Herbal or Non Medicated Ways to Get Rid of Sore Throat and Tight Chest

If you are congested one thing you can use are the Vicks things you put in the shower. Or you can put eucolyptus (i know i can't spell) oil on a rag or sponge and put it in the shower. Both of these release vapors that help to unclog. Also, if you can get a Netti pot it helps to keep me from getting sick... also gargle w/warm salt water. I hope you feel better
L.

apple cider vinegar (2 TBS in cup of water - a little organic honey if you like too) three times a day. Also gargle with a little peroxide (diluted with a little water) ...

Green tea with fresh squeezed lemon or lime and natural honey
is a great all natural remedy. Make some homemade chicken noodle soup - it really does work. (let me know if you need a recipe )
Hope you feel better soon!
H.

I would suggest you gargle with very warm salty water. And you may want to try rubbing Vicks on your chest and neck and also rub some on the bottoms of your feet at bedtime and putting socks on to sleep.

Hi B B,

I don't know if you can take this when you are pregnant, but when I first feel a sore throat or cold coming on, I start taking 2 echinacea pills 2-3 times a day. It wipes it out in a hurry. I also take extra vitamin C chewables. In combination they work well also. But just one of them sometimes takes care of it.

HOpe this helps.

A.

Hello, I do not have medical insurance and I always use Chloraseptic to spray my throat and have been where I was sure I would have to go to the doctor. I know my ex was allergic to something in it so I would as the doctor or pharmasist. Only other thing would be to drink hot lemonaide or gargle with warm salt water. Good luck. I got some sort of bug just before both of my children were delivered. Not fun. Have a happy baby day. G. W

The steam inhalation with tea tree oil.

If I understand correctly you are looking for a natural way to relieve discomfort and letting your body take care of the bug that is making you so miserable. Please remember that any herbs you take are another form of medication and depending on the "dose" can be helpful, ineffective or actually harmful.
You can try a warm lemon bath with honey and a dropperful of echinachea and golden seal every 4 hours. It really boosts your immune system in a gentle way and adds a soft tissue mild antibiotic that doesn't do any harm to your baby. Please ask your MD if they know of any contraindications to this. I have not seen any in Dr Hales books for infants or lactation or during pregnany. The antibiotic in the golden seal is not strong enough to counteract a serious infection but can help in the early stage of a cold as a preventative.
This is an old tried and true remedy from the herbal journals. Please check the ingredients on the homeopathics before you take them. There are some ingredients that can decrease your amniotic fluid or dehydrate you that can cause preterm labor.
I hope this helps,
K. @ The Nestingplace

The best thing that I've heard of so far (and this is gonna sound weird) is to take Vick's Vapor Rub and put it on the bottoms of your feet right before bed and then put on socks. My step mother had this horrendous cough for several weeks and she was making herself sick off of cough medicines, but she did this and it worked! I thought this was a bunch of hog wash so I read some research on it and it's legitimate. Apparently, the bottoms of our feet absorb a lot into our bodies, so that is the quickest way for it to take effect. Now, you can use this on babies when they're newborns so it should be safe for pregnancy too. Let me know if it works. Good luck!

You're right to avoid decongestants, etc. and seek alternatives to relieve your symptoms, but if your doctor is suggesting antibiotics, I would take them. Something like strep or bronchitis is treatable and there are plenty of safe medications. I had a sinus infection during one pregnancy and was MISERABLE until I got the right treatment.

Hi!
I've been in the same situation! I'm not sure what else to do besides hot tea with honey and lemon. If you are coughing, a teaspoon of honey mixed with a little lemon juice helps as long as you are consistent with it. like 3 times a day or so. if you feel like you are getting an infection of any kind, colloidal silver is a natural antibiotic that i took when i was pregnant and it works great. it got rid of my strep throat last week. i am like you and don't go to a doctor unless i'm dying lol. But the colloidal is safe enough that i've given it to both my children as infants and it works great. I hope this helps!

For future reference, I use this powder package which you mix with hot or cold water. Its actually quite tasty and I even buy the kids' version for my kiddos. You can find them in Central Market, Whole Foods, Kroger and HEB. Its usually in the vitamin section. Its called Emergen-C. Its a super energy booter with 1,000 mg of Vitamin C, as well as many other mineral complexes and B Vitamins. I always keep some on hand. The second my husband and I feel any signs of a cold or sore throat, we start taking it. Usually, we don't get sick, or at least not a full blown cold. It creates a fizzy drink and comes in tangerine, rasperry, lemon-lime, etc. I just checked one of my packages and I see a website for the distributor. www.alacercorp.com

I swear by them and recommend them to anyone. You might just call your doctor's nurse and check with them since you're pregnant.

for your sore throat in one cup of warm water dissolve 1tsp of soda + 0.5 tsp of salt + 3-4 drops of iodine. and gargle. soda and salt will soften sore throat, iodine will desinfect. it really healped me when i was pregnant. do it as much as you can or feel sore.

