Happy Flower Essence Friday, moonbeams! Today we just want to share the basic principles of flower essences for those who may be unfamiliar.
Dr. Edward Bach, an English physician and homeopathic doctor, developed the original 38 flower essences in the 1930’s after years of searching for a method of treatment for his patients that was gentler and less symptomatically focused. After years of trial and error, testing and case studies, he finally found a solid selection of the remedies he had been searching for. “Each was aimed at a particular mental state or emotion. He found that when he treated the personalities and feelings of his patients their unhappiness and physical distress would be alleviated naturally as the healing potential in their bodies was unblocked and allowed to work once more.”*
Flower essences are an energetic herbal healing modality. Central to them being effective is the notion that “the human being is more than a physical body, but also incorporates a "body" of life energy, a "body" of sensitivity and feelings, and a spiritual essence or Self. Flower essences are energetic imprints of the life force of plants which interact with these subtle bodies of the human being, and evoke specific qualities within us. We can say that they work in a similar way to inspirational music or art, which carry meaning through the vehicle of sound or light, while the flower essences work through the medium of water.”** It is seeing the body as more than a mere physical mechanism and works with the “emotional body” and spirit to correct patterns of imbalance.
Below is a list of Dr. Bach’s original 38 essences and a very abridged description of the emotional imbalance they treat. There are also many essences available from the Flower Essence Society and a great deal of more regionally focused essences that feature the native and specialized plants of a particular bio-region.
Agrimony – Avoid problems. Cover mental anguish with a cheerful façade.
Aspen - fear of the unknown
Beech - intolerance
Centaury - the inability to say 'no'
Cerato - lack of trust in one's own decisions
Cherry Plum - fear of the mind giving way
Chestnut Bud - failure to learn from mistakes
Chicory - selfish, possessive love
Clematis - dreaming of the future without working in the present
Crab Apple - the cleansing remedy, also for self-hatred
Elm - overwhelmed by responsibility
Gentian - discouragement after a setback
Gorse - hopelessness and despair
Heather - self-centeredness and self-concern
Holly - hatred, envy and jealousy
Honeysuckle - living in the past
Hornbeam - tiredness at the thought of doing something
Impatiens - impatience
Larch - lack of confidence
Mimulus - fear of known things
Mustard - deep gloom for no reason
Oak - the plodder who keeps going past the point of exhaustion
Olive - exhaustion following mental or physical effort
Pine - guilt
Red Chestnut - over-concern for the welfare of loved ones
Rock Rose - terror and fright
Rock Water - self-denial, rigidity and self-repression
Scleranthus - inability to choose between alternatives
Star of Bethlehem - shock
Sweet Chestnut - Extreme mental anguish, when everything has been tried and there is no light left
Vervain - over-enthusiasm
Vine - dominance and inflexibility
Walnut - protection from change and unwanted influences
Water Violet - quiet self-reliance leading to isolation
White Chestnut - unwanted thoughts and mental arguments
Wild Oat - uncertainty over one's direction in life
Wild Rose - drifting, resignation, apathy
Willow - self-pity and resentment
You can find our wonderful selection of flower essences here:
https://store.moonriseherbs.com/pages/flower-essences
*From the Bach Centre website: https://www.bachcentre.com/centre/drbach.htm
*From the Flower Essence Society website: http://www.fesflowers.com/product-info/flower-essences/what-are-flower-essences/
#moonriseherbs #floweressencefriday #floweressences #drbach #fes #floweressencebasics