I didn’t realize how bad I felt until I started feeling better.

For years, I lived with low energy. The kind of tired that sleep couldn’t fix. My stomach would bloat after the smallest meal. My chest felt heavy after walking up the stairs. I told myself it was just getting older. Just stress. Just life.

But deep down, I knew something was off. Something inside me wasn’t working right.

Then one afternoon, I visited my cousin Estela. She’s the one in the family who still knows all the old remedies. She took one look at me and said, “Your body’s fighting something.”

I laughed, tired. “What isn’t it fighting these days?”

She disappeared into her kitchen and came back holding a steaming cup. The smell hit me first—sharp ginger, earthy bay leaf, and that unmistakable bite of garlic.

I hesitated. “Is that… a soup?”

She shook her head. “It’s medicine.”

She told me her grandmother gave it to them every time someone felt weak, bloated, or run-down. It wasn’t fancy. Just three ingredients. Ginger, bay leaves, and garlic. Boiled together. Taken warm. Once a day for three days.

I was desperate enough to try anything. So I made it that night.

I peeled and chopped a small piece of fresh ginger, smashed two cloves of garlic, and dropped in two bay leaves. Covered it with two cups of water, and let it simmer for fifteen minutes.

The aroma filled the kitchen. It didn’t smell sweet or cozy—it smelled strong. Like something ancient. Like something that knew what it was doing.

I drank it slowly. My body warmed from the inside out. My nose cleared. My stomach unclenched.

That night, I slept deeper than I had in weeks.

The next morning, I wasn’t cured, but I felt… lighter. Like a layer of weight had lifted.

By the third day, my bloating was gone. My energy didn’t crash at 2 p.m. like it usually did. I went for a walk around the block and realized I didn’t have to stop halfway to catch my breath.

It wasn’t just my body that changed. It was the way I felt in it. I felt clean inside. Like something had been gently washed away.

So I kept going. One cup a day. Always fresh. Always warm.

Within a week, I noticed I wasn’t reaching for my antacids anymore. My digestion felt smooth. No more heaviness after eating. No more pressure in my chest when I laid down at night.

And best of all? My mind felt sharper. The fog I had been dragging around with me for months… lifted.

I called Estela to thank her.

She just laughed. “I told you. Garlic, ginger, and bay leaves never lie.”

So I started reading. Learning. Digging deeper into why it worked.

Turns out, garlic is a natural antibacterial and antifungal. It cleans the blood. Ginger fights inflammation and supports digestion. Bay leaves help detox the liver and soothe the stomach.

Together, they do more than heal. They cleanse.

I wasn’t just treating symptoms—I was giving my body the help it had been begging for.

My husband Mateo noticed the change too. At first, he made jokes about my “witch tea.” But after seeing my energy come back, he asked me to make some for him.

He had been struggling with sinus pressure and a slow, nagging cough. Nothing dramatic. Just annoying.

Three days after starting the tea, the cough was gone.

“I haven’t breathed this clearly in years,” he said, almost surprised.

We made it part of our daily routine. Every morning before coffee. Just one small mug. Nothing fancy. No sweetener. Just the three ingredients and water.

One weekend, our daughter Catalina came home from university. She looked tired, pale, and said her stomach was “a mess” from stress and takeout food.

I didn’t say a word. I just handed her a warm mug.

She wrinkled her nose. “This smells like something you’d mop a floor with.”

But she drank it.

The next morning, she asked for another cup.

“This stuff is magic,” she mumbled between sips.

It wasn’t magic. It was nature. It was simplicity. It was care passed down through generations.

Soon, I started sharing the recipe with friends.

My neighbor Rosita, who struggles with high blood sugar, said her levels steadied after a week of drinking it.

My friend Luciana, who always caught every cold that went around, made it through winter without a single sick day.

Even my cousin Tomas, the skeptic in the family, started making it after his cholesterol numbers improved.

People began calling it “the cleansing tea.” But for me, it was more than that. It was a reminder.

That our bodies are wise. That healing doesn’t always come from a bottle. That sometimes, the cure is already in your kitchen.

Here’s the recipe we use now:

Daily Cleanse Tea
– 1 thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger, peeled and sliced
– 2 cloves of garlic, smashed
– 2 bay leaves
– 2 cups of water

Place all ingredients in a small pot. Simmer gently for 15–20 minutes. Strain and sip warm. Drink once a day for 3–7 days as a cleanse, or once a week for maintenance.

Optional: add a slice of lemon or a teaspoon of honey if the taste is too strong. But I’ve grown to love it exactly as it is.

Now I keep the ingredients in a basket on the counter. I call it my “little pharmacy.”

It’s become more than a recipe. It’s a ritual.

A way of checking in with myself. Of saying, “I care about you enough to do this.”

It’s a small act. But it reminds me daily that I don’t have to wait to feel better. That healing can start with hot water and three humble ingredients.

We live in a world that’s always pushing more. More pills. More appointments. More complications.

But sometimes, what we really need is less. Less clutter. Less noise. Just a simple cup of something warm, honest, and real.

So if you’re reading this, and your body feels heavy, your mind feels slow, or your belly hasn’t felt quite right in a while… try this.

Just for three days.

Give your body a chance to breathe. To reset. To remember how it feels to feel good.

And if it helps you like it helped me, don’t keep it a secret.

Share it with someone who needs it. Someone who’s been carrying more than they need to. Someone whose body is whispering for help.

Please like and share this post. Because healing should never be hidden—it should be passed from hand to hand, kitchen to kitchen, heart to heart. 🌿🧄💛