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Herbs and Oils Our Family Uses

Since we are at that time of year I thought I would bring this post forward.  I'm also going to take the next few weeks and address specifically what we do when someone in our family is sick.  If you want me to address something specific (like I was asked about Strep throat in the comments of the last post) just ask in the comments of this post and I'll see what I can do.  I want to have a series of helpful posts that can be easily referenced.  For now I hope this post is helpful!

Since we are in the thick of Cold and Flu Season and February can really get us all down.  My children have been notorious about getting sick in February!  This year their timing was much better and they had their round of sickness in January.  I thought it was a great way to start the New Year by cleansing and strengthening their immune systems so they can be well for the rest of the year! ;)

There has been some BAD bugs this year.  My kids did well and were only down in bed for a day or two (depending on the child, some were not really even "down").  As you know it's been over 11 years now since they have needed a M.D. I thought you might find a list of herbs and essential oils our family uses to be of some use to you!  I like using things that are pure and natural, created by God, and that..... well have a really long track record!  These things have been around and been used all through the ages.  Even modern medicine can't say that, it's too....... "modern."  They have what maybe 200 years under their belt?  Like I have said I'm grateful they are there but for me and my family they are the alternative.  I really want something that has stood the test of time when it comes to my health and the health of my family!

Be sure to note my disclaimer at the bottom of this site! Can't forget the fine print!;)  Note that this is just what I do and what I have found works for me.  Don't be afraid to find what works good for you and your family!  I am also ALWAYS sure to ask God to direct us in each individual circumstance and I try really hard to listen, be humble, open minded and teachable.  Even if it's something that doesn't make sense to me I trust that God knows and will direct us!  Also note that I don't do everything every time it just depends on the person, what they have etc. and again what I feel inspired to do.  I know real scientific but it has worked well for me for quite some time!

Remember I'm pretty picky about who I trust and what brands I buy!  And I ALWAYS read ingredients!

I get my Herbal Formulas at: Herbs First




Dr. Christopher's formulas are EXCELLENT we have used them for years and years.  I highly recommend them!



My Single Bulk Herbs, along with lots of other great cut herb blends, oils and butters (like Coconut oil, and Shea butter), natural beauty care making supplies (like beeswax, citric acid etc.) and other supplies from: Mountain Rose Herbs


Mountain Rose Herbs. A Herbs, Health & Harmony Com



Such a great company!  I have been so impressed!

I get my Essential Oils from: Be Young



My experience with these oils is that they work and are effective I have used them for quite a while now and have always gotten good results. Click here for just one example.


Onto my list. I hope you find it easy and fairly self-explanatory.  If not, feel free to ask questions!


