What’s shingles? For those of you who are unsure of what shingles are, shingles is a virus that lives dormant in the bodies of individuals who have experienced the chickenpox virus. The two viruses are connected and both cause rashes. The chickenpox virus causes itchy red dots all over the body while shingles causes blistering sores on one particular side of the body.
Symptoms of Shingles
If you ever contract the shingles virus, you know how painful this health condition is. Typically an individual who is about to develop a shingles rash will feel severe burning and tingling sensations on a particular side of their body with severe headaches and horribly discomforting aches and pains that make it unbearably to sleep. Within a day of experiencing these side effects, red itchy dots will begin to appear and before you know it they dots begin to blister and turn into a red sore oozing rash that burns and itches.
Typical Treatments for Shingles
Most of the time people suffering from shingles head to the doctors for treatment, but viruses truly have to run their course. All doctors can really do is provide pain relievers and anti-viral medication, which does very little to speed the recovery of the virus. In fact, most pain relievers doctors give suppress the immune system, which decreases your ability to fight it off as fast and as soon as possible.
Effective Natural Treatments for Shingles
The good new is there are natural remedies that are effective at treating and speeding up the recovery of the virus. Two of the best ones are manuka honey and clover honey. However, they must be raw and organic and farm fresh in order for these honeys to contain the nutrients and medicinal properties necessary to help treat this painfully sore condition.
The Reason Why Honeys Work for Treating the Virus
The reasons why manuka honey and clover honey are able to treat shingles is because they contain skin protecting and nourishing ingredients along with anti-bacterial, anti-viral, anti-inflammatory and anti-septic properties. The honeys also act as a natural moisturizer and skin soother, which helps bring relief to the discomforting rash. Most importantly, honey helps prevent and reduce the scaring that can sometimes come along with the shingles virus.
Plus Reading: 6 Best Alternatives to Honey
Applying the Honey to the Rash
Once you have either manuka honey or clover honey on hand, you can apply it to the rash in a thick even layer. After, you will want to cover it up with cotton bandages to ensure the honey stays put. You will want to change the bandages and apply more honey every four to six hours to help keep the area clean and well protected.
Dealing with the Pain of Shingles
Once you have applied honey and the bandages to the shingles area, you can apply cool compresses to this area to help soothe aches and pains away along with burning and itching sensations. If cool compresses do not work for you, you can try to use warm compresses instead, but it could cause additional swelling and irritation. Sipping on a cup of ginger root tea or taking white willow bark supplements can also help with natural pain relief without having to worry about these herbs compromising your immune system.
End Notes to Keep in Mind
If for some reason your shingles are becoming worse or your not sure if what you are experiencing is shingles it is best to visit a doctor for a proper diagnose.
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