By Cindy Nabb

My husband is self employed which means we don’t have the luxury of having health insurance.  We are covered if something major happens but the little stuff is all on our own.  We also have six children and when illness strikes our home it can last for weeks before everyone gets it and it can cost a small fortune if everyone went to the doctor, and got a prescription every time.  I had a dear friend introduce me to herbal and natural remedies.  From there it took off.   I am, by no means, all-knowledgeable of herbs and their potential to heal our bodies but I am a firm believer that God has put plants, minerals and even dirt on our planet for our benefit.  We see duplicity so often in God’s creation.  God is bigger than we can imagine and his plan so intricate that virtually everything serves more than one purpose.  Plants and flowers are not only beautiful and attractive, they’re also useful to us.

 I have read many books skimmed through even more.  The first book I read was one called The ABC Herbal: A Simplified Guide to Natural Health Care for Children by Steven Horne.  Other books to check out are Mommy Diagnostics (The Art of Taking Care of Your Family) Revised & Expanded, Herbal Antibiotics: Natural Alternatives for Treating Drug-Resistant Bacteria (Storey Medicinal Herb Guide) and I found a site that is especially helpful, mountainroseherbs.com.  These are all good references but nothing is better than just starting.  

So, I began creating herbal remedies for our family to take to keep us healthy and those to take when sickness did strike.  I picked a few recipes to start with and a handful of herbs to really learn about and went from there.  The first thing I made were glycerin tinctures.  I have since moved on to make alcohol tinctures as well as vinegar tincture.  It is not uncommon for us to have garlic in our ears for earaches, take steamy peppermint baths for a fever, garlic catnip enemas are given to small children with fevers, valerian and cayenne pepper for headaches, echinacea tincture is always stocked in our fridge and probiotics are a staple.  

We do still get sick but I have noticed that we don’t get as sick as we used to and not as often.  Our bodies are working better and we are healing faster.  It is possible to take control of your own health care and to not go to the doctor as often.  Our bodies are wonderful creations and have the ability to heal themselves, sometimes the just need a little help.

Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 6 in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.  7 Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and shun evil. 8 This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones.  —Proverbs 3:5-8