What do you want these holidays? Not a list of “things” you would like to own, but rather what is it that your heart truly desires? How would you like to feel when you visit with family and friends? What would you like to have more of in your life? Peace? Joy? Love? To trust? Sympathy? Limits? Resistance? Connection?
Many of us look forward to more connection and quality time with those we love during the holidays. As nurturing and supportive as that can be, it can also add a layer of stress and other unwanted emotions. We can look to our plant-based allies to help us manage some of those emotions and cultivate more of what our hearts desire. Flower essences are a great ally to have on hand. They are cheap, easy to carry and safe for the whole family. They work in a subtle but effective way to help you remove unwanted energetic patterns from the body and allow the desired energies to come in.
With just a little research of your own, or a session with a flower essence practitioner (more on this below), you can come up with one or more essences that will help you get through the stressful holidays. As you explore the world of flower essences, you will discover many companies and practitioners offering a wide variety of flower and plant essences. The best advice when choosing it for yourself is to pay attention to what you are attracted to and most likely this is the essence that suits you at the moment.
It can be helpful to start working with an essence, or a formula of essences, a few weeks before a large meeting or trip. And you can take a few essentials with you to your festivities and share them in recipes with family and friends to enhance the holiday spirit.
Ways to share flower essences with loved ones
While it may be tempting to slip a few drops of Rescue Remedy into your mother-in-law’s coffee or your uncle’s cocktail, it would be ethical to offer essences in a way that gently informs and educates others about the essence, so that they can choose to participate or not. Here are some fun ideas you could try:
Create your own cocktail/mocktail recipe and make it clear that you have added a few drops of flower essence to enhance the positive atmosphere you are all longing for. While some may dismiss the idea altogether, others may be intrigued to try it and your gathering might get a little extra holiday cheer.
Holiday Cheer Mocktail Recipe
- Fill the cocktail glass half full with ice
- Add 3oz pomegranate juice
- Add 3oz sparkling water (or champagne for a real cocktail)
- Add 4 drops of desired flower essence
- Add an orange twist
- Garnish with a slice of orange and a sprig of fresh mint
Another way to share flower essences is to place your chosen essence or formula of essences in a pretty dropper bottle (see below for how to make your own flower essence dosing bottle) or by adding several drops of essences to a small jar of honey . Make a small note card or label describing the essentials and leave it on a wet bar or counter where others are making or mixing drinks.
You can also create a holiday mood with water, essential oils and flower essences. These mood diffusers can be used to change the energy of a room or misted overhead to give each individual a small energetic change. A nice mix could be lavender essential oil with a few drops of Rescue Remedy or orange essential oil with a few drops of elm blossom essence.
10 flower remedies for the holidays and the new year
Here is a list of ten essentials that can be supportive during the holidays and beyond, to help you strengthen the natural state of emotional well-being for yourself and your loved ones.
Rescue remedy / Five flower formula
A great formula to help us manage stress and provide mood support; a good formula when we feel extremely disturbed, for example after an argument with a family member; supportive when faced with a difficult or stressful situation
Christmas Cholla Cactus
Enables us to care for others despite our differences; allows us to accept abundance; encourages self-acceptance; shows us that we have the ability to see humor and lightness in situations that are difficult due to disagreements
Elm
For when we feel overwhelmed; helps give us confidence that we can accomplish the task at hand, and that help will come when we need it
Fairy dust
A good essential to have on hand for travel and large social gatherings where we can easily become overstimulated; calms the nervous system; helps us reduce the power that emotions have over us; increases the ability to handle higher levels of stimulation without disrupting the nervous system
Broom
Helps us see the positive in difficult situations; allows us to inspire others with our own confidence; encourages us to be hopeful and optimistic about new opportunities
Holly
“The Heart-Opening Flower”; helps us distance ourselves from anger, rage, jealousy, envy and hatred; moves us toward cultivating love, connection, and joy; encourages a state of inner harmony and cordiality; helps us approach others openly and with good will; expands our understanding of human emotions
mallow
Helps us break down social barriers by encouraging us to trust the social process; helps us share openly
Mullein
For when we feel like we need extra protection; helps us understand vulnerability as strength; helps us overcome fear by trusting that we know our true inner nature; helps us to be fearless in negative situations; helps us stop seeking support from sources that may not be truly supportive
Prickly pear cactus
Helps us to surrender to what ‘is’; helps us to adapt and go with the flow of life’s events; helps us stay committed to what we know is right
Saguaro cactus
Helps overcome power struggles with parental or authority figures; also helps us to trust our inner authority and access our deepest wisdom and self-empowerment; restores our desire to be the best and to have compassion and endurance
How to choose your floral essences
There are different ways to work with flower essences. One of these is to seek guidance from a certified Flower Essence Practitioner. These practitioners are trained to do a thorough intake to discover which plant essences are best suited for you at this time and they will give you a customized formula to try for 2-4 weeks. As the flower essences begin to distract you from old energetic patterns and invite new ones, you may want to have another one-on-one session with your practitioner to reformulate your flower essence blend. And you may choose to continue your journey with your flower essence practitioner for weeks, months, or years, as you continue to peel back layers of energetic patterns you wish to release and identify the patterns you would like to invite.
Another way to work with flower essences is to do your own research and experiment with the essences that seem to resonate most with you. A fun way to start this process is to take a quiz like the one offered by The Original Bach Remedies website, which you can download here: FES Flowers also offers a ‘Choosing Flower Remedies’ guide that you can use downloaded here.
Many companies make preformulated flower remedies, such as Rescue Remedy, Rescue Sleep, and Rescue Energy. You can find these formulas online or on the shelves of your local food co-op, health food store, community pharmacy, or integrative pharmacy.
References
- The encyclopedia of Bach flower therapy by Mechthild Scheffer
- The Bach flower remedies by Edward Bach, MD and FJ Wheeler, MD
- The alchemy of the desert by Cynthia Athina Kemp Scherer
- Flower essence repertoire by Patricia Kaminski and Richard Katz
Writer Amy Timmons Malek, CCN, CCH, INHC is a certified clinical nutritionist, certified clinical herbalist, integrative nutrition health coach, and flower essence practitioner. She discovered her love of plants in the Sonoran Desert while living in Tucson, Arizona. She has been studying plants from the mountains in the west and southwest for ten years. Her many teachers include Paul Bergner, Rosemary Gladstar, Dr. Aviva Romm, Lisa Ganora, Kat MacKinnon, Erin Smith, John Slattery and Charles Kane. Her career is divided between Holistic Health, Graphic/Web Design and Marketing/Social Media Consulting. She is currently the Social Media Coordinator of WishGarden. She lives in Boulder County, CO. She enjoys wild crafting, growing her own medicinal plants and making various herbal medicines. She sees private clients at the Inner Ocean Center for Healing in Lafayette, CO. You can learn more about her practice on her website, www.wholeheart-wellness.com.
For educational purposes only. This information has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This information is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease, or to sell any product.
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