For mild bitter almond poisoning with symptoms like headaches and dizziness, one can simply drink more water and let the body recover on its own.
If vomiting, convulsions, or even coma occur, a decoction of vaccaria or apricot tree bark, administered orally, can also resolve ergency situations.
Vaccaria, also known as blue seed, isatis leaf, or indigo seed, is not an essential item, and not every household would have it readily available.
Moreover, it doesn’t grow naturally around Central Lake, so even if you were desperate to use it, you wouldn’t find any nearby.
So, apricot tree bark was the best choice now.
Du Bing went to chop apricot tree bark with an ax, while his father hurried to the kitchen to boil water. As for Du Heng, he continued to stimulate the woman’s throat.
The woman was now unconscious and experiencing mild convulsions; it really wasn’t a good ti for an etic procedure because, without self-awareness, it’s easy to choke on vomit and suffocate.
This is why it’s better to have soone nearby when a drunk person is vomiting.
But under these special circumstances, the woman had eaten two handfuls of bitter almonds. If she were to fully digest them, even if she survived, she might suffer from nerve paralysis and other aftereffects.
So, Du Heng imdiately decided to employ an etic procedure. However, he had to be extra careful to keep an eye on the woman and prevent her from choking during the process.
The etic procedure began. No matter how loud or distressing the sound, as long as she could still expel sothing, Du Heng did not plan to stop.
As ti went by, Du Heng noticed under the light from the platform that the woman’s nasal mbranes were turning a faint pink color.
This discovery prompted him to speed up the etic process.
During this, Du Heng glanced unintentionally in the direction of Du Bing’s mother.
Du Bing’s mother, who monts before had looked like she wanted to shrink into a crack in the wall, and the three-year-old child had disappeared. However, the light in the adjacent bedroom was now on.
Du Heng glanced at the light from the window and then lowered his head to continue the etic procedure. He didn’t stop until the woman was only vomiting sour water and her hiccups beca more frequent.
Throughout this etic period, Du Heng was utterly spent.
Du Bing’s wife’s head was sticking out from the platform. Du Heng had to lift her head slightly to prevent her from choking on her vomit, while also stimulating her throat. It was truly tiring.
Just holding the weight of her head and shoulders made Du Heng’s arms ache and feel weak.
Thankfully, the etic procedure was now over. Du Heng gently pushed the woman further onto the platform, finally able to take a breather.
In less than two minutes, Du Bing’s wife slowly regained consciousness and started groaning, lying on the floor in a dazed state with periodic hiccups. Judging by her expression, she likely also had a headache and dizziness.
Du Heng let out a breath, relieved that the etic procedure had worked.
However, upon closer inspection, the redness in the woman’s nasal mbranes hadn’t faded, indicating that a significant amount of toxins might have been absorbed.
Suddenly, familiar footsteps approached from behind. Before Du Heng could turn his head, Wang Shuqiu’s voice ca, "What are you doing? I couldn’t find you after you called..."
As she neared them, before she could finish her sentence, the light revealed the filth at Du Heng’s feet.
And Du Heng was standing right in the middle of all that filth; his pants were completely ruined. Not to ntion his shoes and socks.
"UGH!" Wang Shuqiu recoiled. "You’re... UGH! So... UGH! Disgusting! UGH!"
Wang Shuqiu couldn’t help but express her disgust, but Du Heng was already accustod to such scenes after seven years in his profession.
Serious illnesses weren’t often seen at the Health Clinic, but people coming for an infusion after getting drunk were absolute regulars, and those who turned into human fountains from drink were incredibly common.
"How did you get in here? Get out, it’s too dirty."
As soon as Wang Shuqiu entered, she quickly retreated to the doorway, asking, "What happened?"
"She’s poisoned from eating bitter almonds."
"Eating almonds can cause poisoning?"
"Bitter almonds. Alright, go wait for us by the car. We still need to go to the Health Clinic after she takes the dicine."
Wang Shuqiu glanced at Du Heng and left without any reluctance. After walking a few steps, she suddenly turned back and asked, "If eating bitter almonds can cause poisoning, then why are the almond drinks they sell okay? Aren’t they made from bitter almonds?"
Du Heng was speechless. If almond drinks were poisonous, they wouldn’t have made it to the market. They would have been sent to the crematorium long ago. "Those are diluted; there are hardly any bitter almonds in them. Besides, ingesting a small amount of bitter almonds won’t cause such a reaction."
"I see." With that, she left without looking back.
Just then, Du Bing returned with the boiled water.
Du Heng tested the temperature; it didn’t seem too hot. It appeared Du Bing and his father had already cooled it in the kitchen.
After administering the tree bark decoction, Du Heng said, "Hurry up and clean your wife, change her clothes. I’ll go ho and change as well. As soon as I get back, we’ll take your wife to the hospital."
Du Bing looked puzzled, asking, "Do we still need to go to the hospital?" His tone was unwilling, as if he’d prefer to just stay ho.
Du Heng had had enough of this family, both the n and the won. In an extrely helpless tone, he said, "She consud too much at once. A large portion has already been absorbed into her body and circulated through her bloodstream. Otherwise, why do you think she fainted? At the Health Clinic, we need to administer specific dicine to quickly eliminate the toxins from her bloodstream. Otherwise, if she’s left with aftereffects, what will you do then?"
"Alright then," Du Bing replied with so impatience.
Du Heng didn’t bother with them anymore and walked back ho.
It’s a sha about these pants and shoes. Even after washing, they’ll still feel disgusting.
「Twenty minutes later, Yu Haiting took charge.」
Du Heng explained, "The patient was poisoned by excessive consumption of bitter almonds. I’ve already perford an etic procedure and administered an antidote, but it wasn’t thorough enough."
Yu Haiting replied, "I’ll do a blood test and a urine test for the patient right away. No problem."
After the handover, Du Heng and Wang Shuqiu looked at each other, speechless. Wang Shuqiu asked, "What now? Should we go ho?"
Du Heng looked at the ti. "Forget it, it’s not worth the trouble. Let’s just sleep in the dorm; we can take a shower there too."
Wang Shuqiu was a bit reluctant. "Your dorm has a single bed. It’ll be too crowded."
"’Our bed at ho is large, over two ters wide, yet I’ve never seen you use all of it. You still only use my fifty-centiter slice of it.’ With this playful jab at Wang Shuqiu, Du Heng walked towards the bathroom.
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