Last week, I suffered my first ever experience of Laryngitis.

Suffered is not the most appropriate word.  I didn’t mind being quiet at all.  In a way it was actually a relief to not have to speak!

And I found it interesting how people responded to and interacted with me.  Some seemed to think that using a raised voice to speak to me was suddenly appropriate, others went quiet themselves and gestured to me as if they themselves had lost their voice, some slowed down and used other senses rather than just words to understand me, and others just continued on as normal.

Overall, I was most impresed with my dog’s response.

She just got me!  She would look at me, her eyes sweeping my face and body, searching for a gesture from me, she desperately wanted to know what I wanted from her, which task to perform. The only thing for which she needed to hear my voice, was her dining command “OK”.  Until I say this, she will not eat the food in her dish!  So that was a bit tricky, but still we managed!

Apart from losing my voice, I didn’t have too many other nasty sufferings.  I had a sore throat, but I’ve had worse, and I hadn’t much energy, I could feel my body was trying to stave off something more damaging, and for this I was grateful with my lot.  I took some time off work and just tried to listen to my body and rest. (This was harder than I thought it would be, but that’s another blogpost!).

So my mum was giving me motherly advice on how to convalesce, and one of the things she was adamant I do, was OIL PULLING.
I didn’t actually know what oil pulling was, exactly. So I finally got round to looking into it a bit more and here is what I found.

MY NEW FAVOURITE CURE ALL?!

Oil pulling is an ancient Ayurvedic ritual.

Traditionally, cold-pressed sesame or sunflower oils are used.

Although some use unrefined/virgin sesame /sunflower or virgin coconut oil as an alternative.

It involves taking a tablespoon of oil into the mouth, and swishing it around in there for at least 20 minutes, first thing in the morning before eating.

After the oil swishing there is another very important step – swishing with salty warm water.  This is very important, as it works to expel any lingering toxins left in the mouth on any oil that remains.  SO DON’T SKIP THIS BIT!

It all sounds a bit gross and time-consuming, but I found it’s not so much, and sooooo worth it! As I had started my research early that morning – and I got so excited about how much positive anecdotal evidence for the myriad benefits this practice brings – I was in a good state to jump up and get swishing myself, and so I did!

There are many videos and articles on oil-pulling you can find on the net …

I thought I would share my experience of how it’s working for me.

First let me tell you with what they say this practice can help.

FIRST AND FOREMOST, it is an excellent remedy for most oral & dental ailments, as well as giving your teeth a really good clean and shine!

But here is a list of the most common conditions people have reported that respond to oil pulling, and I estimate that I know at least one person, suffering from one or more of these conditions, which is why I’m posting about this! :

Acne, Allergies, Arthritis, Asthma, Back and Neck Pain, Bad Breath, Bronchitis, Chronic Fatigue, Colitis, Crohn’s Disease, Constipation, Dental Cavities, Dermatitis, Diabetes, Eczema, Hemorrhoids, Hypertension, Insomnia, Migraine Headaches, Mucous Congestion, Peptic Ulcers, PMS, Periodontal Disease, Bleeding Gums, Sinusitis, Tooth Abscess

I think that it’s worth bearing in mind that there are many ailments and diseases that can be directly related to oral health and may respond to oil pulling therapy, so I feel it’s worth a trial period no matter what your ailment!

Do you remember the olden days, when a visit to the doctor meant us sticking out our tongue and saying ‘aaahhh’ so doc could have a look in our mouths?  Both modern and Chinese medicine, and also ancient Indian healing systems acknowledge the importance of the mouth and the tongue as indicators of well-being or ill-health, as the case may be.

So to give you a rough explanation of how it works:

The process of oil pulling attracts bacteria, toxins and parasites that live in the mouth or lymph system.  It also pulls congestion and mucous up from your throat and it loosens up your sinuses.  When mixed with the saliva in the mouth, this bad stuff binds with the oil SO IT IS IMPORTANT NOT TO SWALLOW IT!

There is no shortage of information out there on oil pulling.  A lot of anecdotal evidence and a little science.  Dr. Karach M.D. has a site devoted to what he thinks is all we need to know about oil pulling, which I found realistic, and from which I am gathering most of the information for my experiment.  Click HERE for Dr. Karach ‘s science behind oil pulling . 

HOW I DO MY OIL PULLING

Today was my 7th day oil pulling.

I am using coconut oil, just because I have it to hand and because I have found that others using it have had positive results.  Also I think it might be easier to stomach, so to speak, than sesame oil, but I do intend to try sesame oil sometime.

I started off using 1 tablespoon of solid coconut oil.  This is way too much – even for my big mouth!  I think 1 teaspoon of solid coconut oil or 1 tablespoon of liquid oil will do the job and is where I’m up to now.  It took me a couple of days to get the right amount, so experiment yourself ’til you find your own level.  The first time I did it, my facial muscles felt tired, which shouldn’t happen, and I even let some escape forth involuntarily, so I advise carrying a tissue for the first few times in case of accidents!  This happened simply because I had too much oil in my mouth, and hasn’t happened me since day 2.

