Heat-related illnesses happen on a continuum, from heat stress to heat exhaustion to heatstroke.

Whilst colloquially we might call heat stress ‘heatstroke’ or ‘sunstroke’, they’re two totally different beasts and it pays to be able to tell the difference!

Heat stress and heat exhaustion primarily are issues of dehydration but in heatstroke, the body’s temperature regulating mechanism malfunctions and we can no longer cool ourselves down.

Heatstroke is a medical emergency and you need to call 000 right away. Let’s learn to recognise the signs of heatstroke and what to do while we’re waiting for the ambulance.

This article’s about heatstroke, but if you want to learn herbal remedies and DIY recipes for heat stress and heat exhaustion, you’ll love my upcoming course: Make your summer apothecary: 3 week medicine-making course, starting October 21

What is heatstroke?

Heatstroke occurs when the body overheats and our inbuilt cooling system fails. Normally, sweating and evaporation help regulate body temperature, but in heatstroke, the body temperature rises to 40°C (104°F) or higher and can no longer cool down effectively.

Without quick treatment, heatstroke can lead to serious organ damage and even be fatal.

A recent report showed 1000+ people died of heatstroke between 2016 and 2019, with other reports showing there’s heaps more hospitalisations from heat-induced complications, or exacerbations in other medical conditions.

Even though most of us don’t really give it a second thought, heatstroke from heatwaves is the biggest killer from natural disasters in Australia

Heatstroke symptoms

Recognising the signs of heatstroke early is key to preventing serious complications. Common symptoms include:

• Very high body temperature where skin feels hot and flushed (VS heat exhaustion when people feel hot but still have a normal body temperature)
• Little or no sweating despite the heat (vs heat exhaustion where people are still sweating)
• Confusion, agitation, or dizziness
• Severe headache or nausea (headache can also by symptoms of heat exhaustion but nausea is usually associated with heatstroke)
• Collapse, seizures, loss of consciousness

If you or someone else shows these signs, it’s time to act immediately.

(In case it’s helpful, in the Make your summer apothecary course, you’ll get a table with a side-by-side comparison of symptoms for heat stress, heat exhaustion and heatstroke)

Who’s at risk of heatstroke?

Anyone can suffer from heatstroke, but certain groups are more vulnerable:

• Young children and babies because they heat up more quickly than adults
• Pregnant women
• Older adults who have reduced ability to regulate temperature
• People with chronic conditions, particularly heart or breathing problems. If you take regular medications, check with your doctor or pharmacist about extra heat precaution.”
• Athletes and outdoor workers in hot or humid conditions

Heatstroke first aid: what to do

If you suspect someone has heatstroke, treat it as an emergency. Here’s what to do:

1. Call 000 emergency services right away
2. Move the person to a cooler location, in shady area or indoors with air conditioning or fan if possible
3. Hydrate slowly, electrolyte/ rehydrating drinks are best if you have them, or water. Don’t give fluids if the person is unconscious or confused
4. Cool the body quickly. Apply cold wet cloths, ice packs (armpits, neck, groin), or immerse in a bath or shower if possible.
5. Stay with them until medical help arrives

How to prevent heatstroke

You probably already know how to prevent heatstroke because it’s summertime commonsense in Australia (whether we follow it or not is another matter, health advice is kinda like that, easy to know hard to follow (but that’s a tangent for another day 😉)

Here are my heatstroke prevention tips:

• Stay hydrated, drink water and on especially hot days (or if you know you’ll be out in the sun), drink herbal electrolyte drinks to replace electrolytes. Coconut water can be a good natural electrolyte drink in some circumstances, but if really sweating or already starting to feel heat stress you’ll need to add some extra salt for adequate mineral replacement.
• Wear light, breathable clothing, and a wide-brimmed hat outdoors.
• Avoid peak heat hours, usually 11am to 3pm.
• Take regular breaks in the shade if working or exercising outside.
• Check in on vulnerable people
• Have a household and heatwave plan, make sure everyone in your household knows what to do during heatwaves, including how to store heat-sensitive medication if relevant, where and how to access cool locations, and a plan to check vulnerable family, friends and neighbours

Like many issues in home herbalism, if we catch symptoms when they’re small, they don’t have a chance to progress to more serious illnesses. This is true here too. If we can catch heat stress in its early stages it’s unlikely to progress to heatstroke

Learn how to use herbs for heatstroke and make your own herbal remedies and DIY electrolyte drinks join my upcoming course: Make your summer apothecary: 3 week medicine-making course

The post Heatstroke: symptoms, first aid and prevention tips appeared first on Everyday Empowered.

