Let's start off by defining what in the world a hive really is. I turned to WebMD for their article about Hives and Your Skin to produce this answer:
Urticaria, also known as hives, is an outbreak of swollen, pale red bumps or plaques (wheals) on the skin that appear suddenly -- either as a result of the body's reaction to certain allergens, or for unknown reasons.
Hives usually cause itching, but may also burn or sting. They can appear anywhere on the body, including the face, lips, tongue, throat, or ears. Hives vary in size (from a pencil eraser to a dinner plate), and may join together to form larger areas known as plaques. They can last for hours, or up to one day before fading.
I wanted to point out the medical description of hives, because I think it's important to know that when they come out of seemingly nowhere, and especially when they're on your kiddo they can be super scary. As is the case that I'm going to share with you today.
Last summer my son, Talon, woke up about 2AM and woke me up to share how uncomfortable he was. On our way to the bathroom in the dark he described that he was itching and hot. When I turned on the lights to examine him this is what I saw - his back was almost one gigantic hive, but they seemingly stopped like the hem on a shirt. His tummy and chest was riddled with the little suckers and it went up under his arm pits too. He had some action going on both forearms/wrists and they even flowed all the way down in abdomen and onto his thighs.
Hives! Where'd those come from? We recapped the evenings activities, only to discover that he hadn't eaten or done anything out of the norm. I honestly don't recall what we ate that evening (it was a year a go), but I do remember that it was a beautiful evening here in Colorado and we ate dinner, like most summer evenings, out on our back deck. Could it be heat rash? That didn't really seem like what was going on. He wasn't wearing a shirt, and the locations of the hives didn't seem consistent with a heat rash.
We took Talon's temperature, which was completely normal. So I turned to my oil box and decided to make a blend. While a simple Google search will yield a plethora of results, I used a simple blend of Lavender, Melaleuca and Frankincense. In a 5ml spray bottle I combined 5 drops each of the oils and filled the rest with water. I spritzed Talon down all over. We brainstormed again about if he'd gotten bitten, what exactly he'd been doing, etc. for just a few minutes and he decided he was comfortable enough to go back to bed.
Were back asleep in no time and the morning yielded ZERO signs of any hives. Hum, so weird, but I'll take it!
That day was again no different, same activities, same types of food as always, but again the next night he woke me up again, right around 2AM, to share that his hives were back. This time they were in different spots, including his eyelids, face and neck. I grabbed the "skin" spray I'd made the night before and again sprayed him down in all the affected areas. Again he went right back to bed.
He woke up the next morning, again, to ZERO signs of hives. However, that was the last time we've seen them. Yay!
I gotta be honest with ya. As much as I incorporate essential oils into mine and my families daily routines and life I'm still in awe when we have an experience like this. I mean I trust them and know they work. But when you can use and be confident in a simple blend that all in, including the cute spray bottle I used, cost me about $3.20 to make - I mean seriously! No rushing to urgent care in the middle of the night, no lack of sleep staying up worrying, and no appointment with a primary care physician (PCP) or going to an allergy specialist. Man that feels good!
I would certainly use caution and your own discretion and spidey-sense to know what's right for your families situation. But, I can honestly say how empowered and confident I feel in having natural solutions at my fingertips. A special thank you to the amazing soul who shared doTERRA with me (you know who you are), you've changed my life, my families life, forever.
XOXO - Danette