Bridging the Gap with Flower Remedies

Dr Edward Bach understood that where there was ‘dis-ease’ in the body, there was lack of harmony within the personality. As a respected and highly successful medical practitioner, he felt that the conventional forms of medical treatment for his patients were inadequate, and often presented a new set of symptoms to be dealt with. He spent many years researching vaccines and found that these, too, had unwanted side-effects. A highly sensitive person himself, Dr Bach extended his work into Homeopathy, but found this form of treatment also lacked what he was seeking – a completely natural form of treatment with no side-effects whatsoever. Dr Bach firmly believed that Nature held the answer, and refined his work with homeopathy. He came to the realisation that the finer vibration of the plant, the essence of the flower, could be captured in a homeopathic-type preparation where the imprint of the flower’s healing properties were captured in the water and potentised by the sun’s life-giving energy. Many people are familiar with Rescue Remedy, Dr Bach’s most popular flower remedy formula, yet feel their understanding of Flower Therapy is quite limited. Through our common understanding of flowers and their meanings, we all know more than we realise. In the Language of Flowers, we know that the Rose represents love. In the language of Flower Therapy, the flower essences of the Rose family relates to aspects of love. The colour of a flower also provides indications of its properties. Purple flowers relate to spiritual energy and the crown chakra, whereas red flowers are often related to action and more physical aspects of life. It is with these basic, yet often traditional uses of flowers, that we are further able to understand the Essence of the plant. For example, Aloe as a herb is used to treat hot and inflamed physical conditions and as a flower remedy Aloe helps those who are ‘hot-headed’ to maintain a cool and calm disposition, and assists in cooling the body. The leaves of Aspen quiver, as if trembling, even on the stillest of days. The flower remedy of Aspen is for the vague and unknown fears, the thoughts of “what if?” Those who need Aspen display these characteristics in their behaviour. The Doctrine of Signatures, the ancient system of recognising a plant's properties by observing its shape and form, also gives indications of the qualities of a flower's essence. Yarrow and Dill flowers resemble umbrellas, and both remedies are protective to the aura and the senses. As the Kangaroo Paw flowers, it blooms from a tight-lipped mouth to an elongated throat that reaches out and opens up to you. The essence of the plant encourages one to communicate openly and with a welcoming spirit.