Herbs and Essential Oils for Shingles: An Herbal Protocol
Inside: You’ll find out about how shingles affect the body PLUS natural remedies that can speed recovery and help with the often excruciating pain. I get asked often about natural protocols for shingles, and I’m sharing what I tell many of my clients right here for you.
I’ve had several neighbors come to me for help for the excruciating pain caused by shingles outbreak.s Most had already tried prescription medications, including hydrocodone for pain, acyclovir, plus other home remedies suggested by friends.
Herbalism is a vast and encompassing practice. I love using herbs for healing and wellness, and I love my essential oils for the same reasons, as well as serious emotional support.
In my world of teaching herbalism, I run into those who only love essential oils and others who only love using herbs. I use both herbs and essential oils in my practice because they each deserve a time and place for various uses.
They have incredible complementary and synergistic therapeutic abilities. Sometimes herbs are wonderful and may be all you need. Other times, adding some essential oils can seriously speed recovery and wellness. There’s a time and place for both.
The thing is….herbal preparations take many forms. There are extracts of all kinds based on the particular solvent an herbalist uses, and these will have slightly different chemical makeups, even with the same plant. Essential oils are simply another type of herbal preparation to my mind, and they can be skillfully folded into a well-rounded holistic herbalism practice.
Aromatherapy (the use of essential oils for wellness) can provide dramatic benefits all on its own, but when combined with the actual plants or different preparations of the plant, it’s absolutely amazing how these work.
I was prompted to write this quick article today after a discussion in my student community group for The Confident Herbalist Tribe, as well as an emergency call with a neighbor coincidentally on the same day, who needed some help with pain for late stage shingles.
I thought I’d go ahead and discuss how I used both herbs and essential oils to create a protocol he can start using immediately, with the idea that we may make some adjustments as time goes on and his healing progresses.
Now. I could have just used the herbs, primarily lemon balm. But adding in a few other herbs, and then a small number of useful essential oils is just going to make his life a LOT better more quickly.
**You may also be interested in my recipe for Cold Sore Salve with Lemon Balm and Lysine.
FTC Disclosure: There may be affiliate links scattered throughout this article. If you click on these and make any kind of purchase, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.
Lemon balm (Melissa officinalis) is a plant in the mint family. It tastes delicious with strong overtones of lemon due to a special chemical constituent it contains that makes it an exceptional choice for helping with herpes viruses and those related, such as shingles.
What is Shingles?
First off, let’s talk about shingles.
Shingles is caused by the Varicella zoster virus, the same virus that causes chicken pox. This is the same group of viruses that include herpes viruses: cold sores and genital herpes.
The pain is similar, but more intense with shingles, and the rash is often quite a bit larger than a single cold sore is. People describe the pain as “burning, shooting, constant, unlivable,” and other unpleasant adjectives.
Once you have chicken pox, the virus sets up house and lives inactively in the nerve tissue near the spinal cord and brain. Unfortunately about one in three people can have a shingles outbreak after the age of 50. Younger people experience shingles, however, the chances of having an outbreak are greater for older people.
Shingles causes an extremely painful rash of blisters that wraps around the torso laterally (sideways) where the virus is housed in the nerves of the vertebrae. It’s not a life-threatening condition, however, it can have some terribly side-effects and is very painful for most people. I hear the word, “excruciating” used with it most often.
The symptoms include:
Painful, burning rash
Sensitivity to touch
Burning and/or tingling
A feeling like the pain is coming in “waves”
Fluid filled blisters that break open and then scab or crust over
Itching
Fever
Headache
Becoming light sensitive
Tiredness and fatigue
Case Study Information:
“H” is an elderly man in his 70’s who presented with shingles about four weeks ago. He doesn’t like to go to the doctor, so waited about a week or a little more before going in to be seen, where he was diagnosed with shingles. He was given hydrocodone for the pain, however, it’s not working well.
NOTE: I’ve heard from several sufferers of shingles that the medications prescribed by doctors for the shingles pain just can’t seem to quiet the intense, shocking nerve pain of shingles.
“H” is healthy, is not on other medications, and has no acute or chronic health concerns, other than his bout of shingles.
For many conditions, this one included, I like to provide both topical and internal methods to work on a deeper level. The suggestions below all help support the body in its natural healing process, while providing relief of pain specific to shingles, cold sores, and other herpes strains.
