Chinese Medicine: Starting with Daily Intelligence

Chapter 617: Chapter 617: Let It Sleep

"Fifty moxa cones... Can the patient handle that?"

Hu Qiming looked worried.

The patient before them looked sturdy, but his mental state was clearly unstable. "What if the pain becomes too much and he has another manic episode?"

This was indeed a major problem.

Patients with mania were already agitated. Subjecting him to heat from a flame would just be adding fuel to the fire, wouldn’t it?

Li Xu had obviously considered this point as well.

He gave a mysterious smile and took out a small, prepared porcelain bottle from a drawer. "We can use ’Sleeping Saint Powder.’"

"Sleeping Saint Powder?"

Hu Qiming was stunned again.

Although he had formal training in Chinese medicine, he had never heard of this name.

’But based on the name...’

"Is it something to make the patient sleep?"

Li Xu nodded and explained, "The *Qin Shihuang’s Heart Book* says: ’It is difficult for people to endure the pain of moxibustion. Taking this will cause them to fall into a deep sleep, unaware of the pain, and it will not harm them.’ This formula was specifically designed to help people sleep soundly to allow for this kind of long-duration, high-dose, heavy moxibustion treatment."

"So it’s basically the equivalent of an anesthetic powder?"

Hu Qiming had a moment of sudden realization.

"Correct."

Li Xu said, "The effect is actually similar. They’re both for anesthesia. However, *mafeisan* focuses on general anesthesia for surgical procedures, while Sleeping Saint Powder focuses more on deep sedation and sleep. Its properties are milder, with almost no harm to the human body. After waking up, it feels just like you’ve had a good night’s sleep—refreshed and invigorated."

Many people have heard of Hua Tuo’s *mafeisan*, but few know about the Sleeping Saint Powder recorded in the Song Dynasty’s *Qin Shihuang’s Heart Book*.

In fact, they are both glorious testaments to the achievements of Chinese medicine in the fields of surgery and anesthesia.

The emergence of anything requires certain conditions.

During the late Eastern Han Dynasty, when Hua Tuo lived, frequent wars led to numerous external injuries. This spurred the development of anatomy and surgery, providing fertile ground for the birth of anesthetics.

Similarly, during the Song and Yuan dynasties, although Neo-Confucianism flourished, warfare was still constant. Surgical techniques did not die out; instead, they became even more refined.

He had also just recently compounded the Sleeping Saint Powder after studying *Liu Juanzi’s Ghost Remedy*.

He hadn’t expected to use it so soon.

"Can’t we use a Western anesthetic?"

Hu Qiming couldn’t help but ask.

From his perspective, Western anesthetic techniques were already very mature.

Lidocaine, propofol... one injection and you can keep someone asleep for as long as you want. The effects are clear and fast-acting.

Why go through all the trouble of compounding some ancient formula like Sleeping Saint Powder?

Li Xu shook his head and explained patiently, "There are still differences."

"Western anesthetics, whether local ones like lidocaine and procaine, or general ones like ether and halothane, all work by using chemical components to inhibit nerve conduction or the central nervous system."

"Although these drugs are effective, their side effects can’t be ignored. Lidocaine carries a risk of allergic reaction, general anesthetics affect liver and kidney function, and post-operative reactions like nausea, vomiting, and dizziness are common."

"Most importantly, for a patient with mania, their nervous system is already in an extremely disordered and sensitive state. If we use powerful chemical anesthetics to suppress it, it could interfere with subsequent treatment or even increase the burden on their nervous system."

"But Sleeping Saint Powder is different."

Li Xu pointed to the small porcelain bottle. "Its main ingredients are *shanqiehua* (Mandala Flower), cannabis flower, and others—pure, natural herbs. While inducing sleep, it also has anti-asthmatic, analgesic, and antispasmodic effects. For the taut muscles and nerves of a patient with mania, this is a form of treatment in itself."

"Besides, we’re only performing acupuncture this time, not surgery, so we don’t need that level of deep muscle relaxation. The depth of anesthesia from Sleeping Saint Powder is just right. It’s enough to prevent the patient from feeling pain while still maintaining basic physiological reflexes."

"Treating patients and saving lives must be tailored to the individual and the illness. Chinese medicine has its advantages, and Western medicine has its strengths."

As a young doctor who had received a modern education, Li Xu was not against Western medicine.

He would even take Western medicine himself when he occasionally fell ill.

In his view, Chinese and Western medicine were like two different paths leading to the same destination: healing patients and saving lives.

Chinese medicine approaches from a macroscopic perspective, emphasizing a holistic view. It extrapolates the whole from a single point, inferring the overall situation from subtle changes in the pulse, tongue, and other signs, first conditioning the body’s "overall environment."

Western medicine approaches from a microscopic perspective, emphasizing precise strikes. It’s point-to-point: fix what’s broken, kill the virus when it appears, cut out the tumor when it grows.

The two can be completely complementary.

For example, in diagnosis, Western imaging and biochemical tests can provide precise "intelligence" on the enemy. In treatment, the holistic conditioning of Chinese medicine can improve the "battlefield environment" and prevent the enemy from counterattacking.

However, the current "integration of Chinese and Western medicine" has often gone astray.

It has become "Western medicine leads, Chinese medicine assists," or even uses Western theories to explain and modify Chinese medicine.

It treats Chinese herbs like Western drugs, focusing only on active ingredients without regard for syndrome differentiation and treatment.

It trains TCM doctors to become "second-rate Western doctors" who only know how to order lab tests.

In the end, it creates a "hodgepodge" that is neither Chinese nor Western.

This is also why many renowned traditional Chinese medicine masters resent the current state of integrated medicine.

Integration is possible, but it must be an equal and scientific integration—a complementarity of methodologies, not a theoretical takeover.

What Li Xu wanted to do was to explore a true, dignified path for the "integration of Chinese and Western medicine."

"When does the treatment begin?"

Hu Qiming asked, somewhat impatiently.

No matter how fantastic the theory sounded, what ultimately mattered were the clinical results.

Li Xu glanced at the time and said, "One moxa cone takes about ten minutes to burn. Fifty cones will take eight or nine hours. Add to that the fact that we’re alternating between two acupoints, and it’s no small feat. It’s already past ten in the morning. Let’s have the patient go eat first. He’ll need his strength for the treatment. I’ll also go find Director Zhu in the acupuncture department to discuss having him take turns with me in administering the moxibustion."

A standard moxa stick takes about fifteen minutes to burn completely.

But in the actual process of moxibustion, to control the temperature and the penetration of the medicinal effects, you typically don’t let it burn all the way down. It needs to be replaced with a new one after about ten minutes.

Fifty cones—this was a test of physical strength and endurance for the practitioners as well.

"Alright, let’s have them eat first then."

Hu Qiming turned to the patient and his mother. "Ma’am, please take him to eat something light nearby. Nothing too greasy. Be back at one o’clock sharp."

The mother and son left, profusely thanking them.

Li Xu and Hu Qiming also went to the cafeteria for a quick bite.

While they were eating, Li Xu called Song Sisi. "Sisi, bring over the special moxa sticks we have stored at the clinic. I need to use them."

That batch of moxa sticks had been rolled last year using a special type of mugwort, selected based on information from the system.

When burned, their heat was gentle yet had extremely strong penetrating power, making them twice as effective with half the effort.

Song Sisi quickly arrived on her little electric scooter to deliver them.

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