I was introduced to flower essence prescribing about four years ago by a teacher, Shayne Case, and since then they have become an essential part of my treatment toolbox. Flower essences are very gentle energetic medicines made from water treated with the flowers of a particular plant. They have minimal side effects and don’t interact negatively with other medications or herbs. The original flower essences were prepared by Dr. Edward Bach, an English bacteriologist and homeopath in the 1930s.
Each flower essence tends to help a particular type of emotional or mental pattern.
I find them very useful when a patient tells me about something that they wish they could change in their emotional patterns, something that they’ve tried to work on, but they just go back to the same old pattern. Flower essences work more on the unconscious and energetic levels to unwind these patterns and allow us to change course and get out of a rut. They are not a substitute for therapy and other treatments, but are a great support for them.
For example, the flower essence White Chestnut has been very helpful for my patients suffering from what I call “the spinning hamster wheel of worry” where they keep worrying about the same things, over and over, with no relief. I’ll often use it if someone is having the type of insomnia where they wake in the middle of the night, they start thinking about all their worries, and they can’t get back to sleep. White Chestnut doesn’t make them drowsy, but after taking it the worry often calms down and they naturally fall back asleep.
Several essences can also be blended together to treat different aspects of an issue, and I’ll make individualized flower essence blends for my patients.
A commonly available flower essence blend is Rescue Remedy. The five flower essences in that blend work very effectively for people who have been experiencing stress of varying intensity, from mild anxiousness to panic. I have been recommending Rescue Remedy to lots of folks in 2020, as so many of us are under much more stress and strain that ever before with the pandemic and other difficulties that are facing us this year.
If this seems like it might be a helpful therapy for you, call the office and make an appointment, we’ll see if we can find some flower friends to give you relief from what holds you back.
