If you saw my last post, you might have noticed I was slowly turning into a frog with my voice.  Friday morning proved that I was officially a fallen soldier and had to call out of work.  I had lost my voice completely, felt feverish and had a mean sore throat. I wasted no time and took a visit to my local City MD. If you live in New York, you would have to agree that these new City MD establishments are kind of fantastic.  However, I have a new tale to tell because I left there a little bit surprised. This has a lot to do with what I am learning about our body’s natural ability to heal itself, the systemic issues that exist in our healthcare system and some common sense. I was diagnosed with Laryngitis which most likely was contracted from my contact with children.  He prescribed me lots of rest, fluids and four prescriptions: Ibuprofen (800 mg tablet), Magic Mouthwash Liquid, Azelastine Nasal Spray Aerosol  and Hydrocodone-Homatropine (Cough) syrup.

Out of curiosity, I asked the medical assistant, “Why do I need the 800mg Ibuprofen? Wouldn’t an Over the Counter ibuprofen be sufficient?” He simply answered, “Well this is stronger.”  In my opinion, this is a perfect example of when to self-reflect.  For the most part – a golden rule if you will – always be skeptical of the advice and information you receive.  What I am trying to get at is, sometimes your body will have to combat a sickness.  In that time, you will feel discomfort, unease and possibly some pain.  All of the above that was prescribed to me were not cures for my laryngitis.  They are simply intended to numb me through the uncomfortable process.  Not surprising since our modern American culture conditions us to believe we need to comfortably heal ourselves.  According to Eastern medicine, healing is not always an easy going process.  Not to mention that filling prescriptions is a detriment to the pocket!  If I decided to fill each prescription, I would have walked out of Walgreens with a sweet $85-105 expense.  Adding hard-earned dollars to the pockets of pharmaceutical companies. Just think about it.

Ok, so let’s talk about alternatives.  The Ibuprofen was intended to ease my discomfort.  If you don’t know, 800 mg is a large dosage, enough to ease a stallion.  My throat is in a state of inflammation and it needs the assistance of an anti-inflammatory.  If needed, I saw no harm in taking one if I felt uncomfortable but I could use the one in my medicine cabinet.  Oh and Hi! I am in the process of cleanse that is based off anti-inflammatory foods and practices that could only enhance my cause.  For the Magic Mouthwash Liquid, you could gargle fresh lime juice and salt.  This is an old school fix that my parents always told us to do whenever we felt soreness in our throats.  For the Azelastine Nasal Spray, you could use some kind of nasal irrigation device like a neti pot. This will flush out all the guck from your nasal trap.  I also learned that nasal sprays are an unexpected but common source of heavy-metal exposure. The most commonly found metal in nasal sprays is aluminum.  Ick!  As for the Cough Syrup, I went to my local health food store and asked the vitamin counter lady what alternatives she suggested. She recommended some lozenges instead by a brand called Olba’s.  So far, they’re great.

It has now been 2 days since my visit to the doctor’s and I feel tons better already.  I still have a slightly sore throat but I’m easing it with lots of Lemon Ginger tea that I make from scratch.  Let go of the teabags mi gente!  Oh, and according to my sister, I sound a little less painful to listen to 🙂

– Stephanie