[lizziness]

Just wondering if anyone has any good homeopathic sunburn treatments... I'm using aloe vera and i'm sure it will help with healing but it's not doing anything for the stinging and burning...



i always think i don't need any sunblock, having been a california girl.. but it's been like 9 years since i've lived there and I need to remember to put it on before i go out.

Thanks in advance!

[cardsfan2009]

Actually, aloe vera gel and sometimes an aspirin work for me pretty well. Lucky me, i have pale Irish skin and couldnt tan to save my life.

Last summer, i worked a job in a cornfield and got burned horribly bad (blisters, the works) but the aloe vera always worked ver well for me. Id get burned, put the aloe on, and the next day, it would either be very faded or completely gone

Sorry I couldnt be of more help...Oh wait, I just thought of something else. I used cold washcloths on my sunburn as well, if it was really painful. It doesnt give long term relief, obviously, but it felt good at the time.

[mauvaisroux]

I've only ever used calamine lotion or aloe vera gel.

[Nirvanagurl]

I have always used noxema, not home made, but still my personal fav

[ajandpj99]

A nurse once told me, and I have actually tried it - use Distilled White Vinegar for the sting. Not so good on blisters and makes you smell like a salad, but for just a nice 2nd degree sunburn the vinegar works good. Sea Breeze (or just plain witch hazel with a dash of menthol) is also great - it really takes the sting out by cooling the skin. But it can be drying so use lots of lotion.

I have used aloe in the past and notice it heats up on your skin making the burn feel worse - to me anyway. I used to use noxema growing up - mom kept it in the fridge -but when I got older I found it too drying.

Now days - I just use a really mild lotion, no fragrance, very light, something you would use on your face - I find keeping the skin hydrated, helps the sting since most of the pain is caused from the tightening of the burned skin. I use the sea breeze for poison oak and heat rash.

[lizziness]

Thanks for all the suggestions! I am almost completely healed up, and I got away with no peeling. It's a miracle. *L* I used aloe vera gel and a product called dermaplast. cold wash cloths were helpful too. only problem i had with the gel is it's sticky and some times at night i would wake up because my skin had stuck to the sheets. OUCH!

I think if it happens again - and i know it will because it always does - i will try the vinegar. it doesn't sting??

[buckettgirl]

Originally Posted by lizziness

Thanks for all the suggestions! I am almost completely healed up, and I got away with no peeling. It's a miracle. *L* I used aloe vera gel and a product called dermaplast. cold wash cloths were helpful too. only problem i had with the gel is it's sticky and some times at night i would wake up because my skin had stuck to the sheets. OUCH!

I think if it happens again - and i know it will because it always does - i will try the vinegar. it doesn't sting??

Vinegar is great... it doesn't sting, but you smell like vinegar LOL
I just pour vinegar onto a washcloth and dab it over my burn as needed - instant relief.
Simple, cheap, and effective...
I do urge you to do your best to use sunscreen....try to make it a habit (perhaps as part of your overall lifestyle change while you are losing weight). I'm sure you know about skin cancer - if you don't, think of your skin like a cup. A cup can only hold so much water before it overflows; once the skin as had all the sun exposure it can take, skin cancer develops. The damage a cumulative over your lifetime.
Perhaps you can buy a small bottle of sunscreen that you carry with you at all times (or keep in your vehicle or your purse).

[lizziness]

that's a good suggestion. it's one of those things i just don't think of. i use moisturizer with sunscreen in it for my face, but neglect the rest of my body. shame on me i know!
I grew up in California and honestly would be out in the sun all summer, never put on a drop of sunscreen, and was so tan people thought i was a different nationality! It will not surprise me if 13 years of doing that to myself winds up causing me cancer.
It's amazing with my skin though, I've been away from the california heat and sun for about 7 years and now being out in the sun at all just fries me. I guess it does change over the years. I have so totally learned my lesson, after almost two weeks my poor shoulders are still peeling.

[ajandpj99]

Hey lizz - I felt so bad for you that I went out this weekend and fried my back.

The odd part is that my burns usually go away pretty quick or at least stop hurting after the first day or two but this burn hurts more now than it did the day it happened. I did vinegar which helps the stink and face moisturizer for the dryness since it is really light and soaks in good with no fragrance. I think there may be some chapping from the breeze that blew all day so I will using mentholatum tonight. The hard part is that since it is my lower back (from bending down and weeding) I am constantly scraping it just by sitting back against anything and sleeping is tough since I rollover a lot.

As for convenient suncsreen - I just bought the coppertone spray on kind. I actually used it last weekend on my shoulders and it worked great, goes on very lightly and drys pretty much on contact. I sprayed it on at 10 and was out until after 1 and it was clear where the sun screen was vs where it was not. Had I not wanted some "color" my whole back would have gotten sprayed and I wouldnt be in pain now.

It was spf 30 and after 3 hrs I only had slight freckles in that area - which for me is normal and they fade when I go inside.

The best part of the spray is that you only need one hand and it is easier to get your back. You just have to use it for it to work.

[lizziness]

hehe yeah, aj, that that usually helps if you use it. we were thinking of getting some of the spray. we have like a bottle of 4 year old no-ad stuff. it's gloppy and smells bad. no wonder i am reluctant to use it.

have you noticed it getting increasingly worse as far as sun and heat here in oregon? seems like every year i'm here feels a little bit more like california. we still have a lot of rain of course, but summers seem more severe.

good ol' global warming.

[ajandpj99]

Thats sounds good - global warming - I will use that excuse instead of being older and having thinner skin and that parts of me hadnt seen sun since my honeymoon 7 yrs ago.

I have always had sun issues and certain herbs make me more sensitive - the ironic part is that I was releaved that I burned instead of having a heat rash. They are way worse - itchy like 1000 skitter bites and bumpy and just icky in general.

When I started to peel I switched to neosporin since the petroleum jelly helps sluff off the dead while protecting the new skin. Now I am in the last of scaling and the itching requires cortizone.

Fortunately I am versatile and keep all sorts of things on hand = if 1 dont work try the other, then the other, until you pass out.

by the way - think I dislocated my shoulder trying to peel and lotion my back while DH at work.

[MagicalLindyHop]

I know I am chiming in way late, but for future ref. you can also wet those large iced tea bags and place them on your skin. They work great. My grandmother used to use Tea bags and vinigar and it made us all feel great.

[docdragon]

Please understand that "homeopathy" and "natural remedy" are not necessarily the same thing! While homeopathy *is* all natural, not every natural remedy is homeopathic.

Homeopathy was invented in the 1800's by a man named Hahnemann. The concept behind homeopathy is that "like cures like". Homeopathy is an "energy medicine" and is not taken like other herbals or medical prescriptions.

I am NOT a licensed homeopath! However, I must say that a typical prescription for burns of any sort is Cantharis (also for burning bladder and urinary tract infections). If you choose to use homeopathy, make sure it is from a reputable source and it is specified as a “homeopathic remedy”. Solid medicine (anything from 30x to 30c) is taken as follows for burns: one "pill" under the tongue every hour until you begin to feel better. Liquid medicine (anything from 30x to 30c) is taken as follows for burns: 4-5 drops under the tongue every hour, and a 1 to 10 dilution in water soaked in a clean cloth and applied to the burn for 5-10 minutes every hour until you begin to feel better. With homopathy more medicine does not equal faster healing or a better responce! In fact it actually means a worse responce! So never take more than you have been instructed to take.

The important thing to remember is that you *MUST* stop using homeopathy as soon as you *begin* to feel better (or whenever your licensed homopath tells you to stop)!

Best of luck in the future for not getting burned!
Doc

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