Spurge, Withyham 1909-- Charles Rennie Mackintosh
A vibrational first aid kit, that is. Because you are human in the Autumn of 2024--the year of the Wood Dragon--when nothing and everything is shocking. Even if this timeline isn’t fazing you, you’ve probably noticed others being fazed.
Flower essences are helpful. If you’ve experienced them you know. For young, for old, for pets, for plants. I have seen them work beautifully for: short-term sticky situations, long-held sadness and grief, exam periods, colds, when facing what feels like an abyss, stage nerves, addictions, deep homesickness and difficult adaptations to strange environments, fear of flying, intransigent frustration in the workplace, fear of aging, feeling: trapped, like a doormat, clingy, oppressed by obsessive thoughts, envious, ugly, blocked, frustrated, powerless, exhausted. It goes on; choose your poison.
Flower essences are not essential oils. There is no actual plant material in a flower essence, just the energetic pattern of the flower recorded onto water by means of solarization, a method developed by Edward Bach in the 1930s. Essences don’t have flavor or smell—save for the alcohol or vinegar that preserves them in the bottle that reaches you. (**nb, if you are alcohol sensitive or dosing for a child, choose the vinegar preservative)
Flower essences work at an emotional level, dissolving blockages, allowing subtle shifts, and qi to move freely. As qi rises and descends, in a cyclical uninterrupted flow, our emotions balance and our organ systems work together in rhythm so that we flow downstream with life. The more free-flowing the qi, the more vibrant our physical health as stagnant emotion can cause disease.
According to Chinese Medicine, as virtuous and dysfunctional states of being are “housed” in different organ systems, prolonged and powerful emotions can affect the health of organs, and vice versa—the debilitated functioning of organ systems can create difficult emotions linked to the associated organ system. Flower essences can help restore emotional equilibrium and help the body to heal itself.
In fact, flower essence therapy is part of the national health care systems of Cuba, Nicaragua, and Uruguay. In Spain, you can have your flower essence prescriptions filled in pharmacies and walk out with one tidy, easy bottle.
What does working at an energetic level feel like? Just as we attune our energetic fields to music, books, movies, or new surroundings, taking flower essences is a bit like stepping into a different pattern of light, which can allow us to shift and see differently. Sometimes the effect isn’t obvious. Rather, you simply realize that you’re not entrenched in the feeling anymore.
Is this me or is this is the essences? You can think of flower essences as a tuning fork or a reminder, helping you to find your shining YOU in the ever-shifting matrix of your life. Essences meet you where you are. They don’t dull emotions or take you to toxic positivity or talk yourself out of how you’re feeling. When your emotions can flow and not ferment, you are able to access new solutions, become more expansive and easy and take in more light. As Junnon of Holistic Space Time says: We are so much more than we think we are! Flower essences can absolutely help you experience this!
Can I really do this by myself or do I need a consultation? Dr. Bach's 1931 classic is entitled Heal Thyself, because flower essences are for everyone. You can’t get this wrong. If you do choose an essence that isn’t what you need, it can’t hurt you. The essences in the Vibrational First Aid List are useful to get you through rough patches in life and they could be all that you ever need or want in the way of essences, or they can be a starting point from which to independently explore many different flower essences.
Having said that, since Bach’s time, the theoretical understanding and clinical practice of flower essence therapy has expanded and deepened. If you want to work with a flower formula in a more tailored or specific way then a consultation might be right for you.
What about side effects or healing crises? Flower essences don’t work this way. However, sometimes we wish to improve a situation, but the reality of even subtle positive change feels destabilizing, and we can resist. If you are curious about flower essences but know yourself to be uncomfortable with even the idea of change, here are two suggestions for you. 1) Think on how your current situation is in someway useful, and what you might lose if you change it. 2) Start with either Walnut of Star of Bethlehem.
To mix them or explore a single essence? Taking a single essence allows you to work with a single frequency to really notice the subtleties of a flower and your connection with it. You have clarity about what is working and how. However, sometimes we need help on multiple fronts, asap. And these fronts are often chain-linked. Mix up to seven.
How to dose and for how long? 4 drops 2 -4 times a day, under the tongue or in any liquid for three weeks. Use the bottle within three weeks. A course often goes on for three months. If there is something that you are really working on, you could keep returning to a flower for a year or more. This would be analogous to a "constitutional remedy" in homeopathy.