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Here’s what I suggested he do:
1) Lemon Balm Tea or Tincture
I gave “H” the remainder of my dried lemon balm from last fall, and asked him to drink a strong infusion daily—-around three cups total throughout the day, for the next couple of weeks. You can find out how to make a strong medicinal infusion in this article. A tincture may also be used and is very handy, being quick and easy to take.
Why Lemon Balm for Shingles?
Lemon balm is a member of the mint family and is one of my top favorites for supporting the nervous system. In particular, lemon balm has an affinity for helping reduce the pain and speed recover from all herpes-strain viruses, chicken pox, and the Varicella zoster virus (shingles). Source
The tea is delicious, fresh and lemony, and I like it as a tonic for conditions such as shingles and cold sores and other herpes type conditions because it not only is profoundly relaxing to the nervous system, and it also tends to have strong actions on helping mitigate the pain as well as improve recovery time for this condition.
I’ve personally experienced lemon balm’s power in significantly reducing the severity as well as the duration of acute herpetic attacks in my own body as well as those clients I’ve worked with for this reason. In fact, here’s a great Cold Sore Salve Recipe with Lemon Balm & L-lysine.
NOTE: In certain in vitro studies, conclusions were drawn that thyroid function may be inhibited to a certain extent by lemon balm. However, this effect hasn’t been shown specifically in humans. If you suffer from an underactive thyroid condition, you may want to drink lemon balm tea minimally, or speak to your doctor first.
NOTE: Lemon balm tincture may also be used.
2) Lemon Balm Oil Blend for Topical Use
I made this little oil blend with a combination of infused lemon balm in olive oil, with the addition of Melissa (lemon balm) essential oil, copaiba essential oil, and a bit of helichrysum essential oil.
There’s a great deal of anecdotal evidence to support the fact that lemon balm essential oil used topically within safe dilution strengths can help the intense pain from chicken pox, shingles, and other herpes lesions significantly.
There are more studies being conducted, but one I found showed that a cream made using lemon balm essential oil helped to relieve symptoms of herpes sores, while also shortening the healing time as well. Source
I asked “H” to apply this oil to scabbed over or crusted lesions several times a day. I used a 3% dilution for his oil. The dilution may be increased to a 5% if need be.
When I have outbreaks of herpes on my left side, which I get when under a great deal of stress, I apply Melissa essential oil diluted to 5%, and have experienced excellent results both in reduction of pain and healing time.
3) Take L-Lysine, an Amino Acid
There’s more and more scientific evidence that L-lysine, an amino acid, helps prevent and treat shingles as well as herpes by speeding recovery and strengthening the immune system. According to the University of Maryland Medical Center, L-lysine may be taken to both prevent and speed recovery. Source
I have personally noticed that when I consistently take Lysine daily in regular doses, outbreaks are increasingly rare. Also, if I experience an outbreak, I take L-Lysine in large amounts. Source
Evidence suggests that Lysine may help keep the virus from replicating.
At any rate, as a personal experiencer of the benefits of Lysine used consistently versus not being used at all, in multiple situations, I can say that it is definitely helpful. Although it doesn’t help with the pain, it does seem to shorten the duration of herpes, and potentially shingles.
Another elderly man I saw several years ago told me that the Lysine I suggested he take was the only thing that helped with the pain, even over and above any medications that did very little.
Here’s a high-quality brand of L-Lysine that I use.
4) Relaxing Herbs in Tincture Form
I also gave “H” one of my favorite blends for helping with deep relaxation. I asked him not to use this tincture in conjunction with any pain medications, and he assured me he wouldn’t and didn’t.
This was a blend of valerian, hops, and lavender, and usually I use this for helping with sleep issues. However, when someone is in significant pain, I feel a strong relaxant combination can be very helpful for a number of reasons.
First, there’s a strong connection between pain and stress. When a person is in a great deal of pain, the stress response is strongly activated. This in turn, seems to exacerbate pain. This is a simple explanation, and there’s a lot more to this phenomenon, but just know that if you can turn down the stress levels, you may also be able to improve a person’s experience when in great pain.
I asked “H” to use this tincture two to three times a day, and before bedtime, as needed.
5) Cayenne Pepper
Cayenne pepper may be added to the oil above through herbal oil infusion or applied as a strong tea liniment to the lesions. I know this sounds crazy because cayenne is so hot, which is very counter-intuitive, but the capsaicin in the plant actually helps numb pain such as that with shingles.
