Does any one have any idea what to do to make a cold go away faster or to limit the symptoms? I’m especially interested in something to make your nose stop running - a natural anti-histamine?
To make it go away quicker: garlic. Just eat a bunch of it, however you want. Raw is most potent. In addition to being a great immune booster and natural antibiotic, it’s also great for your heart and acts as an anti-inflammatory.
Sage can help sometimes with running noses.
nettle is a natural anti-histamine.
ditto on the garlic. if you have a hard time just eating it raw, trying mincing or crushing it then covering it w/ honey. let this mixture stand about 8 hours and take a teaspoon 2-3 times a day. you may want to eat something with it, as it can cause a certain amount of stomach distress in some folk when taken on an empty stomach.
Thanks, I always knew that garlic was good for you, but I never could just eat it raw 
- that’s an interesting idea jhereg, I might try it.
TrollSplinter and incendiary_dan, what would I do with the nettle or the sage? How would I use them?
nettle tea is the simplest thing to do. just pour boiled water into a container with the nettle greens and let it steep for ten to 15 minutes.
Ditto with the tea treatment for the sage.
If it has a “cold” nature (as opposed to “hot”) ie you’re feeling chilled, sensitive to cold, your nose is runny but the mucus is clear or white, you’re sweating only a little bit or not at all … then Chinese medical principles call for inducing a therapeutic sweat. One way to do this is basically to take ginger tea, and/or a ginger bath, just before bed and then get wrapped up in bed and sweat for a while. Garlic can have a similar effect.
Another option is to have someone perform “guasha” or scraping methods on your upper back and shoulders. It is essentially rubbing an object with an edge (not a sharp edge, but an edge nonetheless, such as the edge of a cup or lid) against your skin fairly roughly (maybe with some lotion or oil), until a bruise appears. This pulls the “cold” out. I have done it and had it done numerous time, and it really works to get rid of a cold, if done right.
My friends friend makes an usnea lichen tincture that he takes during the cold and flue season. he says he hasn’t had a cold since. i made an usnea tincture yesterday but have yet to try it.
I don’t know if I have any nettle around my house, but I’m sure I can find some sage, so I’ll try that, thanks dan and Trollsplinter. (oh, and you filter out the plant pieces before drinking, right?)
I think I really have more of a fever or a flu, but I’ll keep your suggestions in mind for another time, thanks David.
Hmmm… I htink my parents might frown on the whole tincture thing, but thanks anyway thunder thighs.
Another great, but very bioregionalcentric approach is to make a tea from Western Red Cedar, Douglas Fir, and Western Hemlock (the tree) needles. All of them have different things that help with a respiratory and nasal cold. Cedar is warming and naturally antibiotic (don’t drink too much all the time or it can irritate the kidneys), the Fir is also warming and clears the nose and lungs, and the hemlock is either neutral or slightly cooling but also very rich in vitamin C and helpful with fevers.
Just gather a handful of each of the needles (and you can use only one or two if you can only find them) and then add them to a pot or kettle of boiling water for and turn it down to simmer for at least ten minutes. You can then drink the tea and inhale the steam from the remaining mixture. Then drink through out the day. It might cause you to sweat slightly but that is okay.
Hope this helps
Do all cedars have a similar effect? Atlantic White Cedar grows here.
Don’t forget about the unclogging powers of steam.