I know that there are lots of things we Cubans do that are dancing on that fine line between tradition and superstition. This gets dialed way up when we get sick.
We have quite the plethora of Old Wives Tales to choose from when it comes to remedies.
And we Cubans don’t just have plain Old Wives, our Old Cuban Wives (read: ‘Abuelas’) not only invented the genre, they took it up a notch. No sooner do you say, “I think I’m getting sick,” than you have an abuela running right over to make you a ‘cocimiento.’ I’m not lying.
Give a Cuban abuela some olive oil, a potato, vinegar, chamomile, and of course VapoRub and you’ll be back on your feet and salsa dancing before you can say, “Abre que voy! Cuida’o con los callos.”
1. Cold with a Cough
Easy peasy. Let’s just start with the most basic of all cures. We Cubans not only know the secret healing power of Vicks VapoRub (“VI-VA-PO-RU!”), we also know the application tricks for maximum efficiency.
- Get the largest vat of Vicks VapoRub you can find.
- Slather it on the bottoms of both feet and put on a clean pair of socks. I’ve chosen my wording very carefully here. When I say ‘slather,’ I mean, don’t just dab. Slather. Generously.
- Also, rub a nice big helping onto your chest and cover that bad boy with a brown paper bag. (Does anyone use a paper bags anymore? I stockpile them for moments like this.)
Stops coughs dead in their tracks. This also has the added bonus of keeping people away from you so you’re not likely to share your germs. Nothing says, “I’m sick” like Eau De ViVapoRu.
2. Ear Ache
- Take a spoonful of olive oil and heat it up over an open burner. Take care, please.
- Pour the warm olive oil onto a cotton ball.
- Squeeze a drop of the warm olive oil into the sore ear.
- Get a clean cotton ball and stick it in your ear.
Warm olive oil? In your ear? I know. Shut up.
But don’t be surprised if you start craving bruschetta. It’s the scent of the olive oil that does it. Here’s my recipe for Cuban Bruschetta. Por si las moscas.
3. Nausea
- Take a thick slice of *baguette-type bread and slice it in half. (*Cuban, Italian, etc.)
- Pour some vinegar onto each half.
- Go lay down, placing the vinegar bread onto your stomach.
- Breathe in the vinegar fumes.
As you are lying there inhaling the vinegar fumes, you will begin to question the life choices that led you to this moment. Also, now that you are feeling better and you’ve got the bread, that bruschetta should be super simple to make!
4. Headache
- Cut a potato into 3 pieces.
- Lay down with a pillow under your head, placing a piece of the potato on your forehead and one on each side of your head.
- Lay there, holding the potato to your temples until the headache goes away.
While you’re waiting for this one to work and you’re prone and holding a potato on either side of your head, you’ll be tempted to question your sanity. This is good. It means there’s nothing wrong with your mental health.
A word of caution: It’s okay to question the veracity of your abuela’s allegiance to this particular headache cure. Just don’t do it out loud where she can hear you. Trust me.
When your headache is gone, you’ll probably want some bruschetta. Because, let’s face it, that raw potato is not very appetizing.
5. General Malaise
Un Cocimiento de Manzanilla is the answer. <–That’s Spanish for Chamomile Tea.
This cures everything.
- Boil some water and drop some Manzanilla in it.
- Puffy eyes? Soak some cotton balls in this concoction and apply to your eyelids. Goodbye puffiness.
- Trouble with your digestion? Drink this.
- Did you burn yourself on the stove when you were warming the olive oil? (See #2.) Dab a cotton ball soaked in the Manzanilla and you won’t even scar.
- Did you just give birth? Manzanilla reduces the inflammation from childbirth. Just ask any Cuban abuela.
- Warts? Snakebite? Vampire curse? Well, no. Obviously Manzanilla won’t help you there. Everyone knows that what you need to remove that vampire curse is garlic.
And won’t that be so tasty on that Cuban Bruschetta?
Be sure to share some with your abuela to show your gratitude. Wash it down with some Manzanilla. It improves your digestion, you know.
Do you know what else will make you feel better? Having my Cuban Food Poster in your kitchen. What a fun way to celebrate your Cubanity!
Marta Darby Designs on Etsy. Word Art to Make You Happy.
At my house, Vix-va-pe-ru cured everything. A cut? Slather it with Vicks VapoRub. A burn? Same. Sore muscles? Rub it in! It’s analgesic properties made everything feel better. I still keep it on my bedside table, por si!
Honestly, my sister and I think my mother was a Cuban curandera to this day! When my doctor fails me, I go back to my Mom’s treatments, and they always work! Always. She kept 3 kids healthy and out of the clinica for most of our childhood, and she somehow always knew exactly what to do for everything. (How do they know this stuff?) And my Abuela had a cocimiento for everything. Cuban Moms are absolutely priceless and irreplaceable!
Ada M Palles, I couldn’t have said it better myself, my abuela had a concoction for everything, plusshe prayed over you with a ‘gajo de albahaca" and some holy water" and voila, your body cured itself
Soooo true!!! But Hey!! VICKS is Grrreat!!
My husband believed that Vicks cured everything from ingrown toenails to emotional problems. His mother, Susana from Havana, brought him up on the magic of Vicks, the Latino wonder drug. When he died I put a jar in his coffin . I figured that and his Swiss Army knife would handle any situation .
Our girls used to beg him not to put Vicks on them- but they fell asleep as soon as their heads hit the pillow. And guess what- they use it on their kids
My doctor said putting Vick’s on the chest before you go to bed to stop a cough is a myth. I said WHAT??? I said maybe for you but not for us Cubans. It works all the time😄
Perfect. You are so perfect! From a woman who married into a Cuban family. (I too keep Vick’s by my bed)
Perfect. You are so perfect! From a woman who married into a Cuban family. (I too keep Vick’s by my bed)
Hahaha, I am one of ” them” !
You are soo funny , enjoyed this, going to buy that sign to give to my daughter. I did lived in Cuba not to long, was 18 when we came to USA, but we did listen to abuela’s remedies, a firm believer! My children grew up with ” vapo roouh”
Thanks for your article, love it!