I was first going to recommend fresh squeezed lemon and honey. This is what my mother use to give us as children. I can't think of the names of the teas, but look for one that is good for sore throat. I'm not sure if this is right, but I'm thinking ekenasia (sp?) tea. Anyway, bottom line, drink warm liquids.

Hope you feel better.

When I was younger, my mom used to wrap a really cold wash cloth (put it in the fridge for a while) around my throat and then put a woolen sock around it with a saftey pin. The cold helps bring extra blood supply to the area, which in turn can help it heal faster. Even though it seemed silly at the time, it worked for us most of the time, but we would have to do it 2 or 3 times a day to have it work the best. I would also do all the other things like gargle salt water, drink hot lemon/ginger, etc.

heat equal parts of honey and lemon juice and add a little bit of ginger. drinking just a couple teaspoons should make your throat feel better instantly! i did that when i was preggo. also, you can gargle with salt water, which will actually heal your throat. you can also drop a tylonol in there and let it dissolve and it will help numb the pain

fish oil will support your immune system. check with your dr. for dosage- i'm on 3 g a day (i'm 32 weeks pg).
throat coat tea by traditional medicinals will help throat, slippery elm lozenges also are nice.
zycam is a homepathic remedy to keep a cold from getting worse. it really works, but only in the first couple of days. i don't see any reason to not use it while pg, but check with your dr.
saline spray (non-medicated) will help keep your nose moist during the day.
ask your dr. about vicks rub if your chest gets congested. not as natural, but at least it's external.
hope some of this helps!

Take lots of good probiotics to support your immune system. See Body Ecology Diet (Donna has a section for pregnant women) and The Candida Wellness Center (I think their website goes under candidayeastanswer.com). They have high potency, good quality probiotics which you need while pregnant and nursing to support your health and your baby's!

BB-

This is going to help you right away but thought you would like this suggestion in the future. I have used an all natural mouth wash and all natural tea tree oil as well. And what I do is I garge with the mixture to help reduce the bacteria and viruses. I also do this for our whole family is put a few drops of "Tea Tree Oil" in a vaporizer. This works GREAT!! I also use all natural cought dropss to help relieve the pain in the throat. And then of course drink lots of G'Day Tea. i know this probably won't solve your solution right away. If you like to know more info. e-mail me at ____@____.com
Have a great evening

This won't cure your cold, but my doctor told me that I could take just plain Claritin, NOT ClaritinD, and then of course, tylenol. That will at least make you feel a little more comfortable.

Hi BB,

It looks like you've gotten some good advice on how to get rid of this illness. To prevent any future illness for yourself or your toddler, a healthy diet rich with fresh, raw fruits and vegetables is the key. If you're like me and have trouble eating the recommended 9-13 servings daily, call or email me and I'll let you know what worked for my family.

Hope you feel better soon!

M.
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____@____.com

Young Living oils has a blend of essential oils that is great for respiratory support. I don't want to sound "salesy" on here so I'll just link my recent blog post about it.

http://essentialsaromatherapy.blogspot.com/2007/10/cough-...

Also, just to let you know - it is 10% off until the 15th of November. :-D

Marjoram is the only oil in the blend I noticed right off hand that is sometimes seen on a "avoid during pregnancy" list of essential oils becuase it is an ammenagogue (sp?) - which means it helps regulate late or stubborn menstrual cycles. It would be one to avoid during first trimester becuase of that effect (helping bring on a late menstruation) but I've used it during 2nd and 3rd trimester safely.

Talk with a naturopath or midwife with experience using oils if you have any other questions.

Eucalyptus oils and pines are GREAT for breathing support and peppermint is so refreshing - kids like it a lot and it's got that nice anti-microbial effect. :-)

Gargle hot water and salt. Not to hot to burn your mouth, but not warm either and enough salt to make it taste really, really salty. 2 to 3 times a day.

Also, tea made from ginger root. Boil some water and add 2 or 3 slices of ginger root. Add a little sugar to taste.

I have asthma and am quite prone to bronchitis. I was prescribed zithromax two different times during two diff. pregnancies and had no problems/side effects. I also tried not to take unnecessary meds, but my OB made a good point and basically said that if you are sick and not getting enough oxygen then that is worse for the baby than the very small amount of medication that may cross the placenta. So don't feel bad about taking the prescription and getting yourself healthy again so that your body can support a healthy baby!
Hope you feel better soon.