When I came home from visiting Melanie, Steve, and Celia, Ken was sporting quite the cold and in all my glorious health, I just wasn't catching it. For weeks, my immune system was a superstar. I was infallible and naturally, the pretentious gloating commenced. You can breath on me. See? No cold. Go ahead, sneeze, hack, cough. I'm so sorry for you, but please observe how the cold does not invade my body. That's because I am the picture of health. I will not be catching the cold. I am too good/strong/powerful for the cold.
The cold listened. The cold got pissed. And then the cold unexpectedly whipped around and delivered the KO.
I was down for the count and truth be known, almost two weeks later, I'm just getting on my feet. What is it with this cold? It brought my life to a screeching halt and relegated me to a whimpering, complaining, I just feel like crap pile of flesh under an afghan watching reruns of who knows what all day long. Any time I have been forced to answer the phone in the last two weeks, the unfortunate caller (let me take a moment to apologize right now) has been treated to my whining in a voice that was not really mine because of the piercing sore throat that accompanies this cold... not to mention the sinus headaches and 25-pound head-of-lead that is this cold's earmark.
I was beginning to question whether I would regain my gloat-worthy health any time this century, when the words 'Himalayan Pink Salt' seeped into my foggy little brain. I had purchased a pound of it months before from my favorite Mountain Rose Herbs, and for this privilege I promised my firstborn. When the package arrived, I saw with my own two eyes just how miniscule a one-pound bag of Himalayan Pink Salt crystals is (when considering the price I paid for it) and I put the bag away to use sparingly and for only special cuisine.
Needless to say, the cuisine around here is NEVER special enough to warrant the use of salt at the price of gold... but what if it could eliminate this sore throat? Just, what if??? I'd gargle the whole pound away. So, I followed these directions to make sole (pronounced so-lay), which is brine from Himalayan Pink Salt:
Loosely fill a closable glass container (such as a Mason jar) with several crystal or rock salt pieces. Add pure spring or energized water, completely filling the container.
After approximately 24 hours, look to see if the salt pieces have completely dissolved. If so, add a few more crystals. When the water can no longer dissolve any more salt, the salt crystals will sit at the bottom of the jar without dissolving. At this point the solution will have become saturated at 26%, ready to use as brine.
The glass can be refilled again and again with water and salt, continuing this process.
This brine solution is stable, and absolutely sterile & germ-free. It can be stored for years in a closed glass container without it changing or decomposing.
Now, first of all, the water in our house, which is spring water to begin with, is super-filtered beyond the realm of compulsiveness, so I used water right out of the tap. Also, my salt crystals are not chunky... they are coarse, so I didn't wait 24 hours. Actually I waited closer to 24 seconds (until the water looked clear and the excess crystals settled to the bottom) and then took a small glass of sole and gargled two times. Instantly, the sore throat felt better. To make sure, because I can't believe that anything can work that fast (even though it did), I did it again before I went to bed. And that was the end of that! (I added water to the jar and shook it, and will keep doing that until the crystals are consumed, at which point I'll add more salt, and so on and so forth.)
Then I decided to use it in the neti pot, and have done that the past two nights. Yes folks... not only was it incredibly soothing, but I am back among the breathing. This stuff is, yes... I will say it... WORTH ITS WEIGHT IN GOLD and every cent I spent on it.
So, Melanie... my sweet firstborn... pack your bags. Sorry.
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