The Total Body Turmeric Pain Reliever Drink You Need to Know About!

Hey, guys! Hope you’re having a great “Wellness Wednesday” so far 🙂 I’ve been having a flare-up of a lot of symptoms lately, including pain and fatigue. It’s so hard with chronic illness because you’ll have a good week or two and feel like you’re finally getting somewhere! You get so full of hope and then a new week comes and smacks you upside the head and you feel like you went into a downward spiral back to where you started. You just have to keep digging yourself back out of the hole, hoping that at some point, the hole will get more shallow and you’ll gain some ground. I do think I have gained ground in the last year. It’s hard to see at times, but it takes less time for me to recover from bad flares than it used to. And by recover, I mean, back to being able to function at a better level. I still don’t live the way I want to live. Mornings and evenings are difficult for me and I’m generally exhausted. But, I keep trying new things, researching, talking to other people in similar situations, and just trying to learn as much as I can while still trying to find joy in the small things. Sometimes I feel like I am always in my head, in another world, and never totally present because I’m always thinking about the pain I’m in or how much I want to get better. I think people think I’m a bit spacey or disconnected sometimes. We do the best we can, right? I try to keep this in mind before I jump to conclusions about other people. Getting lost in a flare is easy to do. I’ve had some where it seems never-ending and I start to feel defeated. The truth is, things always eventually get better, but sometimes you have to fight even harder than you feel like you can. I wanted to share this recipe with you in hopes of helping you through a painful flare if you’re going through one, too.

I have a hard time finding things that help with the pain. I find something and it helps for a while and then it seems like it loses its potency and doesn’t work for me anymore. That’s not to say that a lot of the things I have done and tried aren’t helpful at all, they are. It’s just that they’re not long term solutions. But, something that I always go back to is this creamy turmeric drink that a fellow Lyme Warrior shared with me a couple years ago when I was in the thick of chronic Lyme Disease. I’ve been having really bad back and hip pain lately, so I pulled this recipe out and tried it again. Sure enough, it is the number one thing that is helping my pain right now!! I’ve done A LOT, so it’s kind of a miracle that this simple, inexpensive drink is what’s hitting the spot right now, but I’ll take it! Glady. 🙂

We all probably know by now that Turmeric is great for decreasing inflammation! Turmeric contains curcumin. Curcumin is a biotactive substance that fights inflammation. It can be just as powerful as over the counter anti-inflammatories, but it doesn’t have the negative side effects that they do! NSAIDS, which are your standard drug store anti-inflammatories, like Tylenol and Ibuprofen, can cause damage to your stomach lining, liver, and serious problems like ulcers and bleeding if used too often. But, if you use turmeric in high doses, you can avoid all of that! You want to aim for around 1 gram of turmeric to get the full benefit.

This drink combines everything that helps turmeric do it’s antioxidant work for your body. It has healthy fats in the coconut oil which help your body to absorb the curcumin which is fat-soluble. It also contains black pepper, which has piperine in it. Piperine is a naturally occuring substance that helps your body to absorb the curcumin better as well!

I like to double this recipe when my pain is really bad. By the end of the drink, I feel a total body relaxation. It feels like my whole body gets warm and I can feel the pain slowly dissipate. You don’t need to worry about overdosing on turmeric. It’s a natural food. You do want to get yourself a good organic brand though, because spices like turmeric are known to carry lead. You can get quality sourced turmeric by doing your research. I like this brand.

This recipe is a little complicated because you have to make a paste first. But, it’s totally worth the time, and you’ll have paste leftover in your fridge for your next drinks once you make it! I usually combine this with almond milk, but coconut milk is really delicious with it, too!

This recipe was recommended to me by my fellow Lyme advocate, Aimee Miller. You can find her website here. These turmeric drink recipes are originally from Darin Olien’s plant based meal plan “The Superlife 10-Day Nutrition Program”. Thank you, Aimee for recommending this drink to me! It’s been so helpful <3

Turmeric Paste:
Makes about 1 cup (16 – 1 tablespoon servings)

Prep time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
• 1/4 tsp ginger powder
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup turmeric powder
• 1/2 cup coconut milk
• 1/4 cup coconut oil
• 2 tbsp raw honey

Steps:

• Mix pepper, ginger, cinnamon and salt together in a bowl and set aside.
• In a small sauce pan on low heat mix together turmeric and coconut milk. Stir constantly with a wooden spoon.
• Bring to gentle simmer and continue to stir.
• Add mixed spices and continue to simmer for 3 minutes or until a thick and smooth paste.
• Add coconut oil and raw honey, turning off the heat. Continue to stir until completely smooth.
• Allow mixture to cool a few minutes and transfer to a clean Mason jar. Mixture thickens as it cools so don’t wait to long to transfer.
• Place lid on jar once it’s cooled completely. Store in refrigerator for up to 2-3 weeks (mine last less than a week since using daily).

Now that you have made your paste, you can put it into some milk with the following ingredients and start de-flaming, LOL! 🙂

Creamy Turmeric Drink

Prep time: 5-6 minutes
Serves 1

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp turmeric paste
• 1 tsp vanilla extract (find a good brand without added ingredients. Just pure vanilla extract!)
• 8-10 drops of stevia (or 1 tsp raw honey or maple syrup)
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 cup coconut milk or other plant based milk

Steps:

• Add all ingredients in a sauce pan and warm.
• Use a blender or whisk until foamy
• Pour into a mug and relax 🙂

Please let me know if you try this and how it works for you! I hope that it gives you some relief. I’ve been thinking of things that have helped my Lyme symptoms for those of you who are struggling with Lyme (and other chronic pain diseases). If you haven’t yet, check out my post on the essential oils that help my joint pain! As always, this is not medical advice, just my own experience in things that have brought me some relief. Sending you lots of love and healing vibrations!! 🙂