What Are Flower Essences?
         By Lisa S. Lawless, Ph.D., Holistic Wisdom C.E.O.

Flower essences are dilute extracts of various types of flowers and plants that are used to treat animals and people. They are similar to homeopathic remedies in that they are diluted to make them more effective than just using the original flower as a herbal extract.

The person who first developed the original flower remedies was Dr. Edward Bach, a famous English physician. He developed the Bach Flower Remedies when he was working as a homeopathic practitioner and devoted the last years of his life to researching and developing his remedies. He wanted to find a simpler form of treatment that would not require anything to be destroyed or altered.

Dr. Bach believed that diseases of the body come about as a result of imbalances or negativity at the level of the soul, and by correcting the problem at the root would allow for healing on all levels. The flower remedies act to balance dysfunction in the emotional and spiritual body, and bring about a gentle healing by bringing the body back in balance with itself. Dr. Bach felt that the flower essences act as catalysts to create healing. There were originally thirty eight Bach Flower Remedies that Dr. Bach felt would correct all imbalances that were possible. The flowers are gathered from nature when they are just at the height of bloom.

The flowers are considered by todays standards as organic, with no pesticides or foreign toxins. The remedies are made by leaving the flower out in the sun and the extracted essence is then diluted in water and preserved with alcohol to make a mother tincture. The resulting remedy is then diluted in spring water to make a solution.

Subsequent to Bach's work other Flower Essence Societies have been formed and remedies have been developed that are appropriate to that particular area, or the times we are living in.

What are the differences between Essential Oil and Flower Essences?

Essential oils are oils from different plants and flowers. They have distinct scents and can have strong effects both positively and negatively depending on how they are taken. For example, chamomile oil is very useful in going to sleep and can be used in a bath, whereas cinnamon oil will irritate the skin, even burning it, if not prepared properly.

Flower Essences do not have a scent, they are not known for ever having caused any harm to anyone at any time, they are made by infusion of wild plants & flowers, and are considered homeopathic in nature.

Here is a list of the 38 original flower essences that Dr. Bach created and what they are intended to do-

Agrimony - mental torture behind a cheerful face

Aspen - fear of unknown things

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 - egocentric and self-concern

Holly - hatred, envy and jealousy

Honeysuckle - living in the past

Hornbeam - procrastination, 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 - pride and aloofness

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

There is also a combination remedy called Rescue Remedy, which is great for anxiety and stress.

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