Home Remedies

Ladies and gentlemen, 'tis the season to feel under the weather. The Today Tomorrow household is no exception, so I thought I'd share some of the home remedies we've been using. Most of them come from tips from Dr. Andrew Weil, whose book Natural Health, Natural Medicine changed my life in the early 1990's. I used a tip from the revised edition of that very book yesterday, and I'm going to share that first. I was just sure I was going to wake up this morning on the wrong side of "under the weather," but I drank this stuff, and it really fixed me up!

Now, because the world and the people in it today are so ridiculous, I must remind you that I'm not a doctor nor a nurse nor anyone who is licensed to provide medical advice. What I'm telling you here is anecdotal only, and you should, of course, check with your doctor if you're sick or think anything is wrong with you or before you take anything, even natural stuff.

That said, here's the wonderful concoction I whipped up last night. It looks like you're just mixing random stuff together, and I was scared to drink it for fear it would taste horrible. But honestly, the ingredients have a certain synergy, and it was not at all unpleasant.

1. You need:
a 1-inch piece of fresh ginger root, peeled
2 c. cold water
1/2 t. cayenne pepper
1/2 of a juicy lemon
1 T. raw honey (preferably local)
1 clove of fresh garlic, peeled and mashed (or, really, I just cut the garlic into small pieces)
2. Grate the fresh ginger into a pot. Add the 2 c. of cold water, and bring this to a boil. Simmer the ginger and water for 5 minutes.
3. Add the cayenne pepper, and simmer for 1 minute more. Turn off the heat and stir in the juice of the lemon, the honey, and the garlic.
4. Once it's cooled down enough to drink, do so.
I drank half of the mixture last night, then heated the other half up again this morning and drank it with breakfast. It literally FEELS healthy to drink it.

Other things I do when I'm sick, mostly from Dr. Weil again.
1. Nasal rinsing for nasal congestion or nasal inflammation. (Mix 1/4 t. non-iodized salt with 1 c. very warm water. Use a bulb syringe - like you use for babies' noses - to suck up the saline solution. Tilt your head back and squirt it into your nose. Now, if you're really good, you will let the saline come out of your mouth. But until you get used to the sensation of water in your nose, just let it run right back out into the sink. Blow your nose gently afterwards and repeat a few times. Don't blow hard, because you'll back stuff up into your ears, which can make things worse. This sounds crazy, but you'll be surprised how good your nose feels aftewards. This is a yoga practice, I believe, and it's very soothing to nasal membranes.) I do this 2 or 3 times per day if I'm having an acute episode.2. Drink hot tea to relieve congestion in your head. The heat helps liquify the stuff that is clogging you up so it can get out.3. Make a tea of just hot water with fresh lemon juice and raw honey (preferably local) if you have a sore throat. Drink it several times per day.
4. Gargle in salt water (same as nasal rinsing: 1/4 t. non-iodized salt to 1 c. very warm water) several times per day for a sore throat.
5. Most people don't like the thought of this, but it's powerful if you do it the moment you think you're getting sick: cut 2 cloves of garlic up into pill-sized pieces and take them like pills. Be especially cautious of this if you take any blood-thinning anything or have a problem with bleeding or clotting. From what I have read, garlic thins blood. Check with your dr if you're concerned.
Here's to your health!