Best Cough Medicine Ever

I made it 2 1/2 years without getting covid. I knew eventually it would happen, and it did.  I am fortunate that I never had to go to the hospital and it never impacted my breathing. I did have a fever for several days and flu-like symptoms, along with a horrific headache and a bad cough. Whenever I get sick I typically get a terrible cough. One of our daughters also gets that same terrible cough when she gets sick. It must be genetic. My husband says it sounds like we are coughing up a lung. 

The hard part of having a cough is trying to sleep and nothing ever seems to help. Until... I made my own cough syrup. I saw a Dr. post this on instagram a few years ago and it works great! I wanted to share the recipe with you so that you can get started on it now, before the next person in your house gets sick. If you have herbs in your garden, it's a great way to use them before gardening season comes to an end. If you don't have your own herbs, you can buy them from the farmers market or even a grocery store. I would opt for organic herbs if possible.

Herbal Honey Cough Syrup

Ingredients:  fresh thyme, fresh sage, local honey, clean pint jar

Directions: 

1. Make sure the herbs are completely dry and the jar is dry. Any moisture and you risk it molding. 

2. If you have a mortar and pestle, put the thyme in the mortar and tamp it with the pestle. You don't want to grind it. You just want to release some of the oils in the leaves. Put the thyme in your pint jar and push it down. Add the sage to the mortar and do the same thing. Add the sage to the pint jar and push the herbs down as much as possible. If you don't have a mortar and pestle, just put the herbs on a cutting board and tap or press down on the leaves with a spoon.

3. Pour the honey over the herbs. You can use a knife to push the herbs down and help the honey get down in the jar all the way. Let it sit for 10 minutes and add more honey. You want to make sure the herbs are completely covered by the honey. 

4. Ideally it should sit for 3 months to be the most effective. Make it now and if you get a cough, go ahead and use some, just be sure to top it off with more honey until the 3 months are up. After 3 months, strain off the honey and keep the honey in clean jar, discarding the herbs. 

You can also add a spoonful of the honey into a glass of hot tea.