One big misconception about South East Asia is that it's always humid. You know... mold, endless afternoon rains, steamy heat, rain drenched gardens, dripping banana trees and more steamy, relentless heat.
While that's certainly true from April through to November, the monsoonal weather pattern definitely has a dry season. A VERY dry season. The countryside around Chiang Mai (where I live) goes from lush and outrageously green, to this.
Air quality plummets as the monsoonal shift which occurs each February means hot, windless weather, combined with agricultural burning to prepare for planting when the rains come. The result?
The overnight fires in the Mae On district make the clean green haven close to Doi Suthep a smoggy nightmare sometimes. At my home this morning in Saraphi, it's not nearly that bad. Not good to be sure, but not cosmic. As the heat of the day warms up the atmosphere, the smog rises and the AQI improves as the day wears on.
Still, I started my day today with 30 mins over my humidifier - a relatively new purchase after almost 18 years in Thailand. Why wait 18 years? Perhaps I had never understood the role of moisture in the air quite enough (taken it for granted?), nor had I perhaps understood how much better I could/would feel without a dry stuffy nose for several months. Let me tell you - the humidifier is a game changer!!
I originally bought it to test it out as a commercial product to add to my website - my new post-Covid biz strategy is requiring me to add income streams from natural and health ideas-products that I don't necessarily make or produce myself. And so my BNI business club friend, Khun Sun who owns the Sandy health Shop in Chiang Mai, sold me a little portable USB Humidifier. They retail here for about $30. I also bought some Colloidal Silver and Colloidal Copper to use in it.
Why Colloidal Silver? Naturally antibacterial. And Colloidal Copper? An INCREDIBLE natural anti-viral agent. It makes sense to inhale some Colloidal Copper when one returns home if one is worried about possible viral infection.
And so I bought the Humidifier to test and try, since I don't like to sell or promote things that I wouldn't personally buy or use.
Mine has a timer on it and is USB driven. I plug it into my laptop on my desk, and at night I put it on for one hour as I'm drifting off to sleep. My theory is that the slower, deeper breathing as one drifts off into La La Land means the Colloidal Silver & Copper will penetrate more deeply into the lungs and my sinuses.
Being an unrepentant multi-tasker, I also add 1 drop each of sage essential oil, tea tree essential oil and lavender essential oil to the water mix. I feel calmed, cleaned, cleared and relaxed as I sit with the super fine mist swirling around me.
When I'm checking emails first thing in the morning, I wedge it between my legs as I sit at my desk - such an easy thing to do as the mist naturally wafts up my nose. And I breathe as I work and start my day.
It sits on my nightstand near my head as I drift off to sleep, with the timer set for one hour, so it automatically turns itself off.
What have I noticed after one week?
I now often wake up needing to blow my nose - and feel REALLY CLEAR in my breathing after that. My self-cleaning nose is functioning well again! I cough up mucous rather than it stagnating & drying in my bronchial passages. During the day, the stuffy, dry feeling in my nose & sinuses is HUGELY reduced - so much so that 2 days this week I completely forgot to take my allergy meds. My bronchial wheezing is also noticeably absent.
My Thai beautician friend informs me that my skin will look like an 8 year old girl's again soon 😆 - a tough ask for my 57 year old self! 😆 but I HAVE noticed my lips and facial skin are less dry. My eyes feel less tired and dry at the end of the day too.
If you live or work in an air-conditioned, dry atmosphere, a humidifier might be a really good investment for better natural health. Certainly if you live in a monsoonal climate, this is a dry season MUST have!!
Learning again that it is the little, daily habits that are life changing and which support glowing, natural health.
Be well & happy.
Oh, and drink more water. Optimal hydration from the inside out really is a gamechanger.
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Glad that it's helping - I feel I need one of these!
I'm really surprised at how much it is helping, especially first thing in the morning. It's hard to avoid AC in hot-dry season - the convenience stores have it set to about 16C!! In the best of all possible worlds, I intend to build myself a new home in the next 24 months and it WILL have a herbal steam room!! 😍
Meanwhile, the humidifier is a great little gadget for a more comfortable dry season. I'm surprised by how much my bronchial tightness has reduced.
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The place where you live comes across as very peaceful :)
I have been struggling with similar issue, live in Portugal on the coast with constant humidity and basically all houses here struggle with mold including where I am living, unfortunately I cannot invest in a humidifier, but I have been burning comfry, gargling warm water 3 times a day (ayurvedic recommendation) and diffuse tea tree oil. I haven't been able to notice whether or not is helping so I am definitely giving your tips a try. Thanks for sharing awesome blog post :)