Some natural tips on surviving the chicken pox.

Yay, we are all done and dusted with the chicken pox!

I think that in all reality we got off quite lightly with the girls and their chicken pox. They were covered in spots but everything else was mild (no high temps and bad sickness). I think the worst thing about having to deal with the chicken pox isn't so much the applying of lotion its the constant complaining from the kids (mostly Scarlett) about how bored they were lol.

So what is chicken pox?

Chicken Pox is an infectious disease also known as varicella, it is spread through contact

symptoms may include fever, feeling tired, and headaches also, and lasts five to ten days.

For the most part symptoms are often mild but the older the person is, the more likely that more serious symptoms can be present and these can be as serious as pneumonia, bacterial infections of the skin or inflammation of the brain.

I also must note that if a child or adult has chicken pox presents with more severe symptoms, please see a health professional immediately. The natural tips in this blog are in no way a cure or to be used instead of any advice given by a doctor.

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What does chicken pox look like?

Chicken Pox comes up as little blisters that then scab over.

They are itchy and can be painful.

They can appear EVERYWHERE, on all parts of the body, including the scalp, around the eyes, ears, inside the nostrils, under the fingernails, inside the mouth and also inside and around the genital regions.

Natural lotion on the spots - coconut oil

I tried calamine on the spots but it actually gave me eczema and my skin all peeled in parts so I wasn't able to use it on River (3 years old) more than a couple of times.

In the end the kids kept complaining that they needed medicine as it was itchy.

So I put on coconut oil and called it "medicine"... I told the girls that it would stop the itch it.... they bought it!

I thought that made a great placebo medicine but I actually looked into it and coconut oil has high levels of lauric acid and has anti-viral and anti-inflammatory properties and can also help with itching!

Coconut oil is the solution to everything right? LOL.

Bath ingredients -Epsom salts, Himalayan salt, soap nuts, vitamin c and oats.

I remember a bath filled with pinetarsol was the best remedy but I hate the smell of it!

I also looked in to what it is and it is basically burnt pine (coal tar) which is known to cause cancer so I decided that nope we didn't need that.

I also looked into natural remedies for the bath and baking soda came up, but I also don't like baking soda in the bath, you can read the full blog here, but essentially baking soda alkaline's your skin and destroys your acid mantle (your skin likes to be acidic) so it can actually do more harm than good in the long run if you don't rinse it off afterwards.

* In the end I used THIS bath mix which has Epsom salts, Himalayan salt, soap nuts and vitamin c :)

* I also placed in the bath a couple of tablespoons of the stir it up oat milk powder to help with the itch.

Short baths -

I only bathed them every 2 days and it was a super short bath, so the scabs didn't soften and rub off and increase the risk of infection, more intense itching and scaring.

I also didn't wash their hair for a week, it was too sore for them to attempt it as there was so many chicken pox in their hair, but also I didn't want the scabs to come off.

Helping with the itch - Witch hazel and oats

I placed the oat powder (stir it up brand) in the bath and also sprayed witch hazel directly onto the skin before bed time :)

Witch hazel is amazing, natural and gentle on itchy skin.

You can also read my recipe HERE about witch hazel and a DIY skin calming spray.

Change clothes regularly -

Do you know what was gross? the fact that when the kids itched the chicken pox then the blisters popped and then dried on their clothes. Sometimes making them stick to their clothes! GAH! I'm sorry, I know... gross.

So change and wash clothes regularly :)

Tight clothes or loose?

This is probably up to the individual, but my 5 year old seemed to like clothes that hugged her skin, maybe because it didn't move up and down on her skin as much? plus it kept her warm.

What NOT to do?

Many people already know this already but, do not give ibuprofen when you have the chicken pox.

Research over the years has shown that using ibuprofen in chicken pox may lead to an increased risk of serious skin infection – a condition called necrotising fasciitis.

So keep pain relief to just paracetamol :)

Chicken pox sucks but ultimately I'm glad we have it out of the way now, and they have some natural immunity.

Let me know of anything else that you can think of that helped your kids when they had the chicken pox :)