Torrid Heart

We could hear his lungs squeaking like dry hinges at night. We were wide awake holding our own breath thinking each exhale would be Alid's last. Nothing could be done until the medicine was brought in from Goroma. We don't know what it was called, we just knew the doctor said it could save our boy from Squealing Lung. And it did. We got through that night, and every night after, treating him with this brown powder that we'd put in his soup. The breath got clearer. He started to eat and drink more. Wanted to go outside. Alid was going to live.
But he was different afterwards. Wasn't the same boy.
He was just all over the place. Couldn't pay attention to what you were saying. Couldn't focus on his school work. Couldn't sit still. He'd act out on wild impulses that would make you blush if I told you. And he couldn't tell you why. He'd just get furious. We thought he'd grow out of it, but it just got worse. Alid left Bellweather when he was 17 and went to Goroma. I heard from a neighbor who went there on business recently who saw him. Said Alid looked nervous and jittery. Need a bath and smelled of spirits. I thought about going up there to get him, but what can I do for him now that I couldn't do over all those years. I can't straighten him out.
Sometimes I dream about him from before, when his eyes were lit up and clear. Back when he was calm and thoughtful. When he was a lovely boy. I think about who that boy would have grown up to be if he'd never gotten sick. I don't tell his mother but I know she dreams the same thing.
-Kendrick Farrien, on when his son got Torrid Heart.

Torrid Heart is a term used when a person has extreme restlessness and gave in to impulsive, sometimes reckless, behavior. This was originally used as a colloquialism for rambunctious and rebilious youth, or hot headed adults. The meaning has evolved in recent years to refer to an illness in which patient's behavior patterns change drastically after recovery from an illness. It is commonly thought to be a side effect of the patient's affliction but is in truth a result of the medicine used to treat their ailment.
Crushed bark from the Bearwood Tree and catkin from the River Willow was recently discovered to be a winning combination by Levelers. This medicine is used to treat a variety of illnesses because of its invigorating properties.
Unfortunately using this combination for an extended amount of time can sometimes result in patients developing Torrid Heart.. Only a few people within the medical community are aware of this and it is kept a secret from the rest of the populace.

Symptoms

Patients with Torrid Heart have trouble focusing, and suffer from acute restlessness, resulting in a lack of sleep. Impulsiveness, recklessness, and outbursts of aggression are also common, as patients display a frustration at being unable to concentrate or complete simple tasks. Those with Torrid Hearts are generally disorganised and seem to be always busy but unable to finish what they start.

Treatment

While most people are unsure of how to treat Torrid Heart, those afflicted with the malady often turn to other substances in order to "turn down the noise" as one patient put it. Self-medication with ales and spirits are common, but this typically leads to even worse suffering.
Not long ago villages practiced various methods of controlled blood letting, so as to release the "boiling blood" that was causing the bad behavior. Whether through the use of leeches or small cuts this practice is looked at as barbarous today and is mostly avoided.