Cannabis as an Ancient Painkiller
Sergey Slepchenko, a researcher at the Novosibirsk Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, claims that healers used cannabis as a painkiller during the Stone Age, around 4,000 years ago.
Ancient Surgeons and Cannabis
Archaeologists discovered the remains of a Stone Age human in Moldova. The skull had two drilled holes, leading scientists to believe that this person was a patient of ancient surgeons who performed trepanation to relieve intracranial pressure or remove foreign objects from the brain. Most likely, the individual was a warrior who suffered a battle injury.
According to researchers, prehistoric doctors gave the patient cannabis before surgery to ease the pain. The partial healing of the bone tissue suggests that the trepanation was successful. This fact surprises archaeologists, as surgeons at that time used crude bronze blades and had no antibiotics or quality anesthesia.
Psychoactive Plants for Pain Relief
Archaeological excavations have shown that tribes living in what is now Russia used psychoactive plants for medicinal purposes. For example, before brain surgery, patients consumed psilocybin mushrooms and cannabis. The main goal of the ancient anesthesiologist was to distract the patient from the operation.
Slepchenko reported that the use of mushrooms and cannabis was accompanied by shamanic rituals, including singing and drumming. The monotonous sound of the instrument and ecstatic dancing helped alter the patient’s state of consciousness for the duration of the procedure.
Cannabis in Chinese Surgery
The first Chinese surgeon known to use cannabis was Hua Tuo, who lived from 140 to 208 AD. He ground cannabis into a powder, mixed it with wine, and gave it to patients before surgery. In traditional Chinese medicine, cannabis was listed among the 50 fundamental herbs. It was prescribed for various ailments: the flowers were recommended for menstrual disorders, the oil for hair loss, and the seeds for vomiting and constipation.
Doctors believed that the buds contained a toxin, so they were only given to people suffering from nervous disorders and pain. Extracts from the flowers were used as a local anesthetic. Juice squeezed from the roots was taken by women to stop postpartum bleeding.