Tending FIRE - Wise Fever Management

Fever management is fire tending.

It is an ancient practice making its way back into our care of the sick.

Fever never stopped being a source of healing.
What changed was our relationship to welcoming it. To stop a fever is often not wise. Something is physically, emotionally, mentally, or metaphorically being incinerated. It’s about the internal fire that transforms. Tending any fire takes some skill, practice, and a deep humble presence of bowing to a force that is mighty and can destroy many things.

Have a listen and take notes, if called, to for your apothecary notebook. Here are few facts to also read through about fever so you will walk as the wise keeper of knowledge on how to manage fever and tend the internal fire for health and healing.

Usnea barbata will help.

AUDIO LINK: Wise Fever Management - 78m
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This is a talk for my herbalists in training at ElderMoon School of Herbs. I share because embracing fever takes some umph today with so many medical folk in medical settings believing it must be stopped. Truth is what is making us sick can be stopped faster if we learn what our grandmothers and great grandmothers knew on how to dance with fever for supporting health and well being.
Be sure to listen to the “$500 Bath” story - a funny in hindsight Jen learning curve.

Yarrow will help.

​So, the general rule for fever is not too long and not too hot.

Why? It’s all about energy reserves. You will run out of viral reserve energy and the body will collapse and succumb to other microbes present if we go too hot hot or too long. This can be a life threatening situation if left unchecked. It's good to stay in bed and ride out a fever with your focus on being well hydrated. It is also good to be checked on every 2-3 days to be sure you have the reserves and to see if there is a microbe that needs more aggressive boundary work.

​What is a fever?

Modern medicine says this: “99 degrees is NOT a fever. And 100 degrees F really isn’t a fever either. Medically speaking, a fever is not a fever until the temperature is greater than 100.4 degrees F or 38°C. Although some sources vary by a tenth or two, this is the general rule of thumb for all humans, children and adults alike. What route you take the temperature in matters too.” We talk of this in the recording.
Another important thing to remember is that body temperatures fluctuate throughout the day. It’s called diurnal variation. Our temperatures are lowest in the morning and highest in the evening. The same goes for children. So 99 degrees F at night is not the same as 99 degrees F in the morning.

Lemon Balm and Rosemary will help.

​Febrile Seizure Fear

Physiologically, febrile seizures result when the body experiences a very rapid rise in temperature over a short amount of time. The neurological system gets a little confused by this, and responds with a febrile seizure.

No doubt, febrile seizures sound terrifying, but they really aren’t as scary as they seem. In fact, they are harmless. They do not result in permanent brain damage, neurological problems, or death. They can last anywhere from a few seconds to a few minutes, and they rarely last as long as fifteen minutes. They usually occur between the temperature range of 101°F-103°F.

If your child has a febrile seizure, even though most are benign, it is still important to get him or her checked out by your pediatrician.

If you’re reading this, you certainly don’t need to worry about getting a febrile seizure the next time you let your fever ride it out— febrile seizures only occur in kids ages 6 months to 5 years old. For those parents with children ages 6 months to 5 years old, you need to know this:
*fever reducing medications like Tylenol/Acetaminophen products or Motrin/Ibuprofen products do not prevent febrile seizures.*

Goldenrod will help.

​When Fevers Are Serious

Although fevers are a crucial tool of a healthy immune response to infection, there are fever numbers of concern.

• Fevers around 105°F-106°F usually indicate a severe bacterial infection.
• Damage to neurological tissue - the brain - is more likely once a fever hits 107°F.
• A fever in a baby less than 3 months old is always abnormal. Call your baby’s pediatrician if this occurs.
• High fevers in pregnant women are of concern. Consult your doctor or midwife if you get a high fever during pregnancy.
• Fever runs too long. So what is too long? My rule is by day three you need to dig deeper for the cause if it's not known. If you have a flu, sometimes the fever can run 5-6 days. But if you have just fever or rigors – the violent, uncontrollable shaking with fever spikes – then often blood work may be needed to discover the culprit, which often is bacterial. A good clinician will monitor one for reserve energy to keep going, educate the care taker on how to proceed with what is most important to get them through, and decide when it is time for more aggressive actions.

Elder flower will help.

​RECIPE: Homemade Electrolyte Drink

​Yes, we can make tea, honey water, ginger, cough or immune syrups, sipping broths, and simple electrolyte replacement drinks. Here’s my family’s recipe.

RECIPE: Homemade Electrolyte Drink

• 2 cups water
• 1/2 cup orange or pineapple juice
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1/8 teaspoon sea salt
• pinch of baking soda

Mix together, stir well, and drink to replace vital electrolytes after much sweating, vomiting, or runny bowels. I offer dilute 1 teaspoon of honey in warm water for active vomiting and offer this after the vomiting has stopped and the GI tract is settling down. Even if they continue to vomit again, once done take tiny sips again and again. This will help hydrate and kill GI gut germs too.

Sipping broths ALWAYS help.

Consider some of the sipping broth recipes sprinkled throughout your days when tending the sick. They always help. Fever needs fluids, not food.

Fever is a liquid fasting practice to minimize symptoms.

I consider this a friendly pubic service announcement. Spread the word. Thank you for traveling through 💚Jen