How to cure diseases in Skyrim

After being attacked in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim by certain types of enemies and wildlife, such as Skeevers, Hagravens, or Vampires, there’s a chance that you’ll contract a disease. After contraction, these diseases will manifest their symptoms as negative statistical effects that can severely weaken you in combat if left untreated. Fortunately, plenty of means exist for you to kick these diseases and get back into fighting shape.

How to cure disease in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

The quickest and most reliable method of curing diseases in Skyrim is by drinking a Potion of Cure Disease. While these can often be found in dungeon chests as loot, they can just as easily be brewed at an Alchemy Table by combining Mudcrab Chitin with Vampire Dust. As Potions of Cure Disease are single-use consumables, it’s good to keep at least one on your person at all times, to immediately stifle an oncoming disease before its effects take hold.

A far less reliable yet still effective cure for most diseases is to gobble down alchemical ingredients with Cure Disease as one of their four effects. The aforementioned Mudcrab Chitin is a good example of this property, though you’ll need at least one point on the Experimenter perk to try this, as disease cure is its second effect of four. Only Hawk Feathers feature Cure Disease as a primary effect, making them the most reliable disease cure in a pinch.

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If both potions and potion ingredients are too far out of reach for you, you could also try visiting the temples and shrines of almost any deity in Skyrim. Riften is a particularly good hub for ensuring your health, as praying at the shrine of Mara in Riften and the Shrine of Nocturnal in the Thieves Guild will both cure almost all diseases. If easy access to healthcare is a major concern, it might be in your best interest to buy a house in the city of Riften.

Note that certain diseases, such as Lycanthropy and Vampirism, cannot be cured through traditional means. Falion, the mage in Morthal, can perform a ritual that is the only known cure for Vampirism, outside of console commands. Lycanthropy, on the other hand, can only be cured through the completion of the Companions quest-line.