280 DR. CEASE'S RECIPES 



from a height, she may engage in the lighter duties of her house, not omy 

 without risk, but with actual gain of health and strength. Her food should be 

 taken with the utmost regularity, and should be plain and simple in its nature. 

 Good new milk should form a considerable part of her every day diet. Stimu- 

 lants are entirely unnecessary, except when taken undei special medical 

 direction. 



As the abdomen enlarges it is of the utmost importance that the clothing 

 should not be tight. A foolish regard for appearances has led many a woman 

 into most lamentable mistakes on this point. 



During pregnancy the mind should be attended to as well as the body. 

 All unnatural excitement is to be carefully guarded against, and distressing 

 sights are to be especially shunned. 



Action of the Bowels. — Great care must be exercised to ensure a daily 

 action of the bowels. An excellent plan is to set apart a certain hour of the 

 day for attending to this function, whether the desire for relief be urgent or 

 not. Perhaps the most convenient time for most people is immediately after 

 breakfast. By following this simple rule, a habit is established which will go 

 far to obviate the necessity for aperient medicine. When such medicine ia 

 required, it should be of the simplest possible ki«d; for example, a compound 

 rhubarb pill, or a little castor-oil. When constipation is associated with piles, 

 the aperient chosen should be a tea-spoonful of sulphur in a little milk every 

 morning, or a similar quantity of the compound liquorice powder made into a 

 paste by mixing a little water with it; and the patient should be instructed to 

 make her daily visit to the water-closet immediately before retiring to bed for 

 the night. By these means the aching pain which, under such circumstances, 

 is apt to follow every action of the bowels, may be considerably diminished. 

 Injecting half a pint of cold water into the bowel, immediatly before the 

 bowels are moved, often proves highly serviceable. Should the piles become 

 inflamed or unusually painful, the patient must keep her bed for a day or two, 

 and bathe the parts with warm water from time to time. Where these meas- 

 ures are required, however, the medical attendant should be consulted. 



The nipples, especially in first pregnancies, should be hardened by bathing 

 them daily during the last month or two with a mixture of equal parts of eau- 

 de-Cologne and water, in order to render them less liable to crack and become 

 sore and painful on the application of the child. Inflammation and abscess 

 of the breast often originate in cracked nipples. 



Sore Breasts. — When the breasts become swollen and painful, they 

 should be frequently fomented with flannels wrung out of hot water, and, in 

 the meantime, should be supported, as in a sling, by a broad handkerchief pass- 

 ing under the arm of the affected side and over the opposite shoulder. 



. Sometimes the veins of the legs, thighs, and lower part of the body 

 become swollen and uncomfortable. Under these circumstances, the patient 

 should lie down as much as possible every day, and at once discontinue the 

 use of tight garters. 



In women who have borne many children, the abdominal walls are apt to 

 become relaxed, and the pregnant womb, being insufficiently supported, Is 



