Suob, Pinoy Folk Remedy

Filipinos have a long history of folk remedies like the village albularyo (a herbalist who also dealt with the paranormal), ventusa, herbal teas, and suob. They were handed to us from old medicine men who practiced the science and art of it at a time when modern medicine hasn't reached our shores -- or barrios (rural villages) -- yet.

Suob means to burn incense in Tagalog, and it's a folk remedy that helps speed up healing from influenza (trangkaso), fever, colds, and general body malaise. Hubby and I swear by it because, as kids, our parents added this to our post-flu recuperation therapy.

Hubby is Bicolano and I'm Ilocano, and there are different ways we do suob.

Up North where I come from, suob is done by burning incense.

I remember my mom tearing apart matchstick parts, placing this on a terracotta pot, and burning them. All the while, me (buck naked) and this stuff are under a blanket.

Down South where hubby's roots are, suob is something different though the mechanics are somewhat similar.

They broil a smooth stone (previously cleaned and boiled and preferably taken from the river) for hours and once it's ready, the naked patient goes under the blanket and douses the hot stone with kalamansi juice. The juice is strained, placed in a cup, and then aired outside the whole night to catch the morning dew. This is the patient's morning tea. (Don't ask me nor my husband why. We don't know, heh.)

Both practice makes you sweat profusely inside the blanket. It feels like you're in a sauna in there, but come morning I don't know why but you'll feel light...as if the malaise of the days that went before disappeared like smoke. With the smoke, I should say, heh. Like ventusa, you're not allowed out of the house nor a shower for the next 24 hours. To give your body time to recuperate, I think.

Why this brief treatise on the suob? Well, hubby's been sickly lately and so, he thought about this old folk remedy. Good thing he did because after the suob, he felt gazillions better. Praise God!