Home Remedies

Last week I was in the municipality office trying to blend in as an ordinary worker with a 9-5 job. I sat down at the swively chair to use their extra desktop computer and with good posture began typing up my very important community diagnostic work. Not going to lie it was a pretty fun power trip to greet everyone that came through, as if I was a regular on the scene. Well this glory lasted a good 10 minutes when all the sudden I was over come by nausea and felt that if I didn’t get out of there I was either going to puke or faint and that would just be embarrassing. I jumped up and turned to the secretary reaching my hand dramatically to my forehead I proclaimed I had forgotten an important book at home and that I was going back to get it. She laughed at the fact that I had just settled down and was now leaving as I hurried out the door. I got halfway up the road to my house when I realized in my daze of nausea I had forgotten my house keys. It was pretty awkward to have to turn around and go back to grab them but I also didn’t feel completely present in the world due to the nausea so I followed me feet back up the stairs to the municipality. I once again faced the secretary who gave me a confused look t which I countered with a smile, snatched the keys from ‘my’ desk and jingled them in the air in an action that expressed what I had no words to say. Once again I was back out into fresh air which seemed to help my nausea and I made my way back home. Now I was pretty focused on getting back to the municipality promptly so that I could swivel around in that chair some more and created my presentation that I was supposed to have done by the end of the day. I was convinced this nausea was going to pass right over. I went into my room and sat on my bed for a little while, popped an Ibuprofen and grabbed my Spanish dictionary as proof I had gone back to get a book. I took a deep breath in and tried to get my stomach to settle. This seems to be a frequent strategy of mine as it is one way I can both calm my nerves and convince the rice and potatoes to settle more into my stomach.

On my way out of our gate a vaguely mentioned to my host mom that I didn’t feel well, but I had to go back to the municipality to finish my presentation. I got back to my desk and readjust into my working position. The computer was up and running, my fingers were flying across the keyboard, and I happily greeted the old ladies that came wobbling in to get their pensions signed so they could receive money from the government. But my attention couldn’t be held by my busyness as my mind wondered into a fit of panic, nausea, and faintness. I felt a fever wash over me and I knew I had to get out of there before making a scene, however I also knew that my getting out of there would also make a scene as I came in with a stated purpose of working all afternoon. Running out of time I stood up and started feeling my forehead and breathing deeply. I turned to the secretary who was occupied helping someone but I interrupted exclaiming that I was not doing so hot. She looked up surprised as I walked dazed out of the room. Outside of the municipality I was focused on making it home before puking, but I ran into the town governor who was my original motivation for working at the municipality that day I had to talk to him about our upcoming travels to Lima to a Peace Corps conference, and I knew I would run into him at the municipality. Unfortunately the timing was all wrong, he looked at my face and said I looked really pale, and I merely mumbled yes I must go home now. And that was that, my opportunity to talk about bus tickets and travel plans lost as I stumbled up to my house.

Once home my host mom could see that I was not well so she had me drink warm lemon water. Then she went off and found some herb branches, which she proceeded to lightly beat me with all over my body and started talking to me about the dead. At first I didn’t understand what she was saying and I proclaimed to her ‘No I’m not going to die!’ but apparently she didn’t mean I was going to die, but rather I just needed to talk to the already dead. She hung the herbs above my door as I went in to lie down. I fluttered in and out of sleep still slightly stressed about the fact that I had not finished my presentation.

The sleep and more ibuprofen helped improve my symptoms and finally by mid-afternoon I was able to get out of bed feeling much better. I walked out clearly with more re-vitalized energy and my host mom exclaimed that the dead had given me a hug and I looked much better. I collected myself and headed back to the municipality. I decided the only way to go about my entrance back was to make it a grand entrance, so I pranced in and announced ‘look who’s back and feeling better!’ with a little shoulder shimmy just for emphasis. The secretary laughed and then had to recount the story of my leavings and goings of the morning to the mayor and every one else that was in the room at the time. I made good headway on my presentation, and the governor returned to the muni so we were able to iron out our trip details. Things were looking up as the secretary and I headed home for dinner. The dinner conversation was centered around many re-enactments of my several strategies of leaving the municipality that morning from the secretary, and my host mom filling in the other side of the story about how I thought I was going to die. I provided quite the comic relief for the day, but I relished in being the center of conversation at the dinner table, until the ibuprofen wore off and I had to go lie down for the night. Later that week in Lima I did have to take a stool sample (not surprisingly a difficult and gross task that I successfully completed and then left in the staff fridge at the Peace Corps office in an unmarked paper bag for the doctor. Later that day I went to retrieve to hand over to the doctors and found that the bag had been opened and moved to another fridge…gross!!! Anyways I had a bacterial infection that is clearly up nicely now!)

So far being here I have learned several home remedies, while I provide my host family with various western medicines. This fulfills goals number two and three of the peace corps which are solely about cultural exchange, so you are welcome Peace Corps! Some of the things that I have learned are as follows:

-Pee in open wounds; Once when my host uncle got a nasty deep dog bite they asked if I would pee in a cup so they could pour it on the wound to disinfect it. I unfortunately or fortunately could not pee under pressure

-Sugar in open wounds: On the same dog bite wound a couple of days later my host mom filled the wound up with sugar to help it heal

-Passing the egg: Our dog got very sick the other week and they all said he was going to die. My host mom passed a chicken egg over his body and rubbed it into his fur. Then she cracked it open into a cup and looked for ‘eyes’ in the yolk. We found one which meant the dog would be alright, and to this day that dog is doing better than ever!

-This happened before my Spanish was all that good but I went on a wild black chicken hunt with my host mom and her sister. Finally we found one and then used its feather I believe and pressed them on my host aunt’s baby’s wrists. I am not sure what this helped, but we did enjoy eating the chicken the next couple of days.

-Apple tea is good for sleeping.

I am sure there are thousands more that I will learn but I thought I would share a few with you in this blog. I also witnessed my host mom beat my host dad with the same herbs she used on me when he had a hangover, so it works on any types of nausea.