Home Remedies

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The other day in class we learned how to make an imperative statement and discussed words for various types of sickness. We asked each other the question, „What do you do for a sore throat, stuffy nose, cough, stomach ache, etc…?“  The exchange of ideas was so interesting as we heard each other, from very different countries and backgrounds, explain what we commonly do for these things.  Here are some of the treatments suggested:

For a stuffy nose (Schnupfen):

  1. Fill a bowl with hot water and put your head over it, covered with a towel. At the same time, put your feet in a bowl of hot water. This caused a bit of confusion followed by laughter since one of our classmates thought she meant this using only one bowl. She clarified it was two different bowls and that this should be done only if you don’t have a fever.
  2. Drink hot water or Tea
  3. Take 3 drops of Niaouli oil, the same oil that is in Vick’s Vapor Rub, 3 times a day. The oil itself is safe to eat; my classmate says he has many times and lived. But don’t eat Vick’s Vapor Rub!

For a cough (Husten):

  1. Drink tea with honey, ginger, and lemon.
  2. Take cough medicine.
  3. Drink orange juice

For a stomach ache (Bauchschmerzen):

  1. „When my stomach hurts, go to the toilet!“
  2. Drink Ginger Tea
  3. Put heat on your stomach

I also learned two very important phrases:

Gute Besserung!  Feel better!

and

Bleiben Sie im Bett!  Stay in bed! (Though for my children I would not use the formal. I am promised I will learn how to tell them this soon.)