Tuesday, September 23, 2014

Old-Time Healing Remedies - Guest Misty M Beller

Top three herbs used in the Wild, Wild West

By Misty M. Beller

I write Historical Romance (more specifically, Cowboy Stories), and I've always been fascinated by how people in the old days made do without so many of the niceties we take for granted now. Medicine is a great example! Through research for my novels, I've learned so much about the real benefits of local plant life for healing. And what better way to build romantic tension than by having your heroine nurse the hero back from the brink of death, through her knowledge of how to live off the land?

So without further ado, I'd like to share some of my favorite natural medicinals:

Willow: This is the one I like the best! Like an old-fashioned aspirin, willow bark tea covers a multitude of ills. In the days when doctors and medicine were neither readily available nor widely trusted, a tea made from either the bark or leaves of the willow tree did wonders as a temporary pain reliever, fever reducer, and helped to induce sleep.


Broadleaf Plantain: The name makes it sound exotic, but the picture looks like a weed in my backyard. This plant can survive almost anywhere and accomplishes a wide range of duties—from multi-vitamin to anti-inflammatory, wound healer, mild antibiotic, laxative, and even calms sore throats.



Garlic: This is another jack-of-all-trades that could be (and often was) grown in the family garden. It does everything from curing colds, to lowering cholesterol and blood sugar, to fighting cancer, and removing warts.



So now, I'd love to hear your thoughts and experiences on natural medicines! Have you ever used any of these three? With success?


What are your go-to plants that cure what ails you?


Misty Beller is excited to celebrate her debut Historical Romance novel, The Lady and the Mountain Man. She was raised on a farm in South Carolina, so her Southern roots run deep. Growing up, her family was close, and they continue to keep that priority today. Her husband and two daughters now add another dimension to her life, keeping her both grounded and crazy.

You can find Misty on her website, blog, Goodreads, Twitter, Google+, and Pinterest.

Buy link: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MQB7F4U
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13 comments:

  1. Melanie BackusSeptember 23, 2014 at 12:17 AM

    Aloe Vera is a great go to plant and I am now learning that onions work great for stings. Just cut an onion and rub it on a fire ant bite or a bee sting..the hurt goes away quickly.

    mauback55 at gmail dot com

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    1. Misty M. BellerSeptember 23, 2014 at 5:30 PM

      Hi Melanie, You're on the money with Aloe. In fact, my grandmother grows several as house plants. When any of us are burned in the kitchen, we just snap the end off one of the arms.

      I hadn't heard about onions, though. So glad you shared! We have ants everywhere here in the Carolinas, so I'll give it a try!

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  2. Mary PrestonSeptember 23, 2014 at 3:06 AM

    I agree about aloe vera. Lemons are great to use on the inside & outside as well. Work well for cleaning up scrapes etc. I guess it's the acidity. It can sting though.

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    1. Misty M. BellerSeptember 23, 2014 at 5:35 PM

      Hi Mary, I've used lemons for house cleaning supplies, but never for cleaning scrapes. I imagine it would do a great job killing any germs! I wonder if it has any healing properties, too? Interesting!

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  3. Linda Shenton MatchettSeptember 23, 2014 at 8:03 AM

    We find ginger to be a great cure-all. It is mostly known as good for the digestive system, but it is also an excellent anti-inflammatory. My mom is a quilter and our church pianist. A couple of years ago, she was struggling to do both due to arthritis, and was not doing as much quilting (to her chagrin). She started using ginger and has experienced a huge improvement to the point she can keep up with both again.

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    1. Misty M. BellerSeptember 23, 2014 at 5:38 PM

      Linda, I had no idea ginger helped with arthritis! It was the only thing that helped with morning sickness with both my daughters, but I didn't realize it was so versatile! I'll do some research on it.

      Thanks for sharing!

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  4. Patricia BradleySeptember 23, 2014 at 9:51 AM

    So glad to read about these natural remedies. I knew about the willow tree, but not the boad leaf plantain. Great post!

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    1. Misty M. BellerSeptember 23, 2014 at 5:45 PM

      Glad you enjoyed it, Pat! One of the things I love the most about writing Historical Romances is that my characters have to be mostly self-sufficient, so I get to learn about all the ways to use the bounty God's given us.

      Blessings!

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  5. Heidi Reads...September 23, 2014 at 4:47 PM

    I've been using essential oils for about a year now, and my favorite is peppermint and fennel to help with nausea and indigestion.

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    1. Misty M. BellerSeptember 23, 2014 at 5:48 PM

      Hi Heidi, I've tried peppermint briefly to help with nausea (I think I mentioned morning sickness through two pregnancies above. It was really bad...) Do you use the peppermint and fennel together? Or either works separately?

      Thanks for sharing!

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  6. Crystal L BarnesSeptember 23, 2014 at 5:19 PM

    In my neck of the woods, we have what we call a "Tickle-Tongue" tree. Don't know if it has another name or not. Probably so. You can take a piece of the bark, chew it, and it will numb your mouth. Works great in the absence of Orajel. (I can't believe I actually had to look up how to spell that product name correctly. :) )

    Thanks for the great post, Misty.

    Crystal L Barnes
    booksbybarnes.com

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    1. Misty M. BellerSeptember 23, 2014 at 5:59 PM

      Wow, Crystal. I had to look up the Tickle-Tongue to get a look at it. :) Turns out it's also called the Prickly Ash. Who needs Orajel if you've got a Tickle-Tongue in the backyard!

      Thanks so much for having me on the blog today. It's been so much fun!

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    2. Crystal L BarnesSeptember 23, 2014 at 6:00 PM

      I remember many a time we'd pull off a piece of bark just for the fun of it when we were out riding the four wheeler or tractor. :)

      Thanks for being our guest, Misty. Such an insightful post.

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