Right now we have an actual health crisis on our hands. Something that is slowly affecting the entire country. It’s the smoke from the West Coast. It has been getting increasingly worse, and most people don’t know how far reaching it is for their health.
Here in Wyoming we can’t see our mountains at a distance anymore. The sun is a creepy shade of red. Sometimes it smells like a campfire outside where there is none.
Do you know which symptoms to look for? Or how to best support your health through this?
Let’s start with some of the symptoms from wildfire smoke:
- Being extra tired
- Not sleeping well
- Difficulty breathing (of course)
- Scratchy throat
- Stuffy sinuses/increased mucous
- Burning or red eyes
- Headaches
- Increase in any of your existing symptoms
- Change in bowel movements or digestion
There are many more, but these are some of the main symptoms we are seeing.
In terms of the extra mucous, that’s your body trying to trap the particulates to keep them from getting further into your system. That is your body doing its job. Good job, body!
But why is it important to know that these are symptoms of the wildfires? Because these symptoms also signal to you that your body is struggling. Every day your body is handling a million different things for you and you don’t even know it.
When you start seeing actual symptoms coming up, that’s your body asking for help.
So what can you do to help your body right now? Here are some simple things you can start doing today:
For your eyes, take a warm and moist wash cloth and place it on your eyes for 10 minutes per day. This will help make sure that your eyes are producing enough moisture themselves which is key for eye health.
If you’re not sleeping well, check out this article http://unlimitedhealthy.com/portfolio/the-importance-of-sleep/
For your throat and lungs, make sure to drink more water. I really do mean just plain old water.
You need to be as hydrated as possible, because every function in your body needs water, and when your body is already overburdened you need to make functioning as easy as possible.
I really hate to say this next one, but if you’re very affected by the smoke, please stay inside. You know I love the outdoors, the mountains, and hiking! One patient even commented I always look like I’m about to head out into the mountains.
But if the smoke is too much, there is no safe way of being in it. Maybe go outside for 10 minutes to get some sunlight, touch the actual earth to ground yourself for all of those awesome health benefits, but then go back in.
Because we are dealing with this extra burden, I most definitely am reaching for some extra supplements.
This is a stressor, and extra stress burns right through magnesium.
So of course I take extra MIN to make sure all those 100s of functions in the body that need magnesium can keep going. I’m taking extra CTV!
Vitamin c is so so so important as an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory (and so much more), and that is very needed right now.
I’m also upping my BIND. The toxins from the smoke are getting into your body, we need them to be detoxed safely. The BIND will help grab it and get it out, safely. If you are noticing the smoke increasing any pre-existing issues, you may even want to consider taking more of which ever supplement is supporting that already.
If this is mentally stressing you, which is completely understandable because we’re seeing beautiful land being burned to the ground, people losing their homes, people and animals losing their lives, keep in mind the fires will come to an end.
Personally, I have definitely increased my CALM and General Sedate intake because I feel like I carry the burdens of the world (turns out, that doesn’t actually help anyone) and I wish I could help everyone. So I’ll make sure to take care of myself to help all of you wonderful people, and I hope you’re taking care of you, too.
