On occasion one must do strange things in the name of science. Sometimes it's necessary to challenge a few taboos to find useful information. There's hardly a body part with more taboos attached to it than the bung-hole. Oh yes, my friend. I'm going there. Let us discuss that place that our culture chooses not to think about. The "deep space" of our body. The rectum. 

It's a pretty useful spot. Located in between the bowel and the anus, it is of course wonderfully useful for expelling feces. And because it is a highly vascularized area of tissue, it is also very useful for absorbing things into the bloodstream. Rectal suppositories of medicine have been used for centuries, and more recently it's come to my attention that essential oils can be administered systemically via this technique. 

For an introduction to inhaling essential oils in general, click here.

In mid-May I began inhaling Benchmark Thyme essential oil in my nebulizer. For two and a half weeks I inhaled 3 drops of the oil mixed with 3mL of normal saline and nebulized it twice a day. By the end of this 2.5 week trial period I noticed a significant improvement in my lung and overall health. Of the oils I have used so far, Benchmark Thyme (BT) is probably my single favorite. In the two weeks before starting BT I was inhaling a combo of eucalyptus and tea tree oils. Although these oils kept me from declining back to pre-essential oil levels, when I began using thyme I could notice a difference. My main lung bug is MRSA, and since BT is specifically formulated to target MRSA infections, I believe this is why it has been so effective for me.

Coughing up blood ain't fun, and sometimes it can be kinda scary. I began to see blood in my sputum once in a while beginning in high school. Now it's a bit more frequent and in larger quantities, but I don't let it get me too worried anymore because I know how it works and what to do in an emergency. I thought I would talk about hemoptysis a little bit here, as it is something you might run into, and it can be scary for someone who is new to it. Some of these things can be worrying to think about, but ultimately the point of this post is to inform you of the possibilities so that you are prepared to do what needs to be done in these situations. By asking questions and learning as much as I could about this topic, I've faced my fears and eliminated the anxiety I used to have over coughing up blood. Now I know what to do and am unafraid. I hope this info can help you, too.