A little lovin relief from hay fever and colds

In our house we have a little ritual for relief from hay fever and colds. We use a bit of face massage, usually at bedtime. I started doing this on myself during a painful sinus infection then tried it on the children when they suffered with stuffy heads - they love it.

This is what we do
The child lays down with their head propped up on a couple of pillows and with the tips of my fingers I make little circles with light pressure all around the eyes (mums with Dolly Parton nails shouldn't use this remedy.) I start between the eyebrows and go around the eyes just above the brow, then continue massaging on the bony area that curves under the eye. I then very, very lightly brush their face repeatedly, from the top of the forehead over their closed eyes to the tip of their nose with my fingertips. This is the point where the child falls into a contented sleep.

Tristan suffers from hay fever, which isn't from hay at all, it's from tree pollen. So at the end of spring and early summer his nose and eyes suffer. The face massage is his favourite medicine but we've also found that using a little eye bag helps. It provides gentle pressure and can be cooled for added relief.

Our Easy Eye Bag Formula
This is such a simple solution to hay fever and sinus relief that I'm sure other people will have made these too but I've never come across them anywhere so here it is. Cut out two 11.5 x 21cm rectangles of lightweight fabric, sew them together and leave a hole for filling. Fill the bag with rice (I like to use large risotto rice) or small beans, then sew it up. Don't over stuff, leave it very pliable with lots of movement around the rice so that when it's laid over the eyes it molds to them. For added relief pop it in the fridge or freezer to cool it first.

The gentle pressure on the eyes and face is lovely and soothing - it's also a bit like giving a kid a lolly-pop after skinning a knee, just the sight of it brings a smile. Oh and one other thing, for swollen, teary eyes from hay fever, nothing beats good old cool cucumber slices.

Hope our little family formula is helpful to you, it surely helps us!

 

 

Comments

[Stephanie]

We use an old sock with rice for earaches. Your bag is much more attractive. :)

[Anne]

Oh, you're much classier than we are! At our house, we just keep a bag of rice in the freezer, still in the store packaging. I like the idea of the little fabric sack - so much more comforting than the plastic bag emblazoned with "Riceland".

[joanie]

My bag was inspired by a silk bag I received as a gift years ago (not meant for the freezer). When the person gave it to me I thought an eye bag sounded a bit strange, but it's lovely to use - my children both wanted one and like it even when they're not ill. I discovered the cold rice by accident, & never thought of it for earaches, thankfully we're mostly past the earache stage!

[M&Co]

What a great idea! Both me and my husband has allergies, so I think I'll treat him to one of your treatments :-)

[Joanie]

You don't have to think what to buy Luke for his next birthday. A little hay fever/eczema relief bag will just do! (minus the flower pattern of course!)

[Carla]

Great idea. I actually saw a news story that said this kind of massage does help drain the sinuses, and speeds up healing. See you're a doctor, and didn't even know it!

[Tracey]

How clever!I have made larger ones that you heat up for sore tummies, but I never thought of making one for my eyes. My allergies are out of control. I am going to go make one right now. Thanks for the little tutorial.

[Tracey]

How clever!I have made larger ones that you heat up for sore tummies, but I never thought of making one for my eyes. My allergies are out of control. I am going to go make one right now. Thanks for the little tutorial.

[Tracey]

How clever!I have made larger ones that you heat up for sore tummies, but I never thought of making one for my eyes. My allergies are out of control. I am going to go make one right now. Thanks for the little tutorial.

[Emma]

Thank you for sharing your relief for aching sinuses! I know I will have great use of your advice during the entire pollen season. We tried the massage, which was wonderful, and now I just need to sew a little Eye Bag too. Make that two, one for me and one for the kids.