Nerve Pain Support salve
$20.00A few years ago, during a routine blood draw by a just-learning human, the nerves in my left forearm were damaged--to the point that I lost the use of my left wrist and hand. The sharp, shooting pains in my wrist were intense and unrelenting, and the numbness in my fingers and arm were frightening. My doctor confirmed that it was nerve damage and told me that I would recover but that it could take up to 9 months to heal. Nine months without my left hand! I work for myself, with my hands, and that just wouldn't do. As an herbalist I knew about St. John's Wort's affinity for nerve pain and I also knew firsthand that my cottonwood bud infused oil was helpful for all sorts of pain, so I combined the two infused oils and started rubbing the area where the nerve pain was the worst each evening. (I also took an over-the-counter homeopathic remedy for nerve pain, because when you're in that much pain, you're inclined to throw everything at it at once just to make the pain stop.) To make a long story short, within 7 days of using the infused oils, I could use my left hand again and within 9 days the sharp, shooting, debilitating pain was completely gone.
I can't say that this salve will work that well for you, or that quickly, but neighbor, I sure hope it does! Sharp, shooting, unpredictable nerve pain is the worst.
To use: Get some salve on your fingers and warm it up a bit by rubbing it around between the tips of your fingers and your thumb. Then, gently rub the salve into the area where you are feeling temporary sharp, shooting nerve pain. Repeat 1-3 times a day as needed. Important! Check with your doctor or other health care professional to make sure that what you have is temporary nerve pain and that this salve is right for you. When taken orally for prolonged periods of time, powerful St. John's Wort can interfere with certain medications, such as depression, anxiety, and birth control medications. Used topically and for short periods of time, it’s less likely to interfere with medication but you should talk with your doctor about risks and benefits. Also, while rare, some people are allergic to cottonwood bud resin, so stop using the salve if your body doesn't like the ingredients. This salve is intended to be used for short periods of time to support nerve pain relief from nerve damage caused by accident, injury, or overuse.
Ingredients: Fresh locally grown (and gathered by me) St. John's Wort, stinging nettles, and windfall cottonwood buds infused in organic olive oil, plus local beeswax from either HiveHarvest on the peninsula or Maya Farm here on Whidbey, and local rosemary essential oil from Whidbey Herbal.
Size/packaging: Reusable 2-ounce, gold screw-top, food-grade tin. See the Packaging page of this website for more details.
Medical Disclaimer: To make well-informed decisions for yourself, seek the guidance of your qualified health professional, such your medical doctor, nurse practitioner, naturopathic physician, and/or clinical herbalist with questions regarding your medical conditions, dosage information, and possible interactions with prescription drugs (for example, St John's Wort is known to interfere with some medications). The information on this page is for general reference for further exploration and study. It is not intended as a replacement for professional medical advice. See the Medical Disclaimer page of this website for more details. These statements have not been evaluated by the US Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. In our experience, the more connected to the land and local plants we are, the better we tend to feel. Get to know the plants in this balm better--go meet them in person or read a book about them!