Dr. Christopher Formulas I have on hand for my little ones:
  • Kid-E-Mune:  5-10 drops every 30 minutes - 2 hours, when they are sick in bed.  I also give them this a few times a day if they seem under the weather or if there is something going around.  I do about 10 days on 4 days off.
  • Kid-E-Soothe:  I use this in place of Kid-E-Mune for Curtis who has Asthma.  If you have a child who deals with an autoimmune issue, Echinacea seems to rev the immune system up to much causing it to overreact even more.  Kid-E-Soothe helps strengthen yet calm the immune system it also works great for his cough.  This one we also use for allergies it works great to calm the system when it's overreacting to an allergen!
  • Kid-E-Col:  If there's a stomach ache, bloating, or throwing up.  It's also great for teething and colic!
  • Kid-E-Reg:  If they have not pooped in a while.  A good bowel movement seems to really help with fever among other things.
  • Glandular System Formula:  We like the ointment and the message oil.  If they are congested and coughing,  I rub this on their chest, back, neck and behind ears after a warm bath.
  • X-Ceptic:  I rub this on them AFTER the Glandular Ointment it helps kill germs.
  • Ear Oil:  For Ear Troubles
  • Oil of Garlic:  I love this to rub on my kids feet and well pretty much all over them when they are sick!
  • Anti-Plague:  (Also known as Super Immune Garlic Formula) The taste isn't really kid friendly but it's so great for really tough bugs.  I couldn't have made it through Curt's Asthma issues without it!
  • Lung and Bronchial Formula:  The glycerine extract is my favorite!  This is WONDERFUL for coughs!  I use it whenever my kids are coughing a lot especially at night.  I feel like this formula (along with the good diet of course) is what kept us from needing a inhaler for Curt.
  • Anti-Spasmodic Formula:  I use this one with the formula above if a cough is keeping them up at night.  I just rub it on their chest (it has cayenne and is too hot for a kid to take internally) it helps quiet down the coughing spasms. 
Dr. Christopher Formulas for our older kids and the adults who can swallow capsules:
  • Cold Season Formula:  One of my favorite formulas.  It's great for kids and adults I take it myself if I am feeling like I'm trying to get sick or if there is lots of crud going around.
  • Lymphatic Formula:  I use this formula with the one above every time I'm sure that I'm trying to come down with something.  It usually stops it right in it's tracks.  I am very rarely sick I blame this.  It's also great for all types of infections!  Another favorite of mine!  I wouldn't be without it!
  • Chest Comfort Formula:  Another favorite I buy in bulk!  It's a great mild yet hard working formula wonderful for cold and flu season!  I especially like it for coughs or tight chest.  It helps loosen things up quickly!  I use it a lot of times in conjunction with the other 2 formulas above.  I have also noticed a big difference since Curt has learned to swallow capsules and can take this formula when he has a cough.  His cough seems to clear up faster!
  • Sen-Sei Ointment:  This one is great for when you are stuffed up and can't breathe it helps open things up so you can breath! 
  • Complete Tissue and Bone Formula:  We mostly use the ointment but I also like the massage oil!  This is by far our most used ointment.  We use it like you would an anti-biotic neosporin type ointment.  We find it works great on cuts, scrapes, bruises and I'm told even broken bones luckily we haven't had any of those.
  • Sinus Plus Formula:  We like this one is for colds and allergies, runny nose, watery eyes etc.  I like the extract because it works quickly but the capsules are great too!

Dr. Christopher Formulas I don't use as often but wouldn't want to be without:
  • Black Ointment:  Not one I typically use but I will never be without it.  I had blood poisoning from a cut that got infected once and my Son had a boil that also got blood poisoning.  This ointment quickly pulled out the infection and saved us emergency room trips!
  •  False Unicorn and Lobelia:  I was grateful to have this around when I threatened to Miscarry with Curt!
  • Iron Assimilation Formula:  I love this one for helping rebuild my iron after I have had a baby or if I feel at all anemic during pregnancy.  (I'm usually not as long as I'm getting my greens!)
  • Itch Ointment:  This one is what we used when my kids all had the chicken pox!  We also use it on itchy rashes or bites.
  • Plantain Ointment:  I love this one for mosquito bites!  It's also a drawing ointment and helps get out slivers.
  • Kid-E-Trac:  This one is supposed to be for kids but I got it for me.  It's supposed to help bring mental clarity and emotional balance.  It's very helpful for those times I seem to be emotionally out of balance and/or overwhelmed!
  • MindTrac Formula:  I have found this one is wonderful for depression and those times where you just want to run away, even from yourself.  It helps keep you grounded and thinking clearly!  I haven't had to use it very often but when I do I'm really glad that I have it.  My daughter also found it is very helpful for period cramps, and I only gave her one capsule!
  • Kidney Formula:  I like this one with cranberry concentrate and gallons of distilled water for Bladder Infections.
  • Vitalherbs:  I like to get my "vitamins" in the form of a green drink or green smoothie but sometimes it's hard to get enough especially when I'm pregnant or under a lot of stress.  This formula really helps give me the added nutrition I need all from whole foods!  Not synthetic!  
  • Herbal Cleansing Kit:  We all need a good "cleaning" once in a while!  It's all about cleansing and nourishing so the body can heal itself.  It's like Dr. Christopher always said there is only one disease and that is constipation so lets get it cleaned out! ;)
Single Herbs I love having around and use lots and lots:
  • Chaste Tree Berry Powder (aka Vitex): I take 3 capsules of this everyday and have been for about 9 months now.  I find it really helps with all that girly type stuff.  I'm trying to get my oldest daughter in the habit of taking it to I have found it to help so much.  Less cramps, less mood swings, less heavy flow.  A great women's herb! 
  • Red Raspberry Leaf:  Both cut and powdered.  Great for colds and flu, pregnancy, nausea, and all sorts of female stuff.  Another one that I take daily and try to get my teenage daughter to also.
  • Cayenne:  Would never, ever, ever be without this herb!  It's so good for so many things!  My favorite is how quickly I have seen it stop bleeding.  Great for bloody noses etc.  Study up on this herb it's AMAZING!
  • Elderberry:  We use this mainly in syrup form. For the most part we take a little of this everyday and we have found it helps not only with colds and flu but also with allergies thus taking during all seasons of the year. Find my recipe for Elderberry Syrup by clicking here!
  • More Herbs I Wouldn't Want to Be Without!
Essential Oils that my family uses and I make sure to keep on hand:  These oils are wonderful and I'm finding them to be the icing on our cake of herbs! ;) I believe the two together can help with even very serious conditions!  I'm just going to list my absolute favorites.  You can really break the bank trying to get all the great oils at once.  You know me I like to keep it Simple and I'm already afraid you are overwhelmed and that I should have saved the oils for another post. 

