Playing as the Dragonborn in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim will let you explore and adventure as you please while completing quests and facing your enemies.
However, you may also have to deal with diseases during your adventures, a mechanic introduced in the Elder Scrolls saga from its humble origins in Arena.
To cure diseases in Skyrim, the player can use potions, activate a shrine, or talk to a Vigilant of Stendarr. Alternatively, turning into a vampire or werewolf will also cure the player from all other diseases.
If the player wants to prevent contracting any diseases, it’s possible to use specific items that increase the character’s disease resistance to 100%.
Learn more about the methods to cure diseases below.
| Disease | Origin | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Ataxia | Frostbite Spiders Skeevers Slaughterfish Traps | Lockpicking and Pickpocketing are 25% harder |
| Bloodspring (interactive item) | Found in Redwater Den at The Rift hold | Chance to get any disease if the player isn’t a vampire |
| Bone Break Feaver | Bears Traps | Reduce Stamina by 25 points |
| Brain Rot | Hagravens Traps | Reduce Magicka by 25 points |
| Droops | Ash Hoppers | Reduced One and Two-Handed damage by 15% |
| Lycanthropy | The Companions’ quest line | Turns your character into a werewolf |
| Rattles | Chaurus | 50% slower Stamina regeneration |
| Rockjoint | Bears Foxes Horkers Traps Wolves | Reduced melee weapon’s effectiveness by 25% |
| Sanguinare Vampiris | Bloodspring Lord Harkon Serana Vampires | Turns your character into a vampire |
| Witbane | Sabre Cats Traps | 50% slower Magicka regeneration |
How to Cure Diseases in Skyrim
Players can contract diseases while battling mobs or activating traps in Skyrim.
To check whether you have any active disease, you can go to the Magic tab from the character’s menu to see a list of active effects.
Diseases are highlighted in red and will show a brief description of their debuff.
There are a total of 4 methods in Skyrim to cure the player of any disease.
Method 1: Potions
Most merchants and apothecaries around Skyrim will have at least one potion of Cure Disease in stock. This will instantly remove any disease when consumed.
You can also craft the potion themselves with the following ingredients:
| Ingredient | Effects (in order) | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Charred Skeever Hide | Restore Stamina Cure Disease Resist Poison Restore Health | Roasted Skeevers over a fire. Common loot in bandit lair and giant encampments |
| Chokeweed | Weakness to Frost Restore Stamina Cure Disease Damage Magicka | Purchased from Khajiit caravans with the Rare Curios Creation |
| Felsaad Tern Feathers | Restore Health Fortify Light Armor Cure Disease Resist Magic | Random loot in Raven Rock, or looting Felsaad Terns in Solstheim |
| Hawk Feathers | Cure Disease Fortify Light Armor Fortify One-handed Fortify Sneak | Looting hawks, or dropped by hostile NPCs |
| Hunger Tongue | Weakness to Fire Cure Disease Cure Poison Fortify Magicka | Purchased from Khajiit caravans with the Rare Curios Creation |
| Juvenile Mudcrab | Regenerate Stamina Fortify Carry Weight Cure Disease Fortify Two-handed | Fishing or looted near Mudcrab areas with the Fishing Creation |
| Mudcrab Chitin | Restore Stamina Cure Disease Resist Poison Resist Fire | Dropped by mudcrabs |
| Red Kelp Gas Bladder | Regenerate Stamina Water breathing Cure Disease Fortify Magicka | Purchased from Khajiit caravans with the Rare Curios Creation |
| Scrib Jelly | Regenerate Magicka Cure Poison Cure Disease Regenerate Stamina | Purchased from Khajiit caravans with the Rare Curios Creation |
| Spadefish | Restore Health Fortify Lockpicking Fortify Pickpocket Cure Disease | Fishing in temperate streams when raining with the Fishing Creation |
| Vampire Dust | Invisibility Restore Magicka Regenerate Health Cure Disease | Dropped by vampires |
| Withering Moon | Restore Magicka Spell Absorption Fortify Light Armor Cure Disease | Purchased from Khajiit caravans with the Rare Curios Creation, or found in Solitude Sewers with the Saints & Seducers Creation |
Alternatively, you can consume any raw ingredients with the trait already discovered.
The best ingredient for this purpose is Hawk Feathers since Cure Disease is the first trait you can discover when consuming it.
Killing and looting the bodies of any Silver Hand member is an almost 100% reliant way to obtain Cure Disease potions or ingredients to craft one yourself.
If the player has the Hearthfire DLC, consuming a Garlic Bread will also cure all diseases and only requires Garlic, Butter, and Bread for cooking in any oven.
Read more: Most Expensive Potions & Recipes
Method 2: Visit a Shrine
Shrines are available within cities and can also be crafted in the homesteads added by the Hearthfire DLC.
By interacting with a shrine, you can cure any disease barring lycanthropy and advanced Vampirism.
Shrines will grant you a specific blessing lasting 8 hours and will override any blessings you had from a previous shrine interaction.
