Hey there! 🤧
I'm writing this with a box of tissues next to me, a mug of warm tea in my hand, and eczema patches on approximately every surface of my body. Arms, chest, stomach, legs, neck—it decided to go on a full tour this week.
Truly an unwelcome surprise that I did not ask for.
The past week was a lot. I won't get into all of it, but "eventful and challenging" is the polite version. Somewhere in the middle of everything, my body just... threw up the white flag. 🏳️ The colds hit first, the kind where your nose is so congested it makes EDSA traffic look like a walk in the park and your throat is so itchy you're convinced you're coughing out an actual organ. I've barely slept in days because every time I lie down, the coughing starts again. And the eczema? The eczema saw a weak immune system and just went to town. 🙈
Ironically, I had just written about both of these things. The heat-to-rain transition wrecking reactive skin, and keeping the body resilient during respiratory scares. Apparently, the universe read those posts and said: let's test her. 🙃 The AC-to-outdoor-air whiplash is genuinely what pushed me over the edge. The cold dry recycled air all day, then stepping outside into 44°C humid sticky wetness. Not hantavirus, definitely. Just a nasty bug that found me at the worst possible time.
So what did I actually do about it?
I'm a supportive care kind of girl. My body knows what to do—I just have to give it backup. Hot soup despite the ridiculous weather, herbal syrup that relieves my throat, and a LOT of warm water. 🍜 Traditional Chinese Medicine has long held that warm water supports the body's circulation and digestive energy, helping it process and expel what it doesn't need rather than spending extra energy warming cold fluids first. And for real, I feel that.
For the eczema: ice on the worst spots first to stop the scratch spiral, then lotion on damp skin, then Oleia Warm Mint Oil on top to lock everything in and work on the inflammation underneath. The layering matters.
And for the colds, the Warm Mint Oil really pulled its weight. Peppermint, eucalyptus, and ginger essential oils in the same base as the Pure Oil. A few drops on my chest before lying down helps open things up just enough to breathe. Not a cure but the perfect support to get me through the night. 😴
It's been a rough week. But I'm getting through it—warm water, good soup, Oleia, and the stubborn belief that my 30 year old body is doing its best. 😇
Here's to actually sleeping tonight. 🤞🏻
Show me your bottle and I'll show you mine? 'Til next time!
xo, L.