  • Spice for Life:  This is probably our most used essential oil blend! (I have found I like it better then the Thieves formulas or On Guard type formulas, maybe it's because it has multiple citrus oils.) The whole family uses this one especially during cold and flu season!  I will give them a lick of it or put it in a carrier oil and rub it on them, feet, chest, neck, back.
  • Spice Spray:   (At least that's what we call it)  I make this one myself by taking 30-50 drops of Spice for Life essential oil blend and put it in a 4 ounce amber glass spray bottle and fill it half way with water and half way with vegetable glycerine.  It works great as a sore throat spray or I line the kids up and give them a spray before we go to church or somewhere that I know will have lots of people coughing etc.
  • Di-gest:  This is great to rub on upset stomachs or for heart burn, bloating, or any other digestion issues.
  • Breathe:  This one is great for allergies and I like to diffuse it in Curt's room at night if he is coughing it really helped him when he was wheezy.  He doesn't get wheezy much at all anymore but I'm still glad to have this formula.
  • Lavender:  I keep this one in the kitchen to quickly put on burns.  It's AMAZING!
  • Defence:  I use this along with Breathe and Spice for Life in a carrier oil when the kids are really sick or Curt is wheezy.  I usually put it in almond oil as a carrier but olive oil would work too.
  • Mars and Venus Blends:  These are great for Hormone balancing I'm glad I have them!

      20 comments:

      crazy4boys said...

      For the chaste tree berry/womenly stuff...do you just pack a capsule with it or is there are certain amount that works better than another? I have the size 00 capsules. And would you mix it with the red raspberry leaf or take them in two separate capsules?

      I'll have to check out MindTrac too. I'm coming off prescription depression meds and am sometimes a mess, but am trying so hard to not go back on them. I think it's mostly hormonal as it's worse at "those times of the month." I'll try the herbs listed above first, then the MindTrac if I need to.

      Tammie said...

      I have size "0" capsules the "00" is bigger right? If it were me I would probably do only 2 of the bigger capsules and 2 of Red Raspberry leaf. I would probably just keep the herbs separate too.

      Hormones can be pretty tricky. I think consistency is key and remembering that our liver has to process them along with just about everything else. I have found cleansing and nourishing the liver can be a great help for depression. The MindTrac is also excellent to help support and nourish along the way!

