8 Natural Ways to Treat Shingles

1. Soothe Your Skin
To promote healing (and relaxation), add a few drops of rose, lavender, bergamot or tea tree oil to your warm bath. Mix them in a carrier oil, such as vegetable oil first.

2. Numb the Pain
Calendula lotion or ointment applied to blisters several times a day eases pain. Or apply a paste made of two crushed aspirin tablets and two tablespoons rubbing alcohol three times a day to soothe throbbing nerve endings.

3. Visit the Pharmacist for Help
Ask your pharmacist to prepare a mixture with 75 per cent calamine, 20 per cent rubbing alcohol, and one per cent each phenol and menthol. (Inert ingredients account for the remaining 2 per cent.) You may want to call ahead so the pharmacy can ensure to have these ingredients in stock. Apply to blisters continuously until you’re healed. Other itching remedies include vitamin E oil or aloe vera gel.

4. Apply Cold Packs
Apply ice packs for 10 minutes at a time to affected areas. Keep them off for at least five minutes between applications.

5. Try a Compress
Compresses containing aluminium acetate solution, available over the counter in pharmacies, can help relieve the itching.

6. Avoid Irritating Blisters
To keep your clothes from rubbing against your blisters, dust yourself with colloidal oatmeal powder.

7. Try a Natural Method
Applying a cream containing capsaicin (the heat in hot peppers) three or four times a day has reduced pain for many sufferers after a couple of weeks of use.

8. Get Some Rest
Bed rest is recommended during the early stages of shingles, especially if you have a fever. Because open blisters can spread chicken pox to anyone who hasn’t had it before, change bed linens frequently.