Thank God For Modern Medicine: Treatment Of The Dry Gripes
Posted: Wed Jul 13, 2022 10:02 am
From "Every Man His Own Doctor or The Poor Planter's Physician" circa 1736:
"THE Dry-Gripes are now (blessed be God,) grown much rarer than formerly. This is the cruellest Kind of Colick, called in Europe, the Colick of Poitiers; though here it might be called the Caribbee Colick, because very common in those Islands: And I wish we may not have deriv'd it from thence, by too liberal a Use of their Commodities.
IT makes it self known by a most tormenting Pain in the Pit of the Stomach, and the adjacent Parts. The Guts feelas if they were twisted, and all Motion downward is interrupted: By this Misfortune, the unhappy Patient is inclin'd to vomit up every Thing; inso-much, that sometimes his very Excrements are cast out at his Mouth. In the first Place, a Thoroughfare must by all Means be attempted, by 3 Spoonfuls of Bears Oyl, or by the Decoction of Peach Leaves, above mentioned. If these Remedies should fail, you must submit to a Tobacco Glister, perform'd by blowing the Smoak through a Pipe into the Fundament. And if the first Operation should happen to fail, it must be repeated, till a Passage be opened. At the same Time, make a strong Infusion of Tobacco, and therewith anoint the lower Region of the Belly.
AFTER the Passage is perfectly clear'd, your Diet, for some Days, ought to be either Mutton, or Chicken Broth, in which Mallows have been boil'd; and your Drink, Bawm Tea.
SOME have unadvisedly, in this Distemper, ventur'd also to drink Rum, and other Spirits, to ease their Pains; but this has cost them dear, by takingaway the Use of their Hands; and other Paralytick Msfortunes; to cure which, the same Remedies must be used, as are prescrib'd hereafter for the Palsey.
THE best Way to prevent the DRY-GRIPES, is to get rid of Agues, and Colicks, as soon as you can; to eat sparinglym of Fruit, and forbear all foul and windy Liquors; after it has been poisoned with foul Sugar, and Lime-juice."
Having seen the "cure" , I wonder if this is where the saying "blowing smoke up your a** " came from? I would not want to be on either end of this treatment!
"THE Dry-Gripes are now (blessed be God,) grown much rarer than formerly. This is the cruellest Kind of Colick, called in Europe, the Colick of Poitiers; though here it might be called the Caribbee Colick, because very common in those Islands: And I wish we may not have deriv'd it from thence, by too liberal a Use of their Commodities.
IT makes it self known by a most tormenting Pain in the Pit of the Stomach, and the adjacent Parts. The Guts feelas if they were twisted, and all Motion downward is interrupted: By this Misfortune, the unhappy Patient is inclin'd to vomit up every Thing; inso-much, that sometimes his very Excrements are cast out at his Mouth. In the first Place, a Thoroughfare must by all Means be attempted, by 3 Spoonfuls of Bears Oyl, or by the Decoction of Peach Leaves, above mentioned. If these Remedies should fail, you must submit to a Tobacco Glister, perform'd by blowing the Smoak through a Pipe into the Fundament. And if the first Operation should happen to fail, it must be repeated, till a Passage be opened. At the same Time, make a strong Infusion of Tobacco, and therewith anoint the lower Region of the Belly.
AFTER the Passage is perfectly clear'd, your Diet, for some Days, ought to be either Mutton, or Chicken Broth, in which Mallows have been boil'd; and your Drink, Bawm Tea.
SOME have unadvisedly, in this Distemper, ventur'd also to drink Rum, and other Spirits, to ease their Pains; but this has cost them dear, by takingaway the Use of their Hands; and other Paralytick Msfortunes; to cure which, the same Remedies must be used, as are prescrib'd hereafter for the Palsey.
THE best Way to prevent the DRY-GRIPES, is to get rid of Agues, and Colicks, as soon as you can; to eat sparinglym of Fruit, and forbear all foul and windy Liquors; after it has been poisoned with foul Sugar, and Lime-juice."
Having seen the "cure" , I wonder if this is where the saying "blowing smoke up your a** " came from? I would not want to be on either end of this treatment!