      Emily said...

      WOW WOW WOW Tammie...this took a butt-load of time, so much helpful information!

      Thanks for doing it!

      Love ya so!

      crazy4boys said...

      How would you go about cleansing and nourishing the liver? Would MindTrac be enough or do I need something else? Thank you!!!!!!

      Tammie said...

      crazy4boys: MindTrac does have alfalfa and dandelion both are good for the liver. But your liver might want more. Dr. Christopher's Liver Gall Bladder formula is good, also remember when cleansing the Liver the alimentary canals need to be clear. I have heard the book "The Liver Gallbladder Miracle Cleanse is a good one I have not read it though. Also Milk Thistle is supposed to be very good for the Liver.

      Sharon said...

      Wow! This is great! I've been reading your blog for a while now and I enjoy it very much. Would you like to join me for the Herbal Medicine Chest blog hop over at The Woodwife's Journal? I'd love to have you share some of your favorites with us each Monday as we look at different types of herbal preparations.

      Teresa said...

      Pei pa koa is pretty decent cough medicine (from herbal as I remembered), great non alcoholic medicine, some western cough medicine are more effective, but this is non drowsy.

      You can access info online @
      en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nin_Jiom_Pei_Pa_Koa
      ninjiom.50webs.com

      Kat said...

      I LOVE this list. Thank you! Do you have a favorite resource book? I do many home remedies I grew up with but would like to expand for many reasons. Also, I would like to add your button to my blog if that's okay.

      Tammie said...

      Wanderer: I will have to think on that I have never "blog hopped"? before.

      Teresa: Thanks for the info many of those Chinese herbs can be good stuff.

      Kat: Hummm Favorite resource book I have a few in fact I need to get a list of those back on here. I think my favorite herbal that started it all would have to be "Dr. Mom's Healthy Living" By Sandra Ellis

      And OF COURSE I would love for you to add my button to your blog!!!!

      megandjon said...

      Hey Tammie, thanks for this list! I'm a big believer in Kid-e-well, so far i only have two little kids but they never seem to have a cold for much longer than a day because i just load them up with kid-e-well. i'm wondering, can you tell me what the difference is between kid-e-well and kid-e-mune? i thought that kid-e-mune was more preventative and kid-e-well was better for when you need to kill a cold fast. can you tell me why you prefer kid-e-mune? i've always been a little confused about those two.

      Tammie said...

      megandjon: Kid-E-Well is a great formula it is basically Kid-E-Mune with the addition Elder flower, Peppermint and Yarrow. So yeah you are right the Kid-E-Mune is a great immune booster and preventative. Kid-E-Well has those same properties but also helps to fight syptoms of flu and fever. We do use this sometimes in our family (more often when the kids were younger)but most often by the time I think about it for fever or something they are already over it. These days the kids typically don't have a fever and when they do it isn't for very long.

      But yes thanks for mentioning it. It is one I keep on hand and a great formula to have!

      megandjon said...

      i didn't know it was specifically for fever and flu. so far they've never had either. just runny nose/juicey cough occasionally, and even then i can never tell if they are sick or teething! lol. that's good to know, thanks!

      The Johnston's said...

      I am just beginning to do all this and read about this. Like you said it can be really expensive getting all these. If you were to just picka couple to start with which ones would you do? I have a 1, 4, and 7 year old who are all girls.

      Tammie said...

      The Johnston's: The single bulk herbs are really affordable. But here are my top 4 formulas that I wouldn't want to be without.

      1. Infection Formula
      2. Spice for Life essential oil
      3. Anti-Plague
      4. Cold Season

      The Johnston's said...

      Thanks! I will check these ones out! It is all really overwhelming! I have just started the water and green smoothies. We try to eat alot of fruits and veggies already but not nearly enough. What would you recommend for me? I haven't had a full night sleep in over a year and I keep getting sick with lots of mucus and sinus infection stuff. My baby wakes up about 4 times a night still and just turned 1. I am TIRED all the time.

