Soothing Spring Allergies/Sinuses Naturally

Spring and I have always had a love-hate sort of relationship. I love when the flowers and the trees start blooming and the birds begin chirping outside my window. I love the cool breeze in the morning and in the evening with the warmth of the sun in between.
I don't so much like the fact that as soon as that very first bloom appears, my body feels it. I start sneezing, my eyes begin to feel heavy, my head feels full, and then it happens....I can no longer breathe through my nose!

Now, I will say that these symptoms do not arise near as often as they did before I began eating clean (no gluten, dairy, sugar or processed foods). However, they do still show their ugliness more than I would like. As in this week, right now, I cannot breathe.

So, based on the assumption that many others are probably experiencing similar things right now, I thought I would share a few natural ways that help me during this season.

 Drink lots of lemon water!
The excess of water will help flush your system, keep you hydrated, and loosen up all of the junk in your head that needs to come out!
For more info on the health benefits of lemons, check an older post here.

It's so sad to me that we have been trained to immediately call the doctor and run to the drug store to load up on anything that says it will give us fast relief. I used to do this very thing.
Why not educate ourselves on the many natural ways that we can come along side our bodies to help strengthen and boost our immune system rather than continue to get sick and take medicine that simply masks our problems?
Now, there are certainly things that do require a doctor and some serious illnesses that modern medicine can really help. I am talking about the sniffles, stuffy noses, etc. Things that our bodies can handle if we just know how to take care of our bodies.

In the photo above, you see:
-BioAllers Outdoor Allergy- a friend told me about these and they have replaced medicines like Claritin and Zyrtec for me. Not only does this help my symptoms, but it is building a strong defense in my body against these allergens so that eventually, they do not cause my body so much grief.

Fenu-Thyme- LOVE this stuff! It works just like sudafed used to work for me-relieving me of all of the sinus pressure and helping to clear my stuffy nose. Only now, I am taking a pill that simply has 2 herbs in it and not a pill that is filled with harmful chemicals and dyes that are hurting my body and actually weakening my immune system.

 Vitamin C Powder- this stuff is the bomb! Yes, I just said that, but I don't care because it is! 1 little teaspoon of this boasts 5000mg of straight Vitamin C! I put this in a small glass of OJ or water and chug it.

Calcium Magnesium Zinc- this little pill helps tremendously in boosting your immune system and making your body strong. Read more here.

Elderberry Zinc Lozenges- I just found these at our local health food store this week and am loving them. Did you know that if you start taking zinc within 24 hrs of a cold, it can literally knock it out by shortening the life of the cold and lessening the symptoms? And these have elderberry in them as well. Check out this old post to learn more about elderberry.

When I am sick like this and can't breathe or taste anything, all I ever want is soup. So, I whipped up this recipe today for my lunch.
I knew I wanted something that had a lot of broth to warm my throat but I also wanted some substance so I added a small handful of brown rice noodles as well.
I also wanted something that would open up my sinuses a bit so I threw in spices such as: cayenne pepper, garlic, and ginger.

Soothing Sinus Soup
1 can of organic chicken broth
3 green onions- diced
1 TB olive oil
Small handful of brown rice noodles
1/2 to 1 tsp of garlic powder
1/4 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
*you can add more pepper or ginger if you want it a bit hotter.

Add your oil to your saucepan, toss in your onions and saute  for a few minutes. Add your broth, spices and noodles and cook on med-low for a few more minutes. That's it!
This soup hit the spot for me today. It warmed my sore throat and helped my breathe a bit easier. Perfect!

And now, I think I will sip a cup of hot tea. This is the Yogi Echinacea Immune Support tea. I added a bit of honey and enjoy.

Do you have some natural remedies for allergy season? Share with us.
Stay healthy!
-Jenny

*disclaimer- I am not a licensed anything. What works for me might not work for you. I am simply sharing my journey to better health in hopes to inspire and help someone else. Please read, enjoy and decide for yourself.