The summer months are busy with activity around the Savings in Seconds house.  We have a time-consuming yard that my husband maintains with painful diligence. When I spend time working in the garden, my bones complain to me for hours afterward.   The smell of rub-on pain relief products brings back memories of the days my mom would use Ben-Gay after a long day’s work.  She had a very physical manual labor job in order to support our family.  The cream she rubbed on brought temporary relief but the scent lingered long after the effect wore off.  Now that I’ve experienced some health issues of my own, I’ve tried to find natural pain relief options  that are effective and, well, don’t make my hands smell bad.

I received some samples of Zim’s Max-Freeze® and Zim’s® Maximum Heat to try.  The first thing I noticed was the roll-on applicator.  That is such a genius idea!  It keeps one’s hands from smelling like muscle rub yet delivers the same pain-relieving benefit as the cream.  Zim’s employs natural ingredients in its products.  Relief comes from aloe, tea tree oil, and other plant-based ingredients.  There’s a $2 printable coupon available on the Zim’s Facebook page.  Zim’s offers many other products, including crack creme for very dry skin.  Using herbal skin care products has helped with the irritating eczema that plagues my hands in the winter.  I’m looking forward to trying these products as the seasons change.

I’m interested in learning more about reflexology as pain relief.  In a book I recently read, one of the characters alleviated a headache by pinching the flesh between her forefinger and thumb.  When I had a mild headache a few days ago, I tried this — and it worked!!  Now, was it just the power of suggestion?  Maybe, but if that can be a form of pain relief that requires no chemicals to enter my body, it’s worth it.

Finding natural pain relief options is a new hobby that I’m excited to try.  Since herbal and holistic remedies are becoming more accepted in our culture, I’m hoping that more choices will become available to all of us.

Do you use natural pain relief options?