Alternative Remedies for when you aren't Prepared

It's a good feeling stocking your bathroom medicine cabinet up for everything you need for an everyday medical need - for insect bites, dandruff, indigestion or anything else. They do have lots of specialized over-the-counter stuff for every one of these things, and you could be tempted to buy them up. We all stock up this way to be ready for anything; in fact, we usually take it personally if there is a problem that we don't have the right remedy for. The problem is though, that you never seem to need these things when they are close at hand. Sometimes, it's when you're out on a trip with the family or when you are at a friend's house and a kid gets hurt that you really wish you had the exact right materials with you. That's where it becomes useful to earn a few improvisational skills - using alternative remedies when you need to. What follows is a list of new uses for stuff we all have around the house or in our bags - to help you improvise, when the need strikes.

Everyone loves tea tree oil these days - we use it for athlete's foot, for acne, for anything that needs a little antifungal or antibacterial action. What people often don't know though is that tea tree oil is a great remedy against dandruff. So the next time you're with a friend on a trip and they seem to have forgotten their anti-dandruff shampoo, throw them your bottle of tea tree oil; a teaspoonful added to regular shampoo should turn it antidandruff. And on that same trip, if one of you seems to have a little foot odor problem from maybe sitting in the car with their shoes on for too long on a warm day, how about having them rub their feet down with a cloth soaked in vodka. It happens to contain some pretty strong alcohol, and it will easily kill all the odor causing bacteria, fungus and other nasties (that should be some trip - smelly feet and vodka).

So you're on a day out with your friends shopping, and one of you is really bothered with a headache. It can happen - too much walking, too much stress. Stress actually makes us reflexively tighten our jaw and this can starts off a tension headache. Fish out a pencil and ask your friend to hold it between their teeth without actually biting. It helps your muscles unclench and occupy themselves with something else. And the headache disappears.

People get blisters - women on their toes especially, when they pick shoes that are more pretty than they are comfortable. If that happens to you when you're out of the right cream for that, are there any alternative remedies in your bag? You do, if you have a little Listerine somewhere. Put a few drops of Listerine on the sore part couple of times a day, and you should be set. For aching feet, a frozen bottle of water can work wonders. Just put it on the ground and roll it with your foot.

Hiccups are common enough. But other than scaring a stuttering friend, what else do you have up your sleeve? Sugar, of course (no, not literally up your sleeve). Sugar helps the nervous system ease a misfiring nerve and calm a hiccup down right away. Now these should help you be the go-to person in your circle in a health emergency, shouldn't it?