficulty negotiating the boundaries. Sad isn’t it? Interesting that they also came to FM because of their own health issues when conventional medicine methodology failed. Functional Medicine has a different meaning in UK so generally known as Integrative or Lifestyle but has same meaning.
I think you need to watch the ginger with anticoagulant. Sorry your suffering, it seems to be the thing at the moment but sometimes we have to bite the bullet and take the antibiotics I finally had to resort to these after two weeks of wheezing and it cleared in 5 days. Now poor Mabel is ill 🤒 so having to stay away. Hope you feel better soon. 🤗
Away for the winter so no access to my books.I did qualify in aromatherapy decades ago but don't practice.but oils are my first aid & go to in illnesses.Something rings a bell that oregano is an oil to use with caution.to try to fight off a cold or virus I swear by ravensara but only available in aromatherapy shops.it is a much nicer smelling form of tea tree. But tea tree,lavender eucalyptus in a blend might come close.frankinense is good for the chest but it is possibly a natural thinner.I also take soluble vitamin C tablets to boost that.yes most oils run a sink of hot water .just sprinkle a few drops & inhale.
Thanks - but it’s a chest infection not a cold which could be either bacteria or virus.
I'd still go for some lemon and honey instead! One time a GP insisted I took an antibiotic for a chest infection, I ended up with thrush (for the only time ever) and needed another antibiotic to get rid of that!!
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Sending love and hoping you feel fully better soon without any need for antibiotics or interventions 💜
Given up on meds
New Year's good wishes - and a plea for help.
Update on seeing Electrophysiologist - and fed up.
