Perhaps in many people’s minds, it is not a problem, just pour water and boil it. However, there are not many people who can decoct herbs correctly in life. Some people try to save their time by pouring a packet of herbs into the pot in one go; some people are even more frugal and give the medicine directly to the pharmacy or decoction on their behalf. However, some herbal medicines have special requirements for decoction due to their nature, performance and clinical use. Most of the Chinese medicines in clinical application can be decocted at the same time, but some of them require different decoction time due to their nature, performance and clinical use, and even the same Chinese medicine has different performance and clinical application due to different decoction time. Therefore, it is necessary to understand and correctly operate special decoction methods for Chinese medicines. The following are some of the common special decoction methods: 1. First decoction Add water of about 400 to 500 ml to the traditional Chinese medicine that needs to be decocted first, boil it for another 20-30 minutes with a civil fire, and then set aside; at the same time, add water to the other Chinese medicines that can be decocted together, soak them for 20-30 minutes according to the traditional method (reduce the amount of water added as appropriate), and then mix them with the dregs of the previous decoction and continue to decoct according to the traditional decoction method. Then mix with the dregs of the previous decoction and continue decocting according to the usual decoction method. The herbs that need to be broken and decocted first are: raw gypsum, cold water stone, magnetite, ochre, white quartz, amethyst, raw keel, clam shell, raw cassia, corrugated seed, turtle plate, turtle nail, dragon tooth, antler, buffalo horn and other minerals, shells, bones, nails, horns and other herbs with hard texture and active ingredients that cannot be easily decocted out. In addition, there are also toxic herbs such as aconite, shanglu, raw nanxing, raw semen, etc. Longer decoction can moderate the toxicity. The decoction time should be longer. Note: It is recommended to break up hard herbs before decocting them first. Put the herbs that need to be decocted after the decoction and set aside. Add the other herbs that can be decocted together, soak them in water for 20-30 minutes as usual, then boil them for another 20-30 minutes in a civil fire, and add the herbs that need to be decocted after the decoction 5-10 minutes before the end of the decoction. The herbs to be decocted include mint, sand, nutmeg, incense, cinnamon, and woodruff, which are aromatic and contain volatile ingredients. In addition, herbs that cannot be decocted for a long time, such as hook vine, rhubarb, senna and Xu Changqing, are also suitable for post-decoction. Note: When adding the latter herbs, it is advisable to stir thoroughly to ensure that the latter herbs are fully mixed with other herbs. Pack the herbs to be decocted in a clean gauze bag and soak them with other herbs that can be decocted together for 20-30 minutes with water as usual, then boil them for another 20-30 minutes with a civil fire. The herbs that need to be decocted in bags are roughly those containing mucilage, fluff and body floating easily, such as scape seeds, carthamus seeds, silkworm sand, whirlpool flowers, talcum powder, liuyisan, qingdian, mab, raw pu huang, etc. Note: When using gauze bags for herbal medicines, they should not be wrapped too tightly so that water will not be difficult to penetrate and affect the effect of boiling medicine. 4. Separate decoction As the name implies, it is a separate decoction from other Chinese medicines. The method is to decoct the herbs that need to be decocted separately for 1-2 hours according to the conventional decoction method, then remove the residue and take the juice with the common decoction. The herbs to be decocted separately include ginseng, American ginseng, deer antler, bird’s nest, silver fungus and other precious medicines. 5.Melting Put the herbal medicines that need to be melted separately and set aside. Take other herbs that can be decocted together, add water and soak them for 20-30 minutes, then boil them for another 20-30 minutes, remove the slag and take the liquid, then add the herbs to be melted, stir and dissolve them into liquid dosage, and if necessary, heat and stew them in water. The herbs that need to be melted include gum, turtle board gum, deer horn gum, loquat leaf paste, etc. Note: When melting “gum” herbal medicine, the Chinese medicine to be decocted in the prescription should be boiled, poured out and left to pour out the clarified liquid or filtered to obtain the clarified liquid, and then used for melting; if heating is needed, it should be “stewed in water” and stirred continuously. 6, decoction of soup instead of water The so-called “decoction of soup instead of water”, is a dose of medicine in two decoctions. Generally, Chinese medicines with large water absorption, such as loofah, zaoxintu, money grass, glutinous rice root, etc., are first decocted in the usual way, and the resulting juice is drenched, and then the other part of the Chinese medicine is decocted with the liquid. Note: Although the decoction process of “decoction soup instead of water” is a bit troublesome, it is still worth choosing in order to improve the main therapeutic effect of the prescription. For precious herbs or herbs whose ingredients are easily destroyed, powdered herbs should be taken. For example, antelope horn powder, rhinoceros horn powder, buffalo horn powder, pearl powder, incense powder, etc. The finer the powder, the better the absorption effect. In principle, the powder used for brewing should be sieved at least 80 mesh. At present, many hospitals or pharmacies provide Chinese medicine decoction service, which is convenient for people who do not have time to decoct, do not have decoction utensils, do not know how to decoct, or for patients who need to carry Chinese medicine on business trips. However, the mechanized process of decoction machine cannot meet the demand of personalized decoction such as first decoction and later decoction, and cannot achieve the requirement of “first boil with martial fire (high fire) and then turn off to civil fire (low fire)”, so it is difficult to achieve personalized decoction. For those who need to use special decoction method of Chinese medicine, it is difficult to implement. It is recommended that patients should choose the traditional decoction method, especially for those who have special decoction requirements for Chinese medicine, and should follow the special decoction method.