How To Use Comfrey and CBD Creams from Catskills Comfrey

Catskills Comfrey ointments are topical, consisting of coconut and Greek olive oils, beeswax, and the infused comfrey, along with additional herbs, as specified. The carrier oils themselves are ideal for your skin. The infused herbs bring their essential, active ingredients to the oils — apply topically, as needed.

Virtually any kind of skin inflammation or disruption can be affected positively with the addition of comfrey, which is a cell-proliferant. Depending on your presenting conditions, apply the ointment to the affected area.

Be especially judicious when using the Original or Arnica & Calendula Ointment when closing or healing small, open wounds [don’t even think about using our Chili Pepper Ointment!]. Make sure the wound is clean and free of bacteria. Apply a small amount directly to the wound’s edges, allowing a band-aid to be applied as a cover.

If your wound is initially ‘dirty’, comfrey can close the wound extremely fast, trapping the infection inside (calendula offers anti-bacterial benefits). If swelling and tenderness occur in a case like this, break the scab and allow the pus to be removed. Clean and reapply ointment.

Skin Rash from CORONAVIRUS

Excessive hand washings or use of hand sanitizer can induce rash-like conditions, skin irritation, and/or cracked, dry skin. These several conditions are now becoming common throughout the healthcare community. Our Arnica & Calendula Ointment is particularly effective: comfrey’s allantoin encourages new cell growth, and calendula offers a soothing, anti-bacterial benefit. For severe cases of rash, try our CBD Premium Ointment.

THANK A NURSE

Consider gifting a jar of Arnica & Calendula to a friend, nurse, medical worker, or healthcare professional presenting with these types of skin irritation. Inflammation from mask abrasions is common, too. We can mail it directly to your recipient with a short note stating it’s from you. Use Coupon Code THANKANURSE for a 10% discount at checkout.

SURGICAL CUTS

I had triple-bypass open-heart surgery in early August 2019. I had two cuts; one (12”) along my left forearm where the ‘replacement’ artery was obtained and, secondly, a vertical cut about 8-10” in my sternum. With my surgeon’s blessing, I began applying daily applications of the Arnica & Calendula Ointment about two weeks after surgery to the periphery of the two cuts and, once the surgical skin fell away, directly onto the two cuts.

About six to seven months later, the two wounds are barely noticeable. In fact, numerous medical professionals have expressed positive comments about how well the wounds have been repaired.

Keloid

After about six months, the sternum cut developed a thin sliver of a keloid, about 3-4” long below the breastplate. I could easily feel it through my shirt. I began applying twice-daily applications of the CBD Premium Ointment (essentially the Arnica & Calendula Ointment blend with 500mg full-spectrum CBD added per ounce of ointment).

The keloid began receding after about one week - and is now, too, less noticeable. Other users, though, have reported less satisfactory results treating keloids with comfrey; we caution, therefore, that the results of treating keloids with comfrey may be less than satisfactory.

Knee pain

I have developed jolts of knee pain in my left knee. Although not curing the issue, I have been able to lessen the frequency of pain ‘jolts’ in the knee by treating it with liberal doses of CBD Premium Ointment when the pain flares up.

trigger finger

Trigger Finger (TF) symptoms often appear as randomly appearing finger ‘locking’ events. It often presents when you wake up in the morning — the fingers curl in a discomforting crooked position. The overall locale of TF may not be isolated to just the specific finger that is locking; therefore, apply the Original Ointment to the entire hand, front and back. Trigger Finger is the lack of sliding opportunity as the involved bone moves between the surrounding sheath of ligaments, tendons, and muscles.

Methinks the mucilage content contained in the comfrey is the activating ‘engine’ that loosens up this infrastructure. I have applied the Original Ointment, as well as the CBD Ointment, daily for several years as the condition presents.

Stiffening of Fingers

I began noticing an overall, general stiffening of the fingers, not just individual occurrences of locking. This stiffening has been lessened with the regular application of the CBD and CBD Premium Ointments.

Dupuytren’s Contracture

Although semi-related to Trigger Finger, in that the stiffening and/or contracture of fingers is observed, it appears the Dupuytren’s Contracture (DC) is a less-treatable presenting condition in that the underlying tendons have visibly hardened and hold the ‘moving’ subsystems more tightly, significantly restricting movement.