If using the herbal infused oil, use it after the lesions have crusted. The strong tea infusion may be used at any stage.
Where to Source Your Herbs and Essential Oils
You want to be sure that you’re obtaining high quality herbs, essential oils, and supplements from reputable companies, if you need to buy them. Personally, I love growing or foraging many of my herbs, but sometimes we all need to make a purchase.
And as far as essential oils go, you’ll need to purchase these from high quality companies. I suggest finding good online sources, as the oils found in physical stores simply aren’t the best, and here’s how you can tell if you’re dealing with a quality company for essential oils.
If you can source from small, local herb farmers near you for your herbs, this is an excellent way to support small business, too.
Here are companies I purchase from myself:
Starwest Botanicals: This company sells quality herbs and essential oils at fairly reasonable prices. I’ve been purchasing from them for around ten years now, and I can say only good things. I also like that they avoid political conversations.
Rocky Mountain Oils: A wonderful company for essential oils. Be sure to look at the ingredients if you’re purchasing blends because some of these come pre-diluted with fractionated coconut oil, which makes it convenient for topical use….but not for diffusers.
Amrita Aromatics: This is a wonderful company I just came across, and they have an excellent line of prepared herbal products, including tinctures, as well as full lines of essential oils.
Plant Therapy: Quality education, great oils, a Kidsafe line, and reasonable prices for essential oils.
Click HERE to learn more about the School of Botanical Arts & Sciences! Ready to learn herbalism and aromatherapy? Join us!
How Did These Herbs and Essential Oils and Natural Supplements Do in Helping with My Neighbor’s Shingles Outbreak?
When I touched base with “H” after several days, he had good news! His shingles attack was continuing to mend up nicely, and he told me the pain was significantly reduced.
Specifically, he enjoyed the effects of the lemon balm tea and the relaxing tincture. He didn’t say much about the Lysine, and he didn’t try the oil (I think he may not have wanted to touch the lesions). He said the pain was greatly reduced, though, and this was great news.
Since the check-in, his insurance approved a procedure with steroid injections that are also helping even more. Had he not had the benefit of the procedure, though, he would have continued to mend with a reduction in the pain simply using the lemon balm, lysine, and managing stress levels. He is continuing to take the lemon balm tea and the lysine consistently.
Other clients have told me they felt the L-lysine was extremely helpful, and one man was so relieved he started calling me Dr. Heidi….to which I immediately explained why he shouldn’t do this. (I’m not a medical doctor, and I don’t pretend to be one, ever.)
Shingles and other herpetic lesions are excruciating. If a person can manage the pain and speed the healing time with natural herbal remedies and supplements, there’s some great news!
Final Thoughts on Natural Supports for Shingles
Once you experience the healing power of herbs and essential oils, you gain a much better understanding and belief in the beauty of the plant’s ability to heal our bodies. I believe God gave us these precious gifts for our benefits, all made into a perfect plant package….and we just need to re-learn the traditional uses of medicinal plants.
The beautiful thing about many medicinal herbs is they grow around us! You might be able to walk outside your door and see lemon balm growing right in your garden, like I do. Learning to use plants for medicine is a valuable skill that is worth investing time into. And the great thing is: They work!
And…you’ll save a lot of money.
At any rate, I don’t normally share case studies, but perhaps I’ll start sharing more. Let me know if you’d like this!
You may also enjoy these related articles:
Lemon Balm and Lysine Cold Sore Salve Recipe
Essential Oils That May Temporarily Lower Hypertension: A Research Study
Foraging Juniper Berries, Benefits and Uses
How to Make an Herbal Healing Salve with St. John’s Wort, Comfrey, and Plantain
Mango, Lime, and Spearmint Natural Homemade Deodorant
How to Make Your Own Natural Aspirin with Willow Bark
And there are hundreds more over on the website! I hope you’ll go explore!
Hugs, Health, and Self-Reliance,
Heidi
P.S. Don’t forget to take my FREE 5-Day Herbal Foundations email course! Just click here to get started today!
Disclaimer: The statements made in this article are not medical advice and are not meant to treat, prevent, cure, or diagnose any illness or disease. I am not a medical doctor, rather I am a researcher, a certified herbalist and aromatherapist; and these statements have not been evaluated by the FDA. Please be sure to seek medical advice as needed.