The use of wild flowers in holistic therapy was discovered by a Harley Street physician Dr Edward Bach, he outlined a system of using 38 Flower Remedies to help in health and wellbeing.

He stated: ”Disease is solely and purely corrective; it is neither vindictive nor cruel, but it is the means adopted by our own souls to point out to us our faults, to prevent our making greater errors, to hinder us from doing more harm, and to bring us back to the path of Truth and Light from which we should never have strayed.”

The holistic approach to health, healing disease and correcting deficiencies is based on the concept of perfect unity of all things.  Every symptom of our body, mind and spirit gives us a particular message.

Healing ourselves is at the very heart of Dr Edward Bach’s philosophy; it is we ourselves that have the divine healing power to permit and enable the healing process.  The Bach Flower Remedies rank among the subtle methods of healing, similar to homeopathy.

There are three main differences between Bach Flower Remedies and other similar holistic treatments in the West.

1. Bach’s concept of health and disease is fundamentally approached through a spiritual nature, with its roots in a universal reference system that goes beyond the limits of the individual person.  Diagnosis is no longer based solely on physical symptoms, but considering the disharmony of the soul, or negative feelings of the person.

2. Bach has used the release of the healing energies in flowers from their material state and transfer them to the soul and body of the person.  This is a complete harmonizing and balancing to the person with no side-effects or overdosage.

3. This type of treatment, harmless to the patient makes this benefit to a far greater number of people, who can use this holistic approach in self-healing allowing the individual to be in control of their health.

Here is the list of the 38 Flower Remedies:-

1. Agrimony
2. Aspen
3. Beech
4. Centaury
5. Cerato
6. Cherry Plum
7. Chestnut Bud
8. Chicory
9. Clematis
10. Crab Apple
11. Elm
12. Gentian
13. Gorse
14. Heather
15. Holly
16. Honeysuckle
17. Hornbeam
18. Impatiens
19. Larch
20. Mimulus
21. Mustard
22. Oak
23. Olive
24. Pine
25. Red Chestnut
26. Rock Rose
27. Rock Water
28. Scleranthus
29. Star of Bethlehem
30. Sweet Chestnut
31. Vervain
32. Vine
33. Walnut
34. Water Violet
35. White Chestnut
36. Wild Oat
37. Wild Rose
38. Willow

In articles to follow; I shall explain each of these Bach Flower Remedies in some detail, outlining the principles, symptoms and remedies that might be followed.