Bach Flower Remedies
In the twenties and thirties of the last century, Dr Edward Bach worked on identifying negative states of mind that could affect one’s physical health. Around his centre in Oxfordshire, and on his travels throughout the world, he found 38 flower remedies to treat each of these states of mind and attitude, which can today be found in most pharmacies and health food shops. It is also possible to see a Bach Flower Remedies practitioner.
The remedies are very safe for anyone to use, and they are not known to interact with medications or cause side effects. Although based in alcohol, the amount of alcohol used per dose is very small, and if they are added to a hot drink the alcohol will evaporate anyway. If you would be interested in using flower remedies and have any concerns, your pharmacist or doctor would be able to help you.
Each remedy is associated with a specific attitude or frame of mind. Self-injury is often the result of certain patterns of thinking or feeling, contributing to sensations of hyperstress or of dissociation. It is also closely linked with low self-esteem. The following are examples of remedies I might select to help me deal with self-injury on a day to day level.
Agrimony for those who hide their feelings behind humour and put on a brave face
Cherry Plum for the fear of losing one’s mind, and for irrational thoughts or behaviour
Clematis for the absent minded daydreamer who needs to be awake and focus the mind on the here and now
Crab Apple for those who feel they need purification or suffer from high levels of self-hatred
Gentian for despondency and for those who are easily discouraged by a setback in life
Gorse for those stuck in a negative pattern; pessimism
Mustard for depression without cause, those who feel they are under a dark gloomy cloud for no apparent reason
Pine for those who suffer self-reproach and guilt; for those who say sorry even when things are not their fault
Rock Rose for those who feel helpless and experience extreme terror or panic, when there may or may not be a reason but the feeling is real
Sweet Chestnut for despair and hopelessness; for when there seems to be no way out
White Chestnut for tiresome mental chatter and the overactive mind, full of persistent and unwanted patterns of thought
They can be use at the time of need or they can be used on a long term basis e.g. four drops on the tongue, four times a day. One of the more famous remedies is called Rescue Remedy, which is a combination of five of the remedies, to be used at a time of shock, or other intense emotional upset. It can be used alongside other remedies and is thought to be useful for times like those before an exam or a driving test, or an operation, or a job interview – whenever our nerves might get the better of us!
It is also possible to combine the remedies in one. Select those you wish to use or feel are appropriate at this time and add a couple of drops to a glass of water, fizzy drink, cup of tea etc. To avoid mixing too many together, think carefully about the ones that you need by asking yourself the following questions: How do you feel? Why do you think you feel like that? What could have caused the problem?
Who knows whether it’s all about the placebo effect – would that really matter if they worked? They are simple and easy to use, inexpensive and safe. If they help, they help and I’ve gotten through another day without self-harming. Any benefit on top of that would be an added bonus!
References:
http://www.bachcentre.com/centre/remedies.htm
The Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Healing Remedies by C. Norman Shealy
Sunday, May 28, 2006
Monday, May 22, 2006
On getting older…
“A birthday is just the first day of another 365-day journey around the sun. Enjoy the trip.” ~Author Unknown
Birthdays, like new years’ days are a time for reflection. As I celebrate a quarter of a century of life, I look back on my past with mixed feelings. Like everyone I have had my good and bad times, things I regret, and things I’m proud of. However over the years I have gradually learnt that there is little point in dwelling on the past for long. So long as we learn from our mistakes and endeavour to do our best in the future then I’m optimistic that all of us will live fulfilling lives.
As the quote at the top shows, a birthday is a new start – a start of a new journey, which I intend to enjoy. I am happy with the place I am in at the moment, and for that LifeSIGNS can take some of the credit (along with my much suffering husband!) I am looking forward to the next 25 years, the challenges I will face, and the things which I will achieve.
I feel like the Queen giving a birthday speech!
“A birthday is just the first day of another 365-day journey around the sun. Enjoy the trip.” ~Author Unknown
Birthdays, like new years’ days are a time for reflection. As I celebrate a quarter of a century of life, I look back on my past with mixed feelings. Like everyone I have had my good and bad times, things I regret, and things I’m proud of. However over the years I have gradually learnt that there is little point in dwelling on the past for long. So long as we learn from our mistakes and endeavour to do our best in the future then I’m optimistic that all of us will live fulfilling lives.