      Tammie said...

      The Johnston's: Oh goodness, I know what it's like to feel like you may forever be tired and to just crave a good nights sleep. My youngest didn't sleep well until she was two. If it wasn't for green smoothies I don't think I would have made it through. ;)

      Nutrition is KEY! This is what I would do if I were you. Dealing with sinus issues I would totally give up ALL animal products for a while, until I felt my immune system was better on top of things. Most animal products are extremely mucus forming (especially dairy and red meat). Don't worry there are certain healthy animal products that you could add back in later if you want.

      I would drink that water and green smoothies like crazy. Be sure to add plenty of greens to those smoothies. That's where there is lots of concentrated nutrition that will help with tiredness. For a quart of green smoothie I do about 1 cup of water then blend in greens until the blender is at about 3 cups then I add the frozen fruits. So it's really GREEN! Adding some super potent greens like Spirulina, or I love Sun Warriors Ormus Greens, to a smoothie is a way to easily make it really potent too! But you may want to get used to green first before doing that.

      I found myself even after my baby finally slept through the night that I was still tired. I nursed her for over 18 months and even with green smoothies (that I didn't make near as green as I do now) I had gotten myself somewhat depleted. So I turned the amazing herbs I had learned so much about. I have been taking Dr. Christopher's Thyroid Maintenance Formula and his Master Gland Formula for a while now and feel that it has really helped. Because of all the toxins our bodies have to deal with most of us have some issues with our endocrine system. These herbs just help to feed the Thyroid and the Pituitary glands which are both major players in the endocrine system. I also love that all of Dr. Christopher's formulas are just herbs and food!

      Anyway since I don't want to overwhelm you more then you already are I'm trying to keep this simple. Know that this is just my personal experience and I do feel when you are well nourished most things self correct. But obviously if you feel your tiredness is more then just lack of nutrition and sleep don't hesitate to get proper help. I have found Hormone issues can also cause Chronic tiredness but again I have found nutrition and herbs can really help with that.

      Also a good night of uninterrupted sleep even just once in a while is amazingly healing! If at all possible see if Dad or Grandma can help out for a night once in a while. Of course if your still nursing this might not be possible. Know that I have been there and I understand. She will eventually sleep, in the mean time nourish yourself the best you can and know you simply won't be 100% until you can get good sleep.

      Oh by the way if you are still nursing the thyroid and master gland formulas may not be the best idea because they won't help your baby to get more sleep. If I had know about Be Young's Quiet Scent essential oil blend when my baby wasn't sleeping well I for sure would have tried that with her.

      I hope any of this makes sense to you. If not feel free to email me or ask more questions here. I wish you the very best!!!

      Anonymous said...

      I wonder if any of these might work for a stubborn case of ringworm my 9 y/o has been battling. Let me know your thoughts, if you possible. Thanks!

      Tammie said...

      Anonymous: I have seen just extra virgin coconut oil clear up ring worm. For a stubborn case though I would work on it internally as well. I would start with the Spice for Life blend in addition to coconut oil and see if that helps.

      Anonymous said...

      Thanks for putting all this up! I am taking the first class from Dr. Christophers school of natural healing and LOVE it! We have used all these things you have talked about in my family too and I am so thankful for being able to be more self reliant! Not to mention saving money! And its fun too!

      Thanks for writting about this, where I live it definitly isn't main stream, it is fun to know others are out there! And to know we can bounce ideas off each other. Thanks again! Just an FYI for others who have questions about herb stuff you can go to ahealthieryouradio.com every Saturday they have an hour u can call in and ask any question. Its dr. Christophers son who is carrying on what his father started that u will talk to!


      ~Emily D.

      Emily said...

      Johnstons and others wanting Tammie's where to starts, down load her free and amazing ebook on food storage, see the section on herbs.