So, in winter, I am thinking about what our immune system specifically needs, and also what we as humans need in this season. Here’s a quick overview, and I’ll explore each in more depth below.

1. herbs that directly strengthen and bring balance to our immune system.
2. herbs that help us slow down, rest and unwind
3. herbs to nourish ourselves
4. herbs to keep us warm

Herbs that directly strengthen and balance our immune system

When we’re thinking of taking herbs as immune boosters long-term, we’re thinking of gentler, safer, more food-like herbs. There is often an overlapping line between food and medicine, and with long-term use that’s generally where we want to be.

These days medicinal mushrooms are a well-known and popular deep immune support. These can include shiitake, reishi, chaga, etc.

My personal favourite “grandma herbalism”-style immune strengthening herb is astragalus. It’s a great herb to add to your decoctions (teas that you simmer on the stove), or broths during the cooler months. If you’re a really strong and robust constitution, you mightn’t need the deep immune support astragalus offers. It is primarily indicated for those who are more frail, weak and ‘deficient’, or with chronic illness or recurrent infections. Having said that, it is commonly used in food-like quantities during autumn and winter.

NOTE – do not take astragalus during acute infections, it is for long-term immune support.

Different types of herbs as immune boosters

You might note this list doesn’t cover a lot of really popular and common immune system herbs. That’s because many of our famous immune remedies, like elderberry syrup or fire cider, aren’t necessarily long-term deep immune tonics, but are more indicated for directly stimulating the immune system when you think you’re exposed or getting sick. Learn more about the difference between deeper immune herbs (immunomodulator) and acute immune stimulant herbs (click here)

I’ve also got a whole article about holistic support for the immune system and who do you know what to do when (click here)

(You can find astragalus and shiitake in the shop, and they’re also in the DIY Immunity Remedy Kit if you want support making your own remedies – click here)

Herbs that help us slow down, rest and unwind

We’ve just got to face it: our culture is at odds with winter. We’re expected, and expect ourselves, to be able to continue a year-round marathon of productivity, engagement and activity. Yet, as natural human animals, we are subject to the ebb and flow of the earth’s rhythms and seasons. Winter is cooler (or outright cold), darker and a time to conserve energy. Around me the snakes will be hibernating, the insects quiet and my garden won’t be an overwhelming jungle of perpetual growth. (phew!)

We’re out of sync and out of touch with the natural rhythms that govern out world and we can use herbs to help us live more aligned with winter’s seasonal rhythm. In doing so, we’re actually strengthening our immune system because we’re working with, not against, the body’s natural inclinations.

It can be hard to switch off when the world is still swirling around us, and herbs (as well as other lifestyle practices), can help. These are some general areas that I would think about, but please reflect on your life and what you actually need support with.

🌿Herbs to help you sleep better and more deeply: could be hops, passionflower, California poppy, valerian (could be many others! Read more on this article about herbs for sleep, click here)

🌿Herbs that help slow mental chatter and find stillness: lemon balm, skullcap, passionflower, kava kava

🌿Herbs that help you feel calm and settled: lemon balm, chamomile, lavender, tulsi, skullcap, licorice, withania, st john’s wort

🌿Herbs that help you feel grounded and able to slow down: dandelion, withania, valerian, milky oats, lavender

🌿Herbs to nourish your heart and enter winter dreaming: rose, tulsi, hawthorn, mugwort, lemon balm, reishi

(note: many of these herbs could fit in multiple categories, but I didn’t want to repeat myself too much)

Other lifestyle practices can be supportive here too: such as yin yoga, tai chi, journaling, meditation, and breathwork, as well as others – such as having hobbies you enjoy, art, music, etc.

(Note: find lavender, chamomile and tulsi in the shop and in the DIY Herbal Starter Kit if you want support learning to make herbal remedies (click here)

Herbs that help you nourish yourself

Winter is a time to build and conserve energy. Herbs can support us by providing great nutrition, and they can also by support our digestive system to actually transform, and absorb the nutrients from the food we’re eating.

Herbs for a herbal multivitamin: nettle, alfalfa, oatstraw, clover etc.

