Medications or drugs that calm someone down, reduce anxiety, or help them sleep.
From Latin 'sedare' (to settle or calm); the medical term was developed in the 1800s as pharmacology advanced and doctors categorized drugs by their effects.
Before modern anesthesia and sedatives existed, surgeons had to work incredibly fast—some could amputate a leg in under 3 minutes, with only alcohol or ice to numb patients.
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