What are your strategies when dealing with the common cold?

[msmoneybags48]

I take Alka-Selter Plus to get over my bout with a cold.  I have taken Ny-Quil as well.  It is a lot better than going through the things I went through as a child.  My grandmother's idea was to give me doses of castor oil with a water chaser.  That was gross as all get out.  The castor oil was slimy and it did nothing for my cold.  One of her friends had the idea of putting Vaseline on an apple and eating it to get rid of a cold, and I thought that was weird.  I recall five years ago that my stepfather chose to pour whiskey into my eggnog.  That made me upset at him, but I got over my cold earlier.  I have boiled a lemon and drank the juice.  It opened up my throat and made me feel better.  There are several ideas that serve as remedies.

[kapeh12]

I increase my water intake, and ensure I get to sleep at least an hour earlier than usual.  If I start getting too congested where I cannot breathe/sleep, I'll take some decongestant, but only the minimum dosage.  I also will get a humidifier going in my room if I feel I'm "drying out" too much - the extra moisture in the air helps me breathe.

I also try my best to blow out everything I can when it's up in my nose, because I found that minimizes how much settles in my chest and then I won't have the 2-3 weeks of coughing post-cold.

When I sleep, I'll add an extra blanket or two to up my body temperature.  By raising your body temperature, you'll help your body "burn out" the bug that started the cold.

Typically I'll be heavy on broth soups through this time, and I try to add some fresh garlic to them as well.  Garlic is one of the few natural plants that is both antibacterial and antiviral - so whichever is causing your cold, the garlic will attack both.

I rarely get sick - I typically go years without anything.  The rare occasion I do, it's so foreign to my normal state of being, I usually get on top of triaging the symptoms immediately so I typically can kill the cold in 24 hours, a really bad on may take 48 hours to kick it.

[nmsmith]

vitamins, garlic, oj and hot toddies!!!!

[sherryinutah]

By "having a cold" I'm thinking that we're talking about a respiratory issue.  I also take mega doses of vitamin C with juice to break down mucus and clear toxins.

If I have a headache I also take ibuprofen.  I also take hot bathes and sleep as much as I can.  Other than that, I allow it to run it's course.    

[crazib]

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