Swish it all around your mouth for at least 20 minutes.  Pull and push it through your teeth, and try to get it moving around all parts of the mouth.  Don’t stop swishing.  But remember, there is no need to use a lot of force here, it shouldn’t hurt in any way, so refrain from adding tension or stress to the muscles/body and try to keep relaxed as you can be.

Here is one part of the day that I do encourage a bit of multi-tasking!  I would advise you to avoid focusing only on the activity in the mouth for this 20 minutes.  It just gets all a bit too much!  On my first day I was doing this and I ended up gagging a couple of times, I let some slip forward out of my mouth, and I also let some slip backwards and swallowed a teeny bit!  Now this was partly due to me having too much volume in there in the first place, and I think your first couple of times, of course your going to focus on it a bit, but after day 2, I advise getting some stuff done while oil pulling!  I read some emails, watched videos, etc, and now I have my shower, put on my make-up, feed the dog, prepare my lunch for work etc etc … that way it needn’t be a time-consuming experience!

One other tip I would share, is avoid tilting your head backwards as this may induce gagging and swallowing!  If anything I would keep a slight tilt forward, but remember, no need for tension.

DO NOT SWALLOW THE OIL.  As I said, I did swallow a little bit of oil on my first day, nothing bad happened.  But as the oil soon contains the bacteria and toxins the practice is working to expel, you must spit it all out.  Don’t freak out if you swallow a bit in the the experimental stage, it will work its way out the other way through the digestive system, and as Dr. Karach says “Nothing is to be done” (love this – so yogi!!)

Some sources say not to spit it down the sink when done, as it may clog your sink/drains?  However, I am not sure about that. They suggest spitting into the bin or the toilet (wouldn’t it do the same thing in the toilet drain?).  Anyway, after 20 minutes of swishing, that which was once oil, jettisons as a watery milky like substance, and isn’t really oil anymore.  You’ll have to come to your own conclusion on that one.

WARM SALTY WATER RINSE

Then I rinse with warm-hot salty water and really swish it around – think about what you’re doing – you’re trying to reach any remaining oily residue in the mouth to cut through the toxins therein.  If you omit this step, you are going to be swallowing down the bacteria you have just spent 20 mins gathering into your mouth, see?

After the warm salty water rinse, I then brush my teeth and finally use my tongue scraper to finish off the treatment.

Tip: Seems a bit obvious but I am always conservative – do make sure you are not allergic to the oil you are using! 

Click HERE for a little video from Dr. Karach’s site on how to do oil pulling, I found this helpful!

My Experience So Far (the boring details – feel free to skip!)

I have shared most of my experiences so far.  I would like to add these:

On day 1 after oil pulling, I immediately felt fresher in myself, not just in my mouth.  Yes, my teeth were sparkling clean and rubbing my tongue over my teeth before brushing told me so!  But my head felt clear and de-fogged.  The sore throat I had from laryngitis eased, and I felt energised.  This really excited me!

On day 2, after oil pulling I felt better again, and thought my laryngitis had gone.  I started to speak again, only to find that night, that my glands were swollen, my throat was sore and there was some kind of a lump inside my throat, the back of my neck and all around it ached and I felt exhausted.

I woke up on day 3 (a Saturday) feeling a little better … oil pulled … felt a lot better …went for breakfast and a gentle walk … and tried really hard not to speak.  When I got home, I felt worse than I had since contracting the infection – so bad I thought I was going to have to take the next week off work!

I was pretty upset, as I had a big family function to attend that day, and a friend’s dinner party that night.  I didn’t know how I was going to get through it all.  So I lay down for 90 minutes in a restorative yoga pose – a version of supta savasana (I lay with a big bolster under my knees, and cushions supporting my back so that I was on an incline with my head higher than my heart). I slept a little.  I went out to the first function, and tried really hard not to speak for fear of worsening.  In the end, I caught myself talking quite a bit, it was just too hard, and dammit – I was enjoying myself!

I came home, rested again in the same way for an hour, and went out to the dinner party.  Not only was I talking, but I ended up shouting over music, thinking for sure, I am rightly mucked up now for tomorrow and the rest of the week.  That night I slept on the couch in the same position as earlier.

I woke up better than ever.  Sorry for the lengthy details, but I thought it was important to document it.  I think what was happening was, the toxins were working their way out and I had to feel worse before I felt better.

And did it cure my laryngitis?  Well, I don’t know.  I still have a little huskiness in my voice, and I’m still feeling tired like I might have something viral, but my sinuses are clear, I have no congestion in nose, throat or chest, and no headaches or neck aches and my glands haven’t felt sore since Friday night, AND I have slept like a baby so …. I believe this has been a really positive experience, and I intend to keep it up as part of my daily routine!

Have You Tired Oil Pulling?  Or Will You Try It?  

Please Share Your Experiences Here With Us In The Comment Boxes Below?

 

THANKS MUM!

 

Love Lila, xo