In Trigger Finger, motion is possible and comfrey’s mucilage may aid in allowing the involved subsystem to more readily ‘slide’ but in DC the hardened substructure holds the sliding pieces firmly, completely restricting movement. Treating Dupuytren’s Contracture (DC) with comfrey for a positive outcome should not be expected.

Wasp Stings

We have a small farm in Delaware County, NY. I’m outdoors a lot, walking through grass, and working near wooden structures and overhangs. In the summer here, I get stung often. The sting and inflammation are immediate. A little dab of the Original Ointment reduces the sting to a harmless state, virtually on application. I normally don’t have to apply any additional ointment.

Sunburn

We like to go to Negril, Jamaica in the Winter. Going on one day from the cold snow of NY to the sunshine of Negril, guess who’s a prime candidate for sunburn. I got it bad once on the tops of my feet and I arrested the worsening burn by applying the Original Ointment. After all, a sunburn is just a bunch of dead cells that need replacement. No match for the comfrey.

Cold Sores

When I get stressed, tired, or weak, I develop a cold sore. It always presents in the same place, just above my lip. And, I always know when it’s coming by the soreness which presents in advance. I break the cold sore so it drains and apply the Original Ointment. Within a couple of days, the area is closed and mended.

Foot Care

I treat my feet once a day with the Original Comfrey Ointment. Just the coconut and Greek olive oils will soften your feet; but the comfrey works to reduce the larger areas around existing callus, reducing the callus to a much less impacted area. This takes place gradually, slowly at first but after about two months, there is an obvious improvement in the areas surrounding the callus.

During the daily foot routine, I spread the ointment between my toes and across my cuticles. This serves to keep potential infections down.

Plantar Fasciitis

One Catskills Comfrey customer has reported repeated success treating plantar fasciitis with the Original Ointment.

Sore Muscles

After a full day of farm work and the occasional bruising, I find the Original or Chili Pepper Ointment will quickly diminish sore muscles and sensitive areas that have been bruised.

Small Cut & Wounds

You may see warnings about using comfrey to close wounds. This mostly applies to large, gaping wounds. But for small cuts, abrasions, or skin breaks, comfrey is a well-regarded skin ‘closer’. Be very careful - comfrey can affect closure so rapidly, that you can be left with bacteria trapped inside the wound.

I once had a knife cut on the back of one knuckle, which is difficult to heal due to the constant flexing of the finger. I did a casual cleaning of the wound and applied some comfrey but failed to put a bandage over it. The wound would close but I’d break it by hitting the wound against something hard.

Eventually, though, it fully closed but it became sensitive, irritated, and infected. I had to break the scab, drain the wound and re-apply with a bandage to protect the wound.

Observing Comfrey in Action: A Personal Account

- by Seth J Hersh, creator of Catskills Comfrey

I use comfrey a lot, several times a day. I’m a so-called heavy user. And for a good reason.

Several years ago (2014), I self-diagnosed myself with Trigger Finger symptoms (stenosing tenosynovitis), had it confirmed by my PC doctor, and when it slightly worsened, went to an ortho-specialist who, essentially said, “You have Trigger Finger. It’s not that bad right now. When it worsens, you can use cortisone injections or have an operation.”.

I went home and began searching for a soaking medium to reduce the locking. This seemed sensible; I often took Epsom salt baths to move minerals through my skin. I tried a concoction of aquarium salts which did nothing.

My wife years ago had suffered minor fractures in her pelvis from a bike fall. It was painful. She had heard about comfrey and we knew a neighbor who had some. She made a poultice of the comfrey leaves, applied it one evening and that night she was able to sleep peacefully for the first time in weeks. We filed the info away as simply good news.

With that in mind, I came across a story that highlighted the benefits of comfrey. I soaked some leaves in hot water, immersed my hand and the next morning I did NOT wake up with crooked, bent, and stiff fingers. The benefit was obvious. I easily diminished the severity, duration, and frequency of my Trigger Finger attacks significantly - and that is still the case today.

I continue to actively apply all of the ointments on a daily basis although I must admit, that the use of the Chili Pepper is minimized given that if even a little bit gets in your eye, you will suffer discomfort. The Chili Pepper ointment has its place but be selective: warmth to sub-dermal muscles and neuropathy.

As a brief summary of the treatments noted at the top of this page, here is a list of conditions I have self-encountered and treated successfully or mitigated: