used in hot herbal baths.
Using a mortar and pestle, crush the pandanus leaves well until the leaves become damp with their own juice. Mix all the ingredients together and wrap them into the muslin cloth to make a herbal pack. Tie the pack tightly with a cotton string.
Place the herbal pack under the running water so that the herbs soak in the water and fill the bathtub to the desired level. Shower and scrub your skin before stepping into the bath, then luxuriate in the scented water for 10-15 minutes. Afterwards, rinse off again under the shower and moisturise the skin with your favourite scented moisturising lotion.
Alternatively, you could try this traditional Thai steam with 3 or 4 Kaffir lime leaves, 2 tablespoons Kaffir lime zest, 2 slices prai, 6-8 stalks of sliced lemongrass, 1 sliced galangal root, a handful of tamarind leaves and 1 tablespoon camphor powder. Clean all the herbs and bring them to the boil in a rice cooker. When the steam starts to form, gently open the lid and sprinkle in the camphor powder and wait a few minutes. When more steam arises, sit opposite the cooker and cover yourself and the cooker with a blanket, all the while inhaling the aromatic vapours. Stay in your steam tent for 10-15 minutes. With repeated use, you'll notice a clearer complexion and less nasal congestion.
The popular herbal bath treatments offered in most Thai spas is a variation of the traditional herbal steam concept, and uses many of the same ingredients, such as lemongrass and Kaffir lime.
deep heat, thai-style
In Thailand, the round cotton bundles containing herbal mixtures were once the secret tools of ancient healers, and up until recently, could be obtained only from traditional healers or from the Thai massage school at Bangkok's Wat Po, or Temple of the Reclining Buddha. Nowadays, though, you can make your own with various combinations of herbs—for deep heat soothing of muscle aches and pains.
The origins of the Thai herbal heat compress are obscure, but it's known that such compresses were used to soothe the aching muscles of war-weary soldiers during the Thai-Burmese battles of the Ayutthaya period over 200 years ago. Such compresses were also popular in neighbouring Burma, Cambodia and Laos, though the formulae differ from region to region, depending on the local plants and herbs.
With the recent back-to-nature trend among stressed and health-conscious urbanites, these herbal compresses are now packaged and sold commercially in Bangkok's many health stores, so you can give yourself a quick-fix heat treatment at home. Some Thai women use these store-bought compresses on their abdomens after giving birth, to help ease the tired, bloated feeling that comes after childbirth. Called prakop in Thai, the herbal compress has been incorporated into modern spa treatments and is offered at a number of Thai spas, such as the Oriental Spa and the Banyan Tree Spa, often in conjunction with massage.
These herbal compresses have now become familiar sights in modern spas for relief of muscular aches and pains.
Ready-made preparations, as either powdered or dried herbs, can be bought in Thai health stores.
Traditionally the bundle was steam-heated over a charcoal burner. Most spas today use an electric rice cooker for quick and easy steaming.
Once heated, the compress is applied on sore muscles in conjunction with massage.
As with other herbal therapies, the ingredients in the compress may be mixed according to specific formulae to address specific ailments. Generally, the compress contains from 10 to 20 ingredients, though there are some standard ingredients that form the base of every compress.
The Oriental Spa in Bangkok has made waves with the way it combines traditional remedies with high-tech, modern techniques. It was the first Thai spa to incorporate this ancient healing method into their treatment menu, with their Oriental Herbal Pack treatment which combines massage therapy with the application of the herbal compress. If you want to make your own compress at home, they suggest you use some of the following healing ingredients:
Camphor: Its cooling and tingling sensation helps invigorate the skin.
Lemongrass: This has antiseptic properties to help clear up the skin.
Turmeric: Its antiseptic properties help soothe and cleanse irritated skin.
Prai: This ginger is a natural moisturiser that relieves muscular aches and pains while softening the skin.
Kaffir lime: These miracle limes help tone the skin.
Take a handful of each ingredient, and place them in a piece of cotton cloth and tie into a firm bundle. Heat the parcel over a steamer or hot pot before applying on to the body. Traditionally, the application was done in conjunction with massage—the sore muscles were worked first, then the heated compress was applied to the problem spots. The heat relaxes the aching muscles and helps to open the pores, allowing for better absorption of the herbal ingredients. Allow the heat to penetrate into your muscles, and feel stress and tension ease away beneath the healing kneading of a firm (but never painful) masseur.
Benefits include the soothing of sore and aching muscles, an easing of respiration with the ingredients camphor and menthol, and the reduction of tension through the heat and aromatic properties of the herbs.
best for baby, best for mum
Herbal therapies devised by Thai midwives have long played a key role in Thai traditional healing. In the past, most births took place in the home, and women took advantage of the healing secrets that midwives passed down from one generation to the next. Here's how herbs can help a mother—before, during and after childbirth.
During pregnancy, most Thai women soothe the backaches and leg pains that come with bearing the weight of the child in the womb with Thai massage. And as antenatal care was supervised by a local midwife, she would mix herbal formulae for all the ailments associated with pregnancy and childbirth. Each mixture was customised to suit the individual patient, according to whether the patient's energy type was of the fire, water, earth, or wind element. Special ingredients, mainly herbal roots, bulbs and rhizomes, were used for post-pregnancy treatments. There are a number of rhizomes known to Thai healers for their benefits to the womb; most are identified by their specific healing properties, such as waan chak mod luuk, meaning 'womb-pulling rhizome', a large, bumpy root that is believed to help tighten the womb.
Most women would have been prescribed yaa-hom, or 'fragrant medicine'; this comes in the form of dusty gold pellets made from a blend of medicinal flowers and herbs including ylang-ylang, jasmine and camphor, the scent of which is inhaled to relieve feelings of nausea or morning sickness. The pellets may also be dissolved in water and drunk as a tonic to soothe feelings of faintness or dizziness.
During labour, a professional midwife was always on hand: her skills were in demand, and after the birth she would cut the umbilical cord with a sharpened bamboo stick. Known for its antibacterial properties, the bamboo stick didn't have to be sterilised; as well as being sharp and clean, it provided the added benefit of sterilising and cleansing the wound.
Immediately after giving birth, the new mother would undergo the famous yuu fai or 'staying with the fire' treatment for a period
