[Soothing Waters] Restocking the Medicine Chest

by **Serynia** on February 27th, 2014, 8:09 am

85th Day of Winter, 513 A.V.

Serynia had been working for almost eight bells and was looking forward to finishing up with her last patient. He had been brought in on a makeshift stretcher and then transferred to one of the infirmary beds. His thigh had a huge gash on it that was too large of a wound for Serynia to heal. She had applied pressure to it to try and stop the bleeding but she knew that it would need stitches to close the wound. Luckily the patient had passed out from the pain.

First she took a cloth soaked in alcohol and cleaned the wound as best she could. Then she took a needle and held it over the flame of the hearth to sterilize it. Threading the needle with string, she began to stitch up the cut. Every few stitches, she would cut off the string and tie a knot. Finally, after she had finished sewing up the wound, she would need to wrap it in a bandage.

However to ensure that the wound would heal faster, she would need to apply a krolar poultice to the bandage. This medicine was made from mixing ground bark of the krolar tree, a deciduous tree common in the Sylira region, with various crushed wildflowers. Rummaging through the medicine chest, she found the krolar bark and the wildflowers that she needed. She then took the mortar and pestle from her philtering kit out of her backpack and started to grind the dried herbs until it was a fine powder. Placing a jar on the brazier, she heated up some water making sure that it was warm enough to soothe but not too hot to burn. She added some of the warm water to the ground powder to make a thin paste. Then laying the bandage on a flat surface, she spread the poultice solution evenly on the center of the bandage. Carefully she lifted the bandage and placed it on the injury, wrapping the bandage around the patient's thigh and securing it in place.

Our supply of medicines is starting to get a little low. Choa will have my head if I don't make more, Serynia thought to herself and sighed. It looked like she would be putting in a few more hours tonight before she could head home. Well at least this will be a good chance for me to practice my philtering skills.

by **Serynia** on March 4th, 2014, 7:45 am

But before Serynia could start on making more medicines, she could hear her patient begin to stir and moan. He would be in quite a bit of pain from the stitches when he fully awoke. Luckily they had some dried tolm roots that she could use to make tolm tea. Tolm tea was often used to relieve pain and aid in sleep. Because the roots were hard and woody, it was actually better to make a decoction than an infusion to prepare the tea.

The difference was that an infusion used hot water poured over the herb while a decoction relied on actually boiling the herb in the water. The hardier roots required more heat to ensure that the active constituents of the herb were transferred to the water. She remembered Mistress Sommers, her herbalism teacher from the Opal Temple in Mura, drilling that lesson into her head.

She took an earthenware container and filled it with water. She used her eating knife to chop the dried tolm root into small pieces. Then she placed the pieces of dried tolm root inside the container and placed the container over the fire in the hearth. She brought the water to a boil and let it simmer for ten to fifteen chimes. Then using a muslin cloth she strained the tea into a cup.

She took the cup of tolm tea to her patient in the infirmary bed. Gently she raised him up to a sitting position. "Here drink this. It will ease the pain and help you sleep better," she said. The patient slowly sipped at the hot liquid.

"Thank you." He smiled weakly at the Konti before she helped him to lay back down. In a few chimes he was asleep again. Satisfied that he would not wake until the morning, Serynia went back to her work of making more medicines.

by **Serynia** on March 6th, 2014, 7:52 am

Looking through the medicine chest she could see that they were low on a couple of items that were normally in stock...rosemary ointment, sweetblossom tincture, and chamayo tonic. It looked as if one of the other healers had made a stop at Stormhold Salves and picked up all the necessary herbal ingredients but because it had been so busy in the infirmary that day, no one had a chance to prepare the medicines yet.

Serynia decided to start with the rosemary ointment. Ointments were made of oils and fats and contained no water. They were usually used to form a protective layer over the skin. Rosemary ointment in particular was especially useful for relaxing cramped muscles within 20 chimes. A lot of the knights and squires who came in as patients often complained of cramps from their strenuous training routines so this medicine was used very often.

First she found a clean glass bowl in one of the cabinets. In the glass bowl, she combined an ounce of beeswax and a half cup of oil. She preferred to use sunflower oil as it was relatively inexpensive. Placing the glass bowl into a pan filled with water, she placed the pan over the hearth. She waited while the water started heating to a simmer which caused the wax to melt. Using a wooden spoon, she stirred the mixture of oil and beeswax until the wax had completely melted. When the liquid was uniform, she took out the rosemary essential oil and put in 30 drops. Again she mixed with the wooden spoon until everything was well mixed. Then she spooned the liquid into small glass jars, allowing the liquid to cool and harden in the jars. When they were all cooled, she sealed each jar tightly and labeled them. Usually the ointments lasted a whole season but they would typically run out before it had a chance to spoil.

The next item on her list was the sweetblossom tincture. This medicine was commonly used to relieve a case of upset stomach. Tinctures are concentrated herbal extracts made from the dried herb and alcohol. They are effective since the essential nutrients of the herb are easily absorbed into the alcohol and it was possible to preserve it for a long time. Further because this process doesn't require heat, it is able to keep the volatile elements of the herb from being degraded. Tinctures are also able to be absorbed quickly and could be easily added to juice to disguise any bitter taste.

Pulling out her eating knife again, Serynia chopped up the sweetblossom leaves obtained from a small desert flower. She filled a large glass mason jar with the chopped herbs and then poured enough clear spirits into the jar to cover the herbs. Using the knife she stirred the mixture to make sure there were no air bubbles. She then sealed the jar tightly, labeled it, and stored it in a dark, cool cabinet. The tincture would need to steep for thirty days. She would need to shake it twice a day. Then later she would strain it and store them in smaller bottles for use.

Finally the last item she needed to prepare was the chamayo tonic. This was made from soaking chamayo seeds and was usually good for promoting mental clarity. It also helped with reducing the effects of dizziness, confusion, and memory loss. Unfortunately the tonic only worked once per day and only helped to diminish the symptoms instead of curing them. She took some of the water that was still warm from the pan she had heated up earlier and poured it into another pot where she placed the chamayo seeds. Covering up the pot, she would let the seeds soak in the warm water overnight before straining the liquid the next day and storing it in bottles.

Taking time to make one last check on her patient, Serynia decided to call it a day and head home.

by **Radiant** on March 14th, 2014, 8:40 am

Serynia :

Notes :

My radiance is not bright enough?

If you have any questions or concerns regarding your grade, beam me a PM and we can work it out.

Skill	XP Earned
Observation	+1 XP
Organization	+1 XP
Medicine	+1 XP
Herbalism	+2 XP
Philtering	+3 XP

Completed [Soothing Waters] Restocking the Medicine Chest