Yup – I was STUNG 3 TIMES IN THE BUTT! OMG the pain was crazy! Despite years of prescribing and promoting Apis (often referred to as homeopathic Benadryl) for all manner of stings, allergic and anaphylaxis reactions,  I quite luckily had never had a reason to use it personally…that is until this past Sunday…

Evidently a wasp had flown up my long skirt and gotten trapped. As the dictates of Murphy’s law demand, my hands were full at the time of the vicious attack on my bum. Sting #1 was shocking and mildly painful – I dropped my watering cans. Sting #2, millimeters from Sting #1, was met with some expletives and a futile attempt to get the wasp out of my skirt. Sting #3, nearly on top of Sting #1 and Sting #2, was excruciatingly painful - more expletives and mad slapping to crush the evil stinging beast that was attacking my innocent bum.

Thanks to some excellent new research and many professional sports figures we are becoming more aware of serious risks associated with concussions.

Most players, coaches and parents are aware of the major signs and symptoms of a concussion (loss of consciousness, vomiting, loss of memory, etc.) but are often unaware of the more subtle signs and symptoms of concussion. Fewer people still are aware that the signs and symptoms of a concussion can take hours or even days to manifest.

Things I have learned about concussions


1. Any violent, jarring motion can result in concussions

Concussions can be caused by more than just direct blows to the head. Anything that causes the brain to be shaken or bounce around in the skull can result in a concussion – think of: whiplash; players colliding together; or, flying through the air while tobogganing and landing with a thud. 

I was on vacation sailing for 2 weeks and it was amazing up until the last 3 days when one after another we all came down with stomach flu (viral gastroenteritis)…Homeopathy to the rescue? Sadly no. I forgot ½ of my first aid kit on my desk at home - the ½ that included the remedies we needed!...and the much needed Mozi-Q!

We had to manage our way through without the help of homeopathy – not easy or pretty but we all survived.  


Things I have learned about viral gastroenteritis

1. Antibiotics are unlikely to help you and may make it worse
Antibiotics will have no effect on the viruses that cause the majority of stomach flus. Antibiotics will destroy the healthy bacteria in your digestive tract.

I know that some people love the sun - I am not one of them! It seems that despite my best intentions there are at least a few times a year that I get too much sun and I end up looking like this.  After 40 years in this pale skin and with all of my medical knowledge you would think I would know better and not get burnt - apparently not.

Below are some TLC tips and first-aid recommendations for when you or your loved ones have gotten too much sun and you are dealing with dehydration, sun burns, rashes or sun/heat stroke: