What are flower essences?

Flower essences are a growing trend in the holistic world because of the way they're able to support emotional hurt and balance. They are also known as Bach flower remedies and have been used since the 1930s to support negative emotions, and PTSD is no exception. There are a few different types of flower essences that can be used for PTSD, but some popular ones include White Chestnut which helps relieve repetitive thoughts, and Cherry Plum for feeling like you may lose control. This article will explore how flower essences can help with Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

What is PTSD?

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is an anxiety disorder that can occur after someone experiences a traumatic event. PTSD is a medical condition that can develop after exposure to a terrifying event in which grave physical harm occurred or was threatened. It is natural to feel afraid during and after a traumatic situation. For some individuals going through something so painful might mean they will continue experiencing symptoms even after their original trauma has passed. People who have PTSD may feel stressed or frightened, even when they are not in danger.

It is also possible to experience PTSD weeks, months, or even years after a traumatic event occurred — sometimes culminating in delayed-onset PTSD. This type of PTSD is believed to be related to more intense or long-term exposure to stress or violence than others may experience and usually follows a slower emotional and physiological recovery.

Symptoms of PTSD

Common symptoms of PTSD can be categorised into four types: re-experiencing, avoidance, negative changes in cognition and mood, and hyperarousal. Re-experiencing symptoms are when a person experiences something that reminds them of the traumatic experience such as nightmares, flashbacks, etc. Avoidance symptoms occur when a person actively tries to avoid reminders of the traumatic event. Negative changes in cognition and mood are when things like negative thoughts, feelings of guilt, etc. occur. Hyperarousal symptoms are when a person constantly feels on edge, is easily startled, has trouble sleeping or concentrating, etc. It's important to note that PTSD isn't the same for everyone and symptoms vary depending on the person.

Getting help for PTSD

Sometimes people are reluctant to seek help for PTSD because they want to handle it themselves. It is important to remember, however, that it is possible to be helped with PTSD. A few ways that PTSD might be handled include psychotherapy, medications, or through the support of natural remedies such as flower essences. Psychotherapy can take many forms including trauma-based CBT, EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing) or family therapy. Psychotherapy can help process the event's emotions and flower essences can provide support during the process. Medications can also be helpful in managing symptoms of PTSD. Talk with a doctor about your options so you can find out which one would work best for you.

Flower essences for PTSD

So... what are flower essences?

Flower essences are flower-derived remedies prepared in water, leaving their energetic imprint. All flowers carry an energy and this energy is transferred to the water during the making process. They help to support negative emotions and can help with post traumatic stress disorder by rebalancing emotions and bringing the person back to their true self, helping the person with moving forward in their life. It is important to note that flower essences won’t completely erase or block negative thoughts and emotions, so they shouldn't be used as a sole remedy for PTSD but they will help support the healing process.

What flower essences can help with PTSD?

There are several flower essences that may help with PTSD. Here are some flower essences that may help with PTSD and the process to self heal. Flower essences are meant to be selected specifically to the individual and their specific emotions or needs, so look for one/s that best match your emotional state. 

At Mindful Remedies we offer the ability to create your own personalised flower remedy blend choosing up to seven flower remedies in a treatment bottle. If any of these remedies resonate with you, simply click on the buttons below to add them to your treatment bottle.

Rock Rose

This can support those with PTSD in an acute state of fear, terror or panic. You get suddenly escalating anxieties and are often panic stricken. It can be useful for nightmares along with Aspen if you then feel anxious of having more nightmares. You may use up a lot of nervous energy and be exhausted. You may want to consider Rock Rose if you're having panic attacks or experiencing intense feelings of sheer terror, extreme anxiety or panic. This flower essence will help calm this extreme stress and feelings of fear and calm the nervous system.

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Star of Bethlehem

This is the flower essence for dealing with trauma, traumatic events and the negative emotions afterwards, especially if you are suffering from shock, numbness or paralysing sorrow. It can help bring feelings of comfort and neutralises feelings of shock, either immediately after a traumatic event or if this is delayed. It helps people with moving forward from a negative situation.

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White Chestnut

This flower essence helps with repetitive thoughts and mental chatter that can come with PTSD. It's helpful for those who feel like they can't get a break because their mind is always thinking about the traumatic event. These persistent unwanted thoughts go round and round in the person's head, causing distress. This remedy helps to calm the mental noise.

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Cherry Plum

This flower essence helps with a sense or fear of losing control, which can be a symptom of PTSD. It's helpful for those who feel out-of-control and are afraid that they'll do something that may hurt themselves or others. Also for those who feel they're on the verge of a breakdown, fear insanity or of losing control of their mind. This remedy can calm the mind and bring courage to regain sanity. We would recommend seeking additional medical advice if these symptoms are occurring. Bach flower remedies can be used alongside other forms of therapy or medication and are safe, natural and gentle.

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Aspen

This flower essence helps with feelings of anxiety. It can be helpful for those who feel like they're constantly on edge and are very jumpy. The person is afraid of their thoughts and their imagination running amok, but not afraid of anything specific. Helpful if the person experiencing terror on waking, from a bad dream or nightmare and a fear of going back to sleep again.

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Mimulus

This is the flower essence for if you are afraid of something specific – which may be related to the traumatic event you’ve being part of. For example, you may be afraid of loud noises if you’re a veteran of war, or afraid of getting in a car if you’ve been in a car accident. This flower essence provides quiet courage to face any irrational fears and move forward to start enjoying life again without fear.

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Pine

This is the flower essence to support feelings of guilt, blaming yourself or if you feel responsible for something. This guilt takes away all joy from life. This Bach flower helps the person take a more balanced view to life and recognise negative old patterns of thought that are not serving them well.

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Sweet Chestnut

This is the Bach flower remedy for depression and absolute mental despair where your soul is suffering greatly and you feel like you’ve come to the end of the road. This depression is at a deeper level and feels like you've reached your absolute limit.

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We use the Original Bach flower remedies to create your bottle, handmade by an experienced practitioner. We also ship worldwide.

You may also want to consider Rescue Remedy which is the five flower remedy for emergency situations developed by Dr Edward Bach as the only combination he recommended as this was meant to deal with emergencies when unable to create a personalised remedy. This contains five flower remedies that are intended to revitalise someone in the event of an emergency.

PTSD is a complex disorder that affects the mind, physical body and spirit. It can have a huge impact on your life and of those around you. It can be tough to seek help for PTSD because it's hard to understand what may work best for you and your healing.

Flower essences are one option of many when it comes to getting support after experiencing trauma and can be complementary to existing therapy or medication. Flower remedies won’t erase painful memories, but they can provide support during this difficult time in life. Please speak to your medical practitioner to get advice and support, especially if you’re feeling in a particularly negative space or suicidal. If flower essences sound like something you might want to try, then browse our flower essences and we'd be happy to create a remedy just for you.

How do you take flower essences?

Flower remedies are not essential oils, they don’t smell and are taken by the mouth. Take a minimum of four drops, four times per day especially first thing in the morning and last thing at night. You can either add the drops to a drink or put them directly in your mouth under the tongue. If you put directly into your mouth, please be mindful not to touch your mouth as this risks contaminating the bottle.

If following these directions, the bottle should last approximately three weeks, by which time you should hopefully have felt some of the balancing effects of the remedies.

They are completely natural, safe and gentle and can be used as a support system for self healing.

Making up a personalised flower remedy

If you feel that any of the above statements ring true, and you wish to develop your own bottle of remedy, go to our create a remedy page, where you may add all of the remedies listed above as well as a variety of others.

How does it work? 

At Mindful Remedies, we provide all 38 flower essences, and you choose up to 7 essences per bottle, choosing any combination you like. Or you could opt for a 50-minute online consultation where we go through your concerns in depth and discover insights that might help you choose the best remedies for you.