Yunnan Paiyao: postpartum friend.

Yunnan Paiyao (also know as Yunnan Baiyao) is a secret formula of Chinese herbs containing mostly Pseudonginseng and Angelica, Because it is contraindicated during pregnancy, midwives often don't include this valuable patent Chinese remedy in their medicine bags. It is easily available in Chinese Medicinal pharmacies all over the world. It also is relatively inexpensive and is packaged to give it a long shelf life. The immediate function of Yunnan Paiyao is to arrest hemorrhage, cure wounds, activate blood circulation dispersing blood clots, eliminate inflammation and swelling, as well as expel pus and counteract toxins. Doctors of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) will often give Yunnan Paiyao as a first defense against a traumatic hemorrhage (even a deep cut or a gunshot wound), both orally and directly applied to the wound. It comes as a powder, either in capsules or in a small bottle. Included with each package is one small red "safety pill" which should only be administered in the case of serious injury and is best if taken with wine. At Bumi Sehat we give the "safety pill" for deep puncture wounds. Other indications include arresting internal and external bleeding from trauma and localized bruising. It alleviates pain from trauma to ligaments and tendons. It is an excellent treatment for hemorrhage of gastric and duodenal ulcers and hemorrhoids, as well as hemoptysis due to tracheitis, pneumonia, bronchiectasis, pulmonitis and sore throat. It is also a treatment for pyogenic infections of skin, i,e,, red swollen abscess, carbuncle and furuncle. Specifically for women, this medicine can be used to treat painful dysmenorrhea, menostasis, irregular menstruation, hypermenorrhea, metrorrhagia, leukorrhea and excessive menstrual bleeding. It may be used postoperatively to reduce keloid scarring (e,g,, after cesarean birth) and to promote healing. At Bumi Sehat birth center in Bali and at our tsunami relief and birth center in Aceh, Indonesia, we often use Yunnan Paiyao and consider it a postpartum mother's best friend. During the second stage of labor someone on the birth team prepares a solution of warm drinking water, one teaspoon of honey and two opened and dissolved capsules of Yunnan Paiyao, This is given to the mother after the baby has come to facilitate birth of the placenta. We have found that a placenta that is coming slowly will let go and be born within a few minutes of the mother taking Yunnan Paiyao, Since hemorrhage in the third stage of labor is a leading cause of death in Bali, and we were seeing far too many women with partially released placentas and bleeding behind the yet unborn placenta, we now routinely give our new moms Yunnan Paiyao, Malnutrition in Indonesia leaves birthing mothers with Qi [a kind of life force or spiritual energy] so deflcient that they all too often do not easily birth their placentas. Furthermore, the Yunnan Paiyao reduces overall postpartum hemorrhage. Less blood loss means the mother's milk will flow. This beautiful herbal medicine also enhances mother's milk, making breastfeeding start-up much easier. For blood loss leading to sudden drop in blood pressure (BP), give the mother a mix of Yunnan Paiyao with spirulina (or alfalfa juice), water and honey. If the BP drop is critical give her the red "safety pill" and acupuncture to the "spleen 1" point on the outside of the big toes. Be sure to raise her legs and massage her arms and legs toward the heart. Talk to her. At Bumi Sehat Bali we recently had a third-time mom retain her placenta and develop hemorrhage after having a 4 kg girl. She had a history of acute malnutrition due to poverty. After manual extraction of the placenta, she appeared stable and nursed her baby well. One hour after delivery she began to hemorrhage again. Her BP dropped to 49/30; we were losing her. We went into that life-saving "zone" that blessed midwifery teams go into, Dr, Bobbi instructed us by phone. She had us slap Po Sum Om oil on the mom's feet, while her legs were raised, Camie, our doula, massaged her; bidan (midwife) Budi put in an IV line; nurse Leman administered oxygen, Robin gave her the red safety pill and mixture of Yunnan Paiyao, spirulina and honey, Bobbi told Robin exactly where to place the acupuncture needles in the big toes, and the BP came right up to 85/50, Once she was stable we were able to transport her for transfusions. The D & C with Dr, Wedagama at the hospital with Robin assisting revealed no retained placenta, no clots, no cervical laceration. Her Qî was just so absent due to hunger that her uterus, even when it felt hard, was incompetent. Eleven days later the mom bled again. We were called to the hospital because even as transfusions were being administered, her blood pressure would not hold. We flew by motorbike to her side, with jars of Yunnan Paiyao, spirulina and honey. The hospital staflî were astonished to watch her pink up and her BP rise as she drank it. At the Bumi Sehat centers as well as at homebirths we routinely apply Yunnan Paiyao powder on the perineum. For the mother who has torn and was sutured as well as for the mom who has no tear or only a "skid," this herb reduces swelling and pain while speeding the healing process. Moms with very uncomfortable perinea enjoy sitz baths of warm water and Yunnan Paiyao, This June another woman had a lovely home waterbirth. As her 3 kg son latched on to breastfeed for the flrst time, minutes after his birth, she experienced acute pain in the vulva. This went on until she asked to be checked. She had no tears, and though her yoni looked perfect, it was very red and inflamed, though not swollen, Dr, Bobbi had only days earlier treated her for