Description
Book SynopsisA step-by-step naturopathic guide to using the hands-on natural healing method of compresses and poultices
Valued by herbalists, midwives, and mothers throughout history, compresses and poultices are gentle yet highly effective natural remedies you can safely use at home. Easily made from materials you already have in your kitchen, such as ice cubes, herbs, cabbage leaves, lemon slices, clay, or beeswax, these simple preparations can quickly ease pain and inflammation, relieve congestion and edema, lower fever, drain abscesses, activate circulation, calm muscle spasms, and trigger the body’s natural self-healing abilities.
In this step-by-step naturopathic guide to compresses and poultices, Christopher Vasey, N.D., shows how to use these time-tested folk remedies to treat 70 common ailments and conditions, including headache, asthma, acne, sinusitis, earache, arthritis, sprains, hives, shingles, anxiety, insomnia, mastitis, constipation, diarrhea, muscle pains, bronchitis, and more. He explains that a compress is a cloth soaked in hot or cold infused water and applied to a specific part of the body. A poultice works similarly, but instead of a liquid extract, the healing material is made into a paste and applied directly to the body. He details what type of compress or poultice to use for each ailment, whether to use it hot or cold, where on the body to apply it, and for how long.
Vasey also explores the physiological reasons these simple remedies can be so effective, such as how some treatments trigger healing through the nerves, others cause the skin to absorb or expel substances, and others have beneficial effects on the body’s internal chemistry. He reveals how compresses and poultices not only can alleviate acute symptoms, but are equally effective for dealing with chronic conditions.
Offering an indispensable complement to your home first aid kit, this book provides you with a hands-on way to bring relief and healing to yourself and your loved ones.
Trade Review“Ancient Chinese physicians believed that a competent healer had no need to cut into the body; herbal poultices, acupuncture, water treatments, and herbal brews were the mark of the advanced practitioner. In this book, we are given a glimpse of modern cures that do not involve violence to the physical form. With simple and easy-to-follow directions, Dr. Vasey shows us how to use the skin, our largest organ of elimination, to effect a cure. This book includes many commonsense precautions and a well-crafted collection of compresses and applications for common injuries and conditions, many of which involve foods we already have in the kitchen like potatoes, onions, and lemons. I highly recommend this book!” * Ellen Evert Hopman, author of Secret Medicines from Your Garden and A Druid’s Herbal of Sacred *
"Vasey gives a concise overview of the skin and associated biological processes, which is helpful for those without an education in natural health or a background in biology. An ideal family go-to guide." * Nexus Magazine, June/July 2019 *
Table of ContentsINTRODUCTION
Rapid Relief with Easy Home Remedies
1 Why Are Compresses and Poultices So Effective?
Elimination Equals Healing 2 The Skin and Its Functions
Filtration and Excretion 3 Compresses and Poultices
Natural Healing with Cloth Wraps, Medicinal Plants, Vegetables, and Earth 4 The Effects of Compresses and Poultices on the Skin
Rebalancing the Terrain 5 The Application of Compresses and Poultices
Examples and Recommendations from Head to Toe The Head Bump on the Head Following a Blow (Goose Egg)
Headache
Migraine
The Face Acne (Pimples), Oily Skin
Neuralgia (Facial and Dental)
Sinusitis
The Mouth Swollen Lip (From a Blow or Insect Bite)
Toothache
Tooth Abscess
The Eye Black Eye
Inflammation (Irritation and Itching of the Eyes)
The Ear Earache The Throat Acute Sore Throat (Laryngitis, Pharyngitis, Tonsillitis)
The Nape of the Neck Cervical Vertebra Pain Caused by the Joints
(Arthritis, Rheumatism)
Stiff Neck, a Crick in the Neck
The Chest Asthma
Bronchitis and Coughs
The Breasts
Breast Abrasions
Mastitis
Nursing: Insufficient Milk
Nursing: To Reduce and Halt the Flow of Milk
The Abdomen
Liver and Gallbladder Conditions
Stomach Pains (Nervous Stomach, Indigestion)
The IntestinesConstipation
Diarrhea (Intestinal Flu)
The Bladder
Anuria (Urine Retention, Difficulty Urinating)
Cystitis
The Uterus Painful Periods (Menstrual Cramps)
The Back Muscular Pain in the Back (Lumbago)
Pain of the Nerves and Back (Sciatica)
Vertebral Back Pain
The Anal-Rectal Region Hemorrhoids
The ShoulderMuscular and Joint Pains of the Shoulder
The Elbow Epicondylitis (Tennis Elbow)
The Wrist Arthritis of the Wrist (Inflammation)
The Hand Arthritis in the Fingers
Nail Infection
Pinched or Hit Fingers
Whitlow (Abscess in the Soft Tissue)
The Hip Arthritis in the Hip
The Knees Arthritis
Osteoarthritis
Water on the Knee
The Calf Cramps (Charley Horse)
Varicose Ulcers
Varicose Veins (Poor Circulation)
The Ankle Sprain
The FootCold Feet (Poor Circulation in the Extremities)
Degenerative Osteoarthritis of the Feet
Gout and Arthritis in the Toes
Warts and Corns
The Skin Burn
Eczema
Fungal Infection
Insect
Sting
Itching
Pimples with Pus (Abscess, Boil)
Shingles
Sunburn
General Disorders Anxiety, Nervous Tension
Fever
Insomnia
Directory of Compresses and Poultices
Index