But, sometimes it only takes a few doses to move the energy along. For example: When my younger daughter was 11, her teacher showed the class a frightening clip from a movie (?!) Hours later she came home terrified and unable to forget the images. She was sure she wouldn’t sleep in her own room by herself. I gave her two doses total of White Chestnut and Crab Apple and by nighttime she was content to read in peace on her own in her own bed until she fell asleep.
Which brand and where to buy: You can buy flower essences online or at health food shops. There are several wonderful companies that make them, and I have explored many and have also made my own. Do make sure the company describes their practices. I would avoid those that use gemstones in water, because sometimes the stones contain toxicities.
NB. They don’t work if you don’t take them, unless you are working with quantum entanglement. Until then, there are essences. If you find you are not taking your essences because somewhere you don’t believe that they will work for you, I recommend starting with Gentian, or adding it to your blend.
How to keep and look after your essences: Keep them in the cool and dark. Make sure that the dropper doesn’t accidentally touch your skin, mouth or teeth, as this will contaminate the essences. If this happens, hold the dropper under running water for a minute or dip in alcohol before replacing the dropper in the bottle.
A List of Eleven Flower Essences for Your Vibrational First Aid Kit
Take up to seven at a time and make any relevant notes before and after taking them every week for three weeks.
Sweet Chestnut: For extreme anxiety, desperation, or unbearable sadness in the face of an overwhelming sense of loss. Helps restore a sense of connection.
Gorse: For great hopelessness and a disempowered sense that nothing can be done to improve or change a situation. This is a stronger remedy than Gentian, which is described below.
Star of Bethlehem: For grief, shock, trauma (both recent and old). Like a shaft of light in a deep tunnel of grief.
Rock Rose: For terror or paralyzing panic. Perfect for difficult exams or situations in which you freeze and can’t respond in the moment.
Mimulus: For fear of known things: fear of failure, fear of being alone forever, fear of spiders, fear of flying, fear of losing your job, fear of sickness and aging, fear of public speaking, fear of persecution, fear of a downward spiral.
Gentian: For discouragement and setbacks. Gentian kindles hope and faith and resilience. Wonderful for disappointments, failures, and life’s frustrations. If you are wondering whether flower essences will really work for you, taking gentian is a good place to start. Gentian also helps you feel supported, so I always recommend it for lower back pain.
Olive: For fatigue. Use for jet lag, a late night or too much work, recuperating from an illness, or when the schedule will not let up. A few drops on a warm wash cloth to press onto tired eyes is wonderful.
Clematis: Use Clematis to ground, be present and focus when you are spacing out. Perfect for escapist tendencies, too many plans, too much daydreaming, and little or no action. When you find yourself tuning out too much and missing life or when you’re easily distracted or disoriented, Clematis is ideal. Try it for when you realize you’re living life through your phone. Or for times when you need to “hit the ground running” in a new setting, a new job, or a new city. I use this in Vibrational Fragrance Sovereign One, because grounding is a prerequisite for sovereignty.
Elm: For overwhelm and to gain confidence that you have everything you need to manage a situation. Bestows the ease that comes from knowing you can rely on yourself to navigate any difficulty that comes your way. In Vibrational Fragrance Myriad Three for Elm's ability to help follow through on your creative ideas and projects.
Rescue Remedy: If you are new to flower essences, you might recognize this remedy. Rescue Remedy is a combination of five flower essences: Cherry Plum, Clematis, Star of Bethlehem, Rock Rose, and Impatiens, and is used in cases of emergency or acute stress. Use for up to three days. When taking with other flowers, Rescue Remedy counts as one flower.
Willow: Willow helps us to accept our situation with dignity even through change. It is a powerful flower that helps us take responsibility and step out of victimhood while extending grace and forgiveness to ourselves and to others. I consider willow the qi-flow flower that keeps emotions from stagnating and turning into the bitter stones of resentment. Circumstances change, but holding on to heavy emotion robs us of light and vitality. I like to include this in formulas for people undergoing relationship strain or who harbor anger at someone or some aspect of their life. Willow helps resolve resentment so that it doesn’t fester, turn inward, and drain away the future. Use it as an intentional field-clearing for truly new potentials. I use Willow in Vibrational Fragrance Myriad Three because when we keep things moving, we are present. Our perception is heightened; we are able to receive new solutions and new ideas.
So here they are! Please write to me with any questions you have. Until then, I wish you peace and health and beautiful explorations.
Maneesha
Ty dearest. I will look for some willow to keep the flow flowing. Hugs