Having kids = bumps, bruises, cuts, and scrapes… constantly. Especially with boys. My boys that is.
Thankfully, this mama has some herbal first aid supplies on hand to help with those things.
One of my must-have first aid items is yarrow powder.
Yarrow is a styptic herb which means it slows bleeding externally (it also slows it internally, but it’s referred to as a hemostatic herb in that case). It’s easy to use and it works great!
Today I wanna tell you how I used yarrow to slow bleeding from a cut with one of my kiddos.
The Wound Story
So there we were, walking down our driveway, headed off into the woods for an “adventure.” Our three big boys running ahead while The Man, Baby Ezrah, and I were walking behind.
I had no more than yelled out to the boys not to run down the gravel driveway when I saw it. It was in slow motion.
Judah.
Feet sliding beneath him.
His scared face.
His head bouncing against the gravel.
His legs flipping through the air over his little body.
A moment of stillness followed by crying, head holding, and coming to mama.
Oh yeah… and lots of blood!
Thankfully, he was fine… besides the tiny hole in his head where a piece of gravel had embedded. Unfortunately that tiny piece of gravel didn’t slow his bleeding much.
I couldn’t believe how much blood there was for a tiny hole and a few scrapes! My mind wandered back to my days working in the local emergency room; I remembered that head injuries, no matter how small, were notorious for lots of blood.
I handed Baby Ezrah to The Man and he headed off with the rest of the kids on their adventure. Judah and I headed to the house to take care of business.
Herbal First Aid… On A Tiny Head Wound
Once inside, I got the wound washed with some clean water with a little soap added to it. I gently used fresh dipped cotton balls to dab the would over and over while gently hushing my little guy and telling him how tough he was. That’s when I saw the tiny, embedded gravel.
I secretly got the tweezers and quickly got it out before telling the kid about it. I’m sure if I’d told him he had a rock stuck in his head he’d of flipped out even more. I handed him the little rock and told him it was stuck afterwards. He thought it was cool then… now that it wasn’t in his head! No matter, he didn’t want to see the hole.
It steadily dripped blood… all over his shirt, the bathroom counter, and the floor. Bright red, oxygen-filled blood. I remembered the yarrow powder.
I took a small pinch of it between my fingers, assured the kid it wouldn’t hurt, and firmly placed it against the bleeding hole. I did that a few times to get enough powder on there. Lastly, a cool, kid-approved band-aid covered it all. Now he was brave enough to look in the mirror.
Next up, the kid hit the bath while I worked on getting the blood out of his clothes and my white dish towels. Thankfully I had this handy diy natural cleaner guide on my computer. I used the Oxygen Bleach recipe and it worked wonders! The red blood came out of the white fabrics and into the water. Several rinses later, no evidence of blood remained.
After the bath, I removed the cool, kid-approved band-aid. The bleeding had stopped so I washed the powdered yarrow away with more clean water and soap. Then I put on some homemade “neosporin” salve followed by another cool band-aid. Lastly, I dabbed calendula infused oil over the remaining tiny scraps and sent my little man off to put on some comfy jammies and a little nap.
Thank goodness for the blessing of herbs and the know-how to use them.
Awesome job! I used Yarrow to help a giant goose egg go down. My 4 year old son was walking with us out of a restaurant, and getting ready to go out the door when he stopped and looked back. I saw it coming, but couldn’t stop it, and sure enough he looked forward just in time for the door to hit him on the side of the forehead. The bump sprang up right away and I knew it was going to be a big one. We weren’t far from home, and so when we got home I made a yarrow spit poultice (yuck, so bitter!), and bandaged it to his head. When we peeked at it a few hours later, the bump was almost all the way down. When I looked again at bedtime, it was flat. All he had was a bruise left, which would have been a great time to use Arnica if I had had any. At any rate, it was amazing and I was able to wow my husband, who was just getting used to the idea of using herbs instead of medicine. Score one for yarrow!
Thanks for sharing your story Joy! You gotta love it when herbs work in such an obvious way so that they win over the unbelievers… especially since that isn’t always how it goes, is it?
Yes, very true! Herbs can often have a subtle effect, so it’s nice when they really shine!
Would yarrow essential oil work in the same way? Why do you choose the fresh herb or powder over essential oil?
No Jess… the essential oil does not work the same way. Essential oils are extracted from the whole plant, therefore they don’t contain all they constituents or properties of the plant… only the oil portions, which means they don’t work the same way. I’ll be covering yarrow essential oil in the yarrow herb challenge coming up next month, but know that it doesn’t work the way the herb does. For stopping bleeding, you need the herb. Hope that helps!
Glad Judah is okay…so the moral of this story is to have the power of yarrow on hand for first aid.. Thanks for the info…
Yes! He’s okay, and yes… yarrow is a definite must-have in this house!
Oh, Meagan! That picture makes my tummy turn. But how wonderful that you were able to get into “nurse gear” and take care of your little man. God’s herbs are amazing!
I know what you mean Kristen! I’m glad that “nurse gear” still kicks in! It’s very helpful at times.
Where can I buy yarrow powder like you used?
You can buy dried yarrow from Bulk Herb Store and powder it in a mortar and pestle or you can buy pre-powdered from Mountain Rose Herbs. I usually powder my own from dried since I only keep a small amount powdered at one time. If you have too much powdered and you don’t use it quick enough, it will lose its medicinal properties.
Did you ever try growing your own yarrow?
Yes Monica. I planted four plants that I pulled up at the end of the season last year. They have spread and are growing like crazy!!! I’ll have to post a FB or instagram picture of them soon!
would Yarrow extract work if there was no powder on hand?
Yes, but I wouldn’t put it on a wound… the alcohol would burn! At least not with a kid. I think I’d try another styptic herb first like calendula. Again, you’d have to have some powder though.
I have the oil could you guide me on how to use it?????
Do you have yarrow infused oil or a yarrow essential oil, Marianne? They’re used differently. I’m not sure if the yarrow infused oil is a strong styptic (will stop bleeding) like the actual plant material is. I don’t know much about the essential oil. I’ve heard of it, but never used it.