Making Herbal Poultices and Compresses

This is a long post with lots of pictures. Just a warning!

Compresses and Poultices are some of the easiest forms of herbal remedies. I have been using them for years. I will go through the process of making a Poultice step by step with lots of pictures. I will cover two ways to make a Poultice. Then I will share how a Compress is different and how to make one....no pictures but they really aren't needed.

Jeremy got roped into this volunteered after he fell victim to another spider bite. He has a part time job doing yard work/gardening/landscaping/building projects for a friend of ours. He works two days a month. The last few weeks he has been dismantling an outhouse..evidently it was occupied by a lot of those 8 legged creatures.

He showed me a bite on his leg - it was swollen with a hard center, dark red, very hot to the touch and painful...with red streaks. It was hard to get a good picture.... the flash sort of washed out the color but it was very dark red.



So...we start with Plantain. It should be chopped. You can either use it fresh during the season or you can use dried. At this time of year I use dried Plantain. Pick it all season, let it dry and keep it in a glass airtight container so that you always have it on hand. If you travel - take a small container with you.



You are going to place a handful or two of Plantain into a pot with a tight lid....glass, stainless steel or ceramic...never aluminum or copper or anything coated (so many NASTY chemicals are released when they are heated...another post entirely!). Then you are going to pour hot water directly over the herbs in the pot. (You can also start with cold water, bring the mixture to a boil and boil a few minutes covered tightly.) You want enough water to make a pasty consistency...not too much ....you sort of want a wet mush.



Then...one of the MOST IMPORTANT PARTS....



COVER THE POT!! You don't want all of the essential oils of this plant going up in steam...literally! Turn the burner on simmer and allow them to continue to heat for a couple of minutes. Turn the burner off and let this sit about 10 or 15 minutes. When that is done it should look something like this...



Now comes the fun part :) You are going to spoon this into a cotton cloth. The cloth needs to be large enough to fold several times so that you don't have herbs falling out all over the place. You also need to make sure this isn't too hot to place on the skin...we don't want to add a burn on top of the spider bite! Also make sure that you are using an all natural cloth. Many fabrics today are made with chemicals... can you say polyester? (Another way to do this is to coat the area of treatment with a little oil and place the herbs directly on the skin...my boys don't like this because the herbs tend to stick to the skin even though the purpose of the oil is to prevent the sticking...must have something to do with hairy legs!)



There should be some "juice"....I usually pour a little over the herb just before I fold the cloth up. You want this to be moist on the skin. When it is all folded it should look similar to this....



I try to have only one layer of cloth between the herbs and the skin. Then you place the poultice on the affected area...in this case the spider bite. Be prepared...my boys all cry "it's too hot!". However, if I can hold it in my hands comfortably...it isn't too hot. Heat is needed.



Once this has cooled, I add more hot herb and repeat the process several times. Once we are done, I usually top this off by applying my Healing Salve if it is a bite, wound or other break in the skin. This was done at around 9 pm. The next morning the bite looked like this...



The swelling was completely gone...as was the hard knot in the center. It was cool to the touch, the red was completely gone, (just a touch of pink here and there) and there was no more pain. Just the normal slight itch of the healing process....to which we apply Lavender Salve for relief.

Now...to make a compress. The difference between a compress and a poultice....for a poultice you are using the herbs...for a compress you are just using the "juice". You will follow the same steps outlined above but you will add more water to the herbs and allow it to cook a bit longer. You will then strain off the herbs so that you are left with an herbal infusion (a fancy word for tea...although for a compress you won't be drinking the tea!). Soak the cloth in the tea, wring it out and apply to the affected area. Repeat several times.

One of our favorite herbal compresses is Sorrell. Josiah, being so fair skinned, burns easily in the summer. Sorrell is a wonderful relief for sunburn. I make the infusion and then refrigerate it. The cool compress is a relief on sunburned skin and the sorrel helps reduce the pain and redness of a sunburn. I lay the cloth on his back, let it sit 10 minutes or so and then repeat. For Josiah, it takes the sting away long term.

I like a lavender compress for a headache. The coolness along with the benefits of lavender help to relieve that tension headache!

There are many herbs that can be used for poultices and compresses....the variety of herbs that our Father has given us is mind boggling. I encourage you to keep these in mind as you grow your herbs this year and as you study their properties.

I'll be glad to answer questions either in email or in the comment section below.