Method 3: Visit the Vigilants of Stendarr
The Vigilants of Stendarr is a militant order worshiping Stendarr, the Divine of Mercy, that vehemently rejects any Daedric influence and actively fights against any creature supposing a threat to humans.
Any Vigilant of Stendarr can cure you of diseases in Skyrim when interacting with them via dialogue, regardless if you find them in their base or elsewhere on the map.
Their headquarters is The Hall of the Vigilant, located south of Dawnstar.
Method 4: Transform into a Werewolf or Vampire
Curiously enough, if the player can turn into a werewolf or vampire, they’ll get instantly cured of all diseases.
Note that lycanthropy and vampirism cancel each other out, meaning that the player cannot possess both transformations at the same time.
How to Cure Lycanthropy in Skyrim
If you want to get rid of your werewolf transformation, you must complete the Companions’ quest line.
Here, the player will have to slay the Witches of Glenmoril to sacrifice their heads to the Flame of the Harbinger inside Ysgramor’s Tomb.
You can gather additional heads before returning to Kodlak to complete the ritual on your character.
Once you activate the Flame of the Harbinger, his Wolf Spirit will appear and you must slay it to cure him of his lycanthropy.
After this, you can choose to throw an additional head into the fire to summon your Wolf Spirit and slay it.
If you want to recover the lycanthropy transformation, you must speak to Aela the Huntress to complete the process once again.
How to Cure Vampirism in Skyrim
If your character has reached stage 4 of vampirism, they’ll have to complete the quest Rising at Dawn by talking to any innkeeper or Dawnguard member.
You will need to talk to Falion, located in Morthal. When interacting with him, he will require a filled Black Soul Gem to complete the ritual.
After you’ve delivered the soul gem, you must meet with Falion again in Morthal at dawn (between 5 and 6:30 AM in-game time) to complete the ritual for curing vampirism.
This process can be done again if the Dragonborn contracts the disease in the future.
Read more: How To Find & Use Soul Gems
Diseases Effects in Skyrim Survival Mode
Skyrim’s Survival Mode was introduced in the Anniversary Upgrade, offering additional challenges like reduced carry weight and no fast travel.
It also introduces new status and weather effects and tweaks the way diseases affect the Dragonborn.
These diseases can evolve into a severe and crippling state, each worsening their debuffs on your character.
| Disease | Description | Severe Description | Crippling Description | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ataxia | Picking locks and picking pockets is 25% harder | Picking locks and picking pockets is 50% harder | Picking locks and picking pockets is 75% harder | |
| Bone Break Fever | 25 Stamina points drained | Stamina is drained 50 points | Stamina is drained 75 points | |
| Brain Rot | Magicka has drained 25 points | Magicka is drained 50 points | Magicka is drained 75 points | |
| Brown Rot | Light and Heavy Armor prevents 25% less damage. Sleeping is 25% less restful | Light and Heavy Armor prevents 50% less damage. Sleeping is 50% less restful | Light and Heavy Armor prevents 75% less damage. Sleeping is 75% less restful | Introduced by Survival Mode Caused by any Draugr |
| Droops | One-handed and two-handed weapon damage is 15% lower | One-handed and two-handed weapon damage is 30% lower | One-handed and two-handed weapon damage is 45% lower | |
| Food Poisoning | Magicka and Stamina recover 50% slower, and food no longer restores Health for 3 days | Same effects | Same effects | Caused by consuming Raw Meat Argonians and Khajiit are immune to this disease thanks to their race perk in Survival |
| Greenspore | Prices are 25% worse Persuasion and intimidation is 25% harder | Prices are 50% worse Persuasion and intimidation is 50% harder | Prices are 75% worse Persuasion and intimidation is 75% harder | Added by Survival Mode Caused by slaughterfish |
| Gutworm | Stamina regeneration is decreased by 25% Food restores 25% less hunger | Stamina regeneration is decreased by 50% Food restores 50% less hunger | Stamina regeneration is decreased by 75% Food restores 75% less hunger | Added by Survival Mode Caused by Trolls |
| Rattles | Stamina recovers half as fast | Stamina recovers 75% slower | Stamina no longer recovers | |
| Rockjoint | One-handed and two-handed weapon damage is 25% less effective | One-handed and two-handed weapon damage is 50% less effective | One-handed and two-handed weapon damage is 75% less effective | |
| Witbane | Magicka recovers half as fast | Magicka recovers 25% as fast | Magicka no longer recovers |
Alternatively, your character can suffer several afflictions depending on whether they’ve neglected sleep, hunger, or are exposed to excessive cold.
- Addled will cause 30% slower Magicka and Stamina regeneration for 24 hours with lack of sleep.
- Frostbitten will make Lockpicking and Pickpocket attempts 30% harder, and bows will do 30% less damage for 24 hours when exposed to excessive cold.
- Weakened will make your melee attacks and blocking attempts 30% less effective for 24 hours with hunger.
Read more: