It can be an overwhelming and worrisome situation when your child is sick. It’s definitely not an easy job, especially when we are trying to manage fever.
Many of us were raised with the belief that fever is something that should be suppressed and often reach for the over the counter fever reducing medications. With these in short supply, this actually brings up a beautiful opportunity to ask ourselves some great questions.
- Should I be suppressing fever?
- What purpose does fever serve in the body
Please note – nothing shared with you today is meant to be interpreted as medical advice or a treatment for a specific condition. I share this information for educational purposes only and strongly recommend that you consult your natural health care practitioner of choice OR continue to do your own empowered research.
Why Does the Body Produce Fever?
Fever is the body’s way of fighting off infection, be it bacterial or viral, and while it can seem scary, it is actually a good sign. It indicates that your body’s (or your child’s) immune response is functioning properly. Considered an appropriate inflammatory response to foreign invaders, fever is defined as anything above 100.4°F or 38.°C.
There is a classification system for fevers and in order to be optimal (meaning it is doing it’s work without any negative side effects), we would like it to be in the moderate range.
- Low grade: 38-39°C (100.4-102.2°F)
- Moderate: 39-40°C (102.2-104°F)
- High Grade: 40-42°C (104-107.6°F)
Low grade fevers still come with all of the uncomfortable aspects such as body ache and headaches, but are not quite high enough to actually do its optimal virus-fighting work in the body. There are many ways to manage a fever when it reaches that high grade level that has us concerned.
When fevers reach that high grade range there are some potentially negative consequences that we should be aware of such as damage to the brain (which is what causes seizures). However contrary to popular belief, there are plenty of methods we can use to help naturally moderate fevers without reaching for the over the counter medications.
In this blog post I went over some of the best herbs we have to help modulate fevers. It’s definitely worth a look-see. Today’s post is about another common natural fever modulating remedy know as…
The Wet Sock Treatment
This holistic treatment method is used to help stimulate the immune system and increase blood circulation. It also helps to draw some heat away from the head, drawing it to the feet.
Ideally you will want to use this method upon the onset of illness and do it for a few nights in a row to increase its effectiveness.
Supplies
- 1 pair of cotton socks
- 1 pair of wool socks
- I’ve used thick cotton socks as a substitute it it still seemed to work well
- 1 bowl of ice water
- 1 warm bath
- or foot bath
Directions
- Take a warm bath or soak your feet in a warm foot bath. Warming the feet is an important part of the treatment and increases effectiveness. Make the water as warm as possible without burning/scalding the skin. Stay in bath/foot bath for 10 minutes.
- Soak your think socks in the ice water. Alternatively you can rinse them with cold water and put them in the freezer for 10-15 minutes. When the socks are completely wet/cold, wring them well and thoroughly.
- Dry feet off thoroughly.
- Place ice-cold socks on feet. Then cover with dry wool socks. Put on some nice warm pajamas and get yourself (or kiddo) into bed, covered in a blanket.
- Wear the socks overnight.
- If you sweat through your clothes through the night, wake up and change pajamas, but keep the socks on. Socks will be dry in the morning.
You can repeat this process for many nights in a row and use as needed. This can also be combined with your favourite fever homeopathic remedies, elderberry syrup, and teas made with fever modulating herbs.
In good health,
Correne