As the quote at the top shows, a birthday is a new start – a start of a new journey, which I intend to enjoy. I am happy with the place I am in at the moment, and for that LifeSIGNS can take some of the credit (along with my much suffering husband!) I am looking forward to the next 25 years, the challenges I will face, and the things which I will achieve.
I feel like the Queen giving a birthday speech!
Sunday, May 14, 2006
On a visit to the gym
You know what they say – exercise is good for you. We all know it, but sometimes I suppose we just don’t care. Still, today off I went to the gym, on a quiet Sunday afternoon with the sole purpose of making me feel like my membership fee wasn’t entirely pointless and on the way home I was overtaken by a feeling of euphoria.
They say that exercise has all kinds of benefits, one of which is helping with depression. Who knows the evidence behind these claims, yet it is pretty obvious that things like getting out of the house are a good start at beating the blues, no? The story goes that physical exercise releases all those endorphins, as well as giving you a physical release, that you can’t help but experience a natural high as result. A high that is without the guilt or shame that can result from SI.
So we’ve gotten out of the house and we’ve done something, in my case today a good, oh, twenty-five minutes on a mixture of machines… Still, my heart rate has pounded, I’ve pushed myself as far enough physically as far as I feel like going today, and I’m proud of the efforts I’ve made towards the physical fitness we are all supposed to be striving after.
My euphoria then seemed to come from a combination of factors. Number one was probably actually having left the house but number two was definitely having got myself moving, and broken into a sweat. We can push ourselves with exercise, work out those frustrations, yet still come away having benefited our bodies rather than harmed them.
The flip side is that going to the gym or doing any kind of exercise isn’t always a positive experience. Sometimes I can’t help but look at what everyone else is doing and think how stupid I look, how pathetic I am for barely managing twenty five minutes, how it’s going to make no difference in the end. But still, I go. And a day like today makes all the difference to my state of mind.
You know what they say – exercise is good for you. We all know it, but sometimes I suppose we just don’t care. Still, today off I went to the gym, on a quiet Sunday afternoon with the sole purpose of making me feel like my membership fee wasn’t entirely pointless and on the way home I was overtaken by a feeling of euphoria.
They say that exercise has all kinds of benefits, one of which is helping with depression. Who knows the evidence behind these claims, yet it is pretty obvious that things like getting out of the house are a good start at beating the blues, no? The story goes that physical exercise releases all those endorphins, as well as giving you a physical release, that you can’t help but experience a natural high as result. A high that is without the guilt or shame that can result from SI.
So we’ve gotten out of the house and we’ve done something, in my case today a good, oh, twenty-five minutes on a mixture of machines… Still, my heart rate has pounded, I’ve pushed myself as far enough physically as far as I feel like going today, and I’m proud of the efforts I’ve made towards the physical fitness we are all supposed to be striving after.
My euphoria then seemed to come from a combination of factors. Number one was probably actually having left the house but number two was definitely having got myself moving, and broken into a sweat. We can push ourselves with exercise, work out those frustrations, yet still come away having benefited our bodies rather than harmed them.
The flip side is that going to the gym or doing any kind of exercise isn’t always a positive experience. Sometimes I can’t help but look at what everyone else is doing and think how stupid I look, how pathetic I am for barely managing twenty five minutes, how it’s going to make no difference in the end. But still, I go. And a day like today makes all the difference to my state of mind.
Sunday, May 07, 2006
Internet message-boards for self-injury
I was getting increasingly annoyed with articles about self-injury message board encouraging self-injury, so wrote the following article for an online news site (999 today):
http://www.999today.com/technology/news/story/3147.html
Not only does it show that not all self-injury message boards encourage self-injury, but it was also a chance to promote LifeSIGNS!
I was getting increasingly annoyed with articles about self-injury message board encouraging self-injury, so wrote the following article for an online news site (999 today):
http://www.999today.com/technology/news/story/3147.html
Not only does it show that not all self-injury message boards encourage self-injury, but it was also a chance to promote LifeSIGNS!
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