The Herbalist

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First Aid with Herbal Medicine

Jenny Jones Dip Phyt, FNIMH

For a long while it had been thought that herbal medicine is only appropriate for chronic disorders requiring lengthy treatment, and when you are in private practice it would be very unusual to have someone turn up on your doorstep with an injury requiring first aid.

However, about 8 years ago I attended Glastonbury Festival to help in the ‘Herbal Medicine First Aid Post’ run by Dedj Leibrandt. Dedj has been going to festivals for a number of years, taking her flower decorated caravan dispensary and a number of very willing practitioners and students. This was a completely new experience for me. I had been in practice for about 12 years and was there to supervise the students. However, a number of them were old hands at first aid and I learned so much from them during my stay.

The first aid post was marked on the festival maps, but there was nothing to indicate that it was herbal first aid, so as a consequence we were visited by people with all sorts of problems expecting their normal sort of treatment.

Predominant amongst the complaints were injuries sustain whilst scaling or tunnelling the fences to get in without paying! I am now an expert at treating sprains, cuts and bruises of all kinds. Upmost in my memory is a litre metal canister of Methyl salycilate, or ‘oil of wintergreen’. A metal canister, because the oil would soon have eaten its way out of anything else! A teaspoon of the oil in a washing – up bowl of hot water removed the swelling and eased the pain in about 20 minutes of soaking. Then an application of comfrey cream, and a little pot of cream to take away and everyone was happy. Of cause we had ample supplies of calendula cream for the cuts and arnica cream for the bruises.

If you have ever been to Glastonbury you will know that it is like a country fair by day, and Armageddon at night! That year, dotted amongst the crowds were people selling torches. These were made from melted plastic (carrier bags I think) wound around one end of a cane.

When they were lit, the plastic melted and dripped onto the hands or feet of the holder. I lost count of the number of burns we treated. Thank goodness for lavender oil. It proved so successful that I was even able to treat a young women who burned her face very badly whilst trying to ‘fire eat.’ The flames blew back at her, removing her eyebrows and causing severe burns especially on her chin. We must have spent half an hour holding cold, wet cloths over her face until the heat was taken out. We then applied copious amounts of lavender oil and a burns dressing soaked in it too.

With several doses of rescue remedy she was finally calm and she was collected by an ambulance and taken to the medics. We heard later that they were impressed by our treatment. Apart from that, I remember sitting with a young girl who was very frightened by her first experience of using recreational drugs, (nothing herbal to treat that, only soothing words and holding of hands), and insect bites galore. As far as I know no one complained about their herbal treatment. Since then I have been very confident in the power of herbal medicines to treat first aid emergencies, and know that an Herbal Aid Chest can earn its keep in your bathroom.

An Herbal Aid Chest for the Home

	Lavender Oil – Antiseptic and particularly applicable to burns. Use the oil directly, (lavender and tea-tree are the only oils that can be put on the skin neat. Always mix other oils in a carrier oil before using). It can be used on cuts, bites and grazes too. A few drops on your pillow may aid sleep.
	Calendula Cream – Antiseptic and anti-inflammatory. Apply over cuts, grazes and bites. Make sure the cuts and grazes are cleaned well before applying.
	Arnica Cream – To resolve bruising and calm the nerve endings. Don’t use over broken skin as it can damage red blood cells if it gets into the bloodstream.
	Comfrey Cream and Leaf Tea – Very healing for all tissue. Use over sprains, swelling and bruising. If you are injured then three cups of comfrey leaf tea a day can help heal from the inside.
	Lemon Balm Tea – For headaches, especially tension headaches.
	Peppermint and Ginger Tea – For upset stomachs and bowels. If symptoms last more than three days seek professional advice. Children need further treatment after two days.
	Aloe Vera – The gel from the plant can be used to soothe minor burns, scalds and sunburn. Simply split a leaf open and apply the gel to the affected area.
	Chamomile – An infusion of Chamomile flowers can be taken as herbal tea for shock and nervous upsets.

See also our Herbal First Aid For The Gardener article. Jenny Jones and several other medicinal herbalists are taking part in a series of talks to celebrate Herbal Medicine Awareness Week, the theme of which this year (2008) is Herbal First Aid, for further details of these talks and where and when they are taking place see our Diary & Events Page.

A free pdf Herbal First Aid E-Booklet is available from Letitia Derrington's Website. Letitia is one of the herbalists giving one of our talks, and she has kindly given us permission to link to this free pdf for download.

The books below are all available via Amazon, the herbal First Aid booklet by Andrew Chevalier will be available to purchase at some of the talks.

Read our review of Julie Bruton-Seal's new book 'Hedgerow Medicine' available to buy from 15th May 2008, there is a special offer for Herb Society members when they buy this book direct, see The Book Shelf page for further details.

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