Winter can be a gloomy time. Stressful holidays. Cabin fever. Seasonal depression. For cold dark days, when you’re still reeling from the drama of extended family gatherings, reach for flowers.
Flower essences are a unique modality of plant medicine designed to address emotional imbalance and distress. Individual flower extracts are used separately or combined to ease feelings such as obsessiveness, jealousy, and loneliness.
Finding the appropriate remedy for your particular mood requires some introspection.
“We’re not concerned about what happened in your childhood unless that’s currently bothering you,” said Dr. Carol Bennington, flower essence educator with the Bach International Education Program. “We’re looking at what now is emotionally out of balance, and then you find the corresponding flowers. Sometimes it’s a little bit of detective work.”
The winter blues manifests differently for everybody. If you’re depressed, Bennington wants to know the reason. For gloominess that appears out of nowhere, try mustard flower. Does life seem unfair? Go for willow. No motivation? Choose hornbeam. Overwhelmed? Try elm.
If the idea of treating feelings with flowers sounds hokey, you’re not alone. Bennington says that when people first hear about it, they’re quick to dismiss it.
“I was pretty skeptical to begin with, but I gave it a try and had a really profound experience,” she said.
