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It's 9 pm and I usually publish blog posts at 9 am on Sundays. But today was different because I realized that raising dogs naturally taught me how to improve my health.
You might expect that I'm going to write about my improved mental health or how walking has helped me lose weight and while those things are true, in this post, I'm going to talk about a nasty case of food poisoning that I go through using my dogs' stash of essential oils and supplements.
So, at 9 pm on a Sunday night, I'm finally feeling better so I grabbed my computer to share what worked for me. But, before I share, I want to remind you that I'm not a veterinarian, a medical doctor, nor am I suggesting that you follow my lead. I'm simply sharing what worked for me.
Boosting the Immune System
It was pretty clear that I had a nasty case of something and it was wreaking havoc on my immune system, so the first few things I reached for were:
- System Saver – I give my dogs Canine System Saver and I have the human version. When I'm sick, I take about five capsules daily until I begin to feel better. This helps me keep up my strength just to be able to care for the dogs and cat. System Saver also shorters my illnesses.
- Colloidal Silver – I use CS as a natural antibiotic. I added a couple of capfuls to juice twice daily for the first couple of days.
- Boost in a Bottle by animalEO – and I'm the worst sick person. I'm whiny, cranky, and defeated and that's not the attitude to have if you're trying to feel better – so I massaged a few drops of Boost in a Bottle on my chest. This helped with the body aches too – they vanished within a couple of hours.
Alleviating Digestive Issues
The first thing to deal with was the digestive issues. There were times when I was walking doubled over, my stomach hurt so badly. So I reached for the following and they worked slowly, but effectively:
- slippery elm – yeah, so this isn't technically a dog supplement, but I purchased it for my dogs. While I reached for slippery elm for the dogs, I'd take Pepto (why is it pink?) when I wasn't feeling great. Why? So I took 4 capsules of slippery elm twice daily for two days.
- GI Goe by animalEO – whenever one of my dogs has gas or diarrhea, I rub a few drops of GI Goe on their tummy, so I did the same for myself.
- FullBucket Daily Canine Powder – I got the go ahead to use this too years ago from someone at FullBucket and it works. When I was ready to eat small meals, I made fruit smoothies with plant based protein to keep my strength up. I also added a few scoops of Fullbucket to add some good bacteria to the gut.
Naturally Treating Illness at Home with Dog Supplements
It's hilarious that for years, I've been hyperfocused on raising my dogs as naturally as possible while still using conventional medicines for myself. It took forever for me to start making better choices for my health and diet and while I felt like absolute crap for days, it was nice to try out things and experience success.
I'm not 100% yet and it'll probably be a few days until I get all of my energy back since I haven't eaten a full meal since Thursday, but I'm getting there.
One thing is for certain is that the next time I'm not feeling well, I'm going to poach my dogs' stash of supplements before heading to the drug store. The fact that I focus on natural supplements makes the ones I purchase safe for me too. And I'm excited to continue applying what I'm learning about my dogs to my own diet and health going forward.