Herbs to support digestion: mugwort, catnip, chamomile, fennel, gentian, ginger (these herbs are a mix of herbal bitters and carminatives. These categories are commonly paired together and support our digestive capacity in different, mutually supportive ways)

Herbs to keep you warm

Our bodies use a lot of energy trying to stay warm. We can help them by using warming herbs and spices to keep our internal fires going. Think herbs like ginger, cinnamon, cayenne pepper, cloves.

Other lifestyle practices such as socks, scarves, jumpers and hot water bottles are great supports here.

Holistically supporting ourselves, as human animals in winter, goes a long way to having a strong and vital immune system.

I find taking a holistic approach gives us many more options to think about and incorporate into our winter wellness plans. It allows us to see the bigger picture and see what we actually need, rather than just taking a herb cause it’s “good for” something (although that’s a great and natural starting place when we’re working with herbs, it’s not the end place).

What was your aha moment, or take-away from this article!? Feel free to comment below or get in touch

*As with all herbs, please research before using. Whilst all these herbs are generally considered safe, they still might not be quite right for you, due to your health history, current medications etc.

** I’ve just listed a few herbs to start with you off with in each category, but this is not an exhaustive list.

The post Best herbs as immune boosters to take long-term in winter? appeared first on Everyday Empowered.

This means that as the seasons ebb and flow – with their variations in temperature, moisture, sunlight –  the ways we care for ourselves throughout the year will be different too.

We all feel this intuitively, reaching for cool drinks and salads in summer, and cozy blankets and soup in winter.

We can build on this innate understanding with simple seasonal self-care concepts and practices.

Standing on the shoulders of giants

We’re lucky in our modern age to have access to traditional healing wisdom from around the world (although perhaps unlucky to have lost our own home healthcare lineages).

From ancient healing modalities, we’ve been gifted an in–depth understanding of seasonal associations. We know that according to Classical Chinese Medicine, spring is associated with rising yang (upward energy), liver and gallbladder organ systems and anger and irritability (among others).

These observations were collected by people paying attention to the seasons and common imbalances that occurred at the same time every year.

Our job isn’t to take these as gospel, just blindly following the practices laid out, but to be like these ancestors – to pay attention to our seasons and ourselves. To see if we notice the same patterns, and to build a toolkit of self-care practices that feel supportive for us.

The beauty of home herbalism is that we can seamlessly adjust our seasonal self-care rhythm throughout the year.

What Seasonal Self-Care IS and ISN’T

It’s important to say here – seasonal self-care isn’t a rote set of practices. It’s not a to-do list or a set of rules.

It’s an invitation to engage deeply with daily life – to notice the blooming of a flower, the feel of the air on our skin and how we feel in our bodies.

Each season is different. We ourselves are different in each season. And we take our cues from the land around us, not the calendar.

You might even find that the seasonal self-care practices you used last year aren’t needed this year, or perhaps you need more support. Or perhaps if this is a wetter-than-normal summer, the herbs and other self-care practices you work with might reflect this.

Start slow and small

A quick word for those just starting out — there are many layers to this and the beauty of seasonal living is that your relationship with yourself and land grows deeper each year. It’s not so much a destination as it is the way you relate to life.

With this in mind – start with where you’re at and what you can do, rather than feeling like you’ve got to do it all.

For one thing, doing it all isn’t sustainable (or necessary) – and we’re hoping to build a lifestyle rhythm that you can sustain for decades.

Seasonal self-care is really about a relationship with yourself and the world around you. As you get to know yourself and your body better, the self-care practices you turn to will become more intuitive and familiar.

Over time, you’ll naturally build your personalised seasonal self-care toolkit. It can involve a range of simple practices, including food as medicine, herbal medicine, seasonally-appropriate breathwork, bodywork, acupressure, yoga, qigong, energy healing and more… Your toolkit will be built by you, being guided by your interests, constitution and needs.

Over the coming weeks, we’ll talk herbs and lifestyle practices to support your body to balance in spring.

Key takeaways.

• We are nature and we are affected by the seasons
• Our daily self-care/ home healthcare needs to change in response to each season (sometimes it’ll be subtle).
• Common imbalances arise during different seasons and we can use this traditional knowledge to guide our seasonal self-care practices
• Seasonal self-care is a relationship with ourselves and the land around we live within.
• Our seasonal self-care toolkit is unique to us. We don’t need to do what everyone else is doing, we just need to find ways to care for ourselves that works for us.
• Seasonal self-care puts us in the drivers seat of our own health and wellbeing

The post What is Seasonal Self-Care? appeared first on Everyday Empowered.