p. 15 | Simple Home Remedies by Mrs. G. M. Brown

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Oct 26, 1911

Simple Home Remedies

By Mrs. G. M. Brown

For relieving pain quickly very few home remedies can surpass the fomentation. It is inexpensive, easily applied, and its effectiveness as a true “pain killer” can be appreciated only by those who have tested its virtues. I seldom see the well-known advertisement of a remedy which is said to “touch the spot,” without thinking how truly this can be said of the fomentation. One great advantage of this treatment is that even if it should fail to relieve the pain completely (it always gives some relief, and in nearly every case much relief), its application will do no harm if properly and thoroughly made. There are some remedies of which one is doubtful in certain cases, and perhaps one fears that more harm than good may be done to the patient, but this is never so in the case of fomentations.

Before applying the fomentation prepare the patient. First remove all clothing from the patient which may hinder the application of the fomentation. It is quite unnecessary to get the bed wet if the fomentations are wrung very dry, but it is well to take the precaution of putting a folded blanket beneath the patient; or if this can not be obtained, use towels or a sheet of stout brown paper.

How to Prepare Fomentations

Take two pieces of thick flannel about one yard long and three quarters of a yard wide (an old blanket, not too much worn, cut in four pieces will make two sets), and fold one of them in four lengthwise. Immerse this in boiling water, leaving the ends out of the water to wring by.

After the fomentation has been tightly wrung, shake it gently and quickly, and place it on the dry flannel, which should be folded well over the hot one. If necessary to carry it any distance to the patient, roll the fomentation up tightly with the edges outside, so that when applying it the inside will still be hot and steaming; carry it under the arm to help retain the heat.

If the patient complains that the heat is too great, do not remove the cloth entirely, but pass the hand gently down beneath it, allowing the first heat to escape. The fomentation should be left on for three minutes, or until it is comfortably warm. It should then be removed, and a second one put in its place. Three are usually sufficient, but more can be given if the pain still continues. After this the part should be well sponged with tepid water, and gently rubbed with a little camphorated oil or with olive-oil.

Before passing on to explain the use of some other simple home remedies, it would be well to state that fomentations can be made with less suitable material than flannel blankets; and in cases of emergency where these are not obtainable, the writer has often had to resort to such articles as the following, which have served the purpose when nothing better could be found: children’s old woolen vests, parts of woolen combinations, Turkish towels, or a damp cloth placed inside a sheet of stout brown paper and laid across the top of a closed kitchen range. In a few minutes the cloth will be steaming hot, and can be applied directly to the patient, or if preferred it may be placed in a thinner dry cloth first. A method of making a fomentation without flannels is the following:—

Have a rubber bottle half filled with hot water, excluding the air; take a towel, moisten half of it, and place it over the bottle, then fold the remaining dry half over the damp one. Place the bottle on the painful part, with the dry towel next to the patient, and in a few minutes he will experience the same relief as from a steaming hot fomentation.

Revulsive Fomentations

In some cases where it is necessary to tone up a weak organ, and so enable it to do its work more thoroughly, the revulsive fomentation will be found very beneficial. It greatly improves the circulation of the blood through the organ, and so makes it more healthy and active. A revulsive fomentation is the same as an ordinary one with this exception: after each fomentation a towel wrung

out of very cold water is applied to the affected part, and covered with a dry towel. The cold application is left on for one minute, and is then replaced by a hot one. The third and last cold one is left on for two minutes, and takes the place of the cool sponge which is usually given after fomentations.

An Efficient Remedy

Every person should know how to give an enema when it is needed. Many serious disorders could be averted if the bowels were promptly attended to. Constipation, with its evil results, is responsible for many a serious illness; and when the bowels cease to act regularly, nothing else is so safe and efficient as the enema for cleansing them. But let it be clearly understood that the use of the enema is advocated only in cases of emergency. The patient must be taught to correct his habits of living.

The siphon syringe is best and most convenient to use. The bulb syringe, unless carefully used, is likely to introduce air into the bowels, and so cause pain. Fill the can with water at a temperature of 100° F. In stubborn cases of constipation it is better to add a little mild soap to the water. Hang the can on a strong nail, and allow the first tubeful of water to run away before inserting the tube, as this water is usually cold. Let the patient lie on the right side, and after oiling the tube, insert about one and a half inches into the rectum.

If the patient complains of pain, press the rubber tubing slightly, so that the water will flow more slowly. It is also a good plan to rub the bowels gently in an upward direction, beginning at the left side, and thus assist the water to rise in the large intestine. After as much water has been taken as the patient can retain (this is usually from one to two quarts in an adult, and should be retained as long as possible), rub the bowels from the right to the left side to help evacuate the water. To break up the habit of chronic constipation one of the two following methods may be used:—

First Method

When preparing the water for the enema at 100° F., add a cup of cold water to this on the second day, and on the third day two cups, and on the fourth day three cups, and continue adding an extra cup each day until the enema is quite cold. This graduated enema acts as a tonic to the bowels, thus relieving constipation, which is often due to lack of tone in the muscles of the bowels.

Second Method

Use a hand syringe and inject two tablespoonfuls of olive-oil into the rectum at night. This, lying in the bowels all night, helps to soften the waste matter, and gives great relief in cases of hemorrhoids, or piles, and in any case where there is a tender, painful condition of the rectum.

In closing, let it be clearly understood that attention must be given to the patient’s diet in cases of constipation. All

fine flour foods, boiled milk, well-cooked eggs, tea, and coffee must be avoided. Whole-meal bread and butter, lightly cooked eggs, plenty of fruit, and granose biscuits, which are excellent for this disorder, should be eaten, all foods being masticated thoroughly. Cold water drunk freely three hours after meals is also a great help.

To Relieve Headache

If the head is hot and throbbing, and the face flushed, withhold all food for a few hours; see that the bowels are thoroughly cleansed, using an enema when necessary. Give the patient a very hot foot-bath, beginning at 102° F., and increasing it in two minutes to 105° F. Keep cold cloths on the patient’s head and round the neck. Dry the feet, put the patient to bed with a hot-water bottle at the feet, and continue to apply the cold cloths to the head. Keep the patient very quiet, and have plenty of air in the room, but not too much light. In a few hours relief will be obtained. If due to biliousness or stomach disorders, give plenty of hot water to drink, and apply fomentations to stomach and liver.

If the patient is pale, and the headache is chiefly in the back of the head and neck, have him lie down, put a hot bottle to the feet, and give a set of good hot fomentations covering the entire length of the spine, bringing them well up the nape of the neck. Insist upon the patient’s lying down for a few hours, and closing the eyes even if he does not sleep, as this form of headache is a nervous one, and requires absolute rest. — Mrs. G. M. Brown, in English Good Health.