Ireland has a long history with healing and cures. In fact in times past, in other countries, it was thought that if an Irish person applied a cure it was sure to work, simply due to that Irish connection! I have cures, remedies, recipes, tinctures, healing words and all sorts of everything. Some I use regularly, some only when they are needed and some I would never dream of using! But I thought this blog might be a good place to look at some of the more common Cures, how they were administered and who knows, you might be tempted to try making your own herbal medicine box!

First off, what way do the cures come by?

Salves and Balms

A salve or a balm is typically a semi-solid oil infused with one or more healing plants. Here in Ireland, the most traditional way, was to use butter. Butter making was usually made at home, by the woman of the house and so it was a resource that was always close to hand. Butter is a semi sold oil that can be stored for long periods too

Beeswax and/or honey were common additions, adding their microbial and antiseptic properties to the mix!

Teas and Tinctures

As many plants are only available at certain times of the year, a good stock of dried plants was needed for the winter months. If you’ve been on my walks you’ll know that all foraging for healing plants must be completed by Samhain or All Saints Day on the 1st of November. And so infusing plants in water to make a medicinal tea or infusing a little Poitín to create a tincture was a way of extending the lifespan of the gathered herbs. Of course, some medicines were best taken as a tea fresh or dried. Take Maidens Tea for example. This tea was used to treat period pains before Nurofen Plus was available! With a house full of daughters, it was a good idea to keep these plants well stocked!

Some tincture recipes require an infusion period of a few months. One tincture on my books for Heartbreak called for hawthorn berries and a single thorn to be stored for a full 12 months before use.

Poultices

A poultice might be made from fresh or dried plants cooked in a little oil or water and left on an injured area for a period of time. One of the most common poultices used was simply a bread poultice. A piece of bread was slowly cooked in a little milk until it broke apart creating a thick porridge like substance. This would be placed over an infected wound to draw out the infection. But you can add other ingredients to the bread, like a little ribwort leaf or willow bark, if it was a serious infection.

If you have ever suffered from a Stye in your eye, you may have been advised to leave a warm wet teabag over your eye. The heat draws out the infection and the water prevents further irritation.

Cold poultices will work too, a modern version of this would be After-Sun Cream on sunburn! But imagine a bad burn being eased by slathering icy butter over the skin, as it melts from the heat of your skin, it keeps the skin moist preventing peeling.

Magical Items

Some sources call for an item to be used, this could be a holy medal, wedding rings, a stone or soil from a special place. Biddy Early dispensed all her medicines from a blue bottle given to her by the Fairies. She was a talented herbalist, but the real healing power only entered her concoctions once it was poured into the bottle!

I knew a woman who could cure warts by rubbing the wart with a ring that had passed down through the family. There were a few (closely guarded!) words to be said too, so was it the ring or the words!? Another older gent I met once at a storytelling evening had in his possession a piece of cloth, again, passed down through the family and it was said to heal broken bones. It was rested over the injured area for a few days and hey presto! The break healed!

In fact, magical clothes have been used by many people and are still used to this day. On the night before St Bridgets Day, it was very important to leave out a piece of material in the garden. As Bridget passed over the land, the dew that fell was said to have powerful healing powers. Called the Brat Bhride, this was reminiscent of Bridgets Healing Cloak. Anyone suffering from an illness, of any type, would rest in bed with the Brat Bhríde lain over them to help speed up their recovery. In our house we always leave out a scarf and a certain old wool blanket, anyone with a sore throat or cold would get the scarf and hangovers were made easier to bear by resting on the couch with the wool blanket!

So whether its tea, tincture, salve, poultice or a special item, you’ve quite a bit of choice! If you want to learn how to make your own cures, get in touch and book a private workshop!