How to use Bach Flower Essences

A question came up today about the difference between FeelBach! custom blended formulas and just using the individual essences.

While we are putting the complete explanation on the web site, I thought I'd clarify one point here, because we've heard that some people who sell flower essences are letting their customers spend more money than necessary.

When you purchase any of the 38 individual essences, you don't need to use them full strength. It won't hurt you if you do, but it isn't necessary. In fact, for a one month supply of treatment, you need only 2 drops from that 20ml bottle. You can mix up to 6 essences in one 30ml (1oz.) mixture bottle - although we recommend only 3 or 4.

Here's how it works: Your mixture bottle is first filled 3/4 full with spring water, then 1/4 with brandy, leaving just enough room for 2 to 12 drops of flower essences. Used properly, that bottle will last you a month.

Since one 20ml bottle holds more than 300 drops, at 2 drops per month it would last you over 13 years!

I think you'd be better off with the custom blend, myself.

Here's to good health,

Marte

The dog who refused to be contained

My friend Julie has a dog who absolutely could not be contained. When she put him in a kennel he climbed out. When she tried a fence, he dug under. He even found a way to fool an electric underground fence. And when she tried leaving him in one room of the house - oh my!

Have you ever seen a door with the bottom 18" completely chewed off? I couldn't believe how straight his lines were when he chewed off both sides of a hollow core door so that he could escape.

What was going through his mind? If she left him in the house, even while she walked out to get the mail, he immediately tried to claw through the door to follow her. But when he was outside, he didn't try to follow her car if she drove away. It made no sense, but that's how it was.

Her only option was to leave him outside, with no fence, when she had to be away.

Luckily he usually stayed close to home and didn't panic about her absence. But she was always worried. And then one day she came home to find him gone. She spent a day and a half hunting for him before he suddenly appeared at the door. He was muddy and limping, but otherwise OK. But then she worried more -

Shortly after that incident, Feel Bach! released a new formula: Home Alone. Of course I couldn't wait to call and tell her, and she couldn't wait to try it.

The happy result is that after a few weeks on Home Alone, Sammy could be trusted not to destroy the house if my friend had to leave him alone for a while. He actually seems content. It didn't happen overnight - flower essences are gentle and do their work by rebalancing a body's energy, slowly making positive changes.

Julie and Sammy had a happy ending, and I'm glad that I got to play a part in it by telling her about Home Alone.

A Valentine's Day of Gratitude

Gratitude has been on my mind a lot lately. Here I am in a warm house with all my family safe and sound, good friends to visit with, good work to keep my mind nimble, and plenty of food in the cupboard.

My heart goes out to those people who are having such tragic times right now. I'm sure they're having a tough time feeling gratitude for anything, but I hope that each of them has something - some little piece of their lives that will help sustain them, and for which they are grateful.

Since you are here, reading this post, you are probably not one who just lost your home to a tornado - and you are probably not one who just lost a loved one in the latest murderous rampage. But you may have something that troubles you and makes life less than what you desire.

Today, take time out and think about the other things - the things that give you joy. Make it a Valentine's Day gift of love for yourself to have gratitude. I promise, you can go back and think about those other things tomorrow if you still want to.

Marte

Houseplants benefit from Bach Flower Essences

This time of year our houseplants are sometimes feeling sad - so I thought I'd share something I learned on the Q&A board at Feel Bach!

All plants show excellent responses, inside and out, to the harmonizing energy of Bach Flowers. Three or four drops of Feel5ive can be added to plant water, particularly when the plant is being moved, transplanted, or is recuperating from a fall. Indoor plants also profit from combinations that the owner is no longer taking. To combat pests, it sometime helps to give Crab Apple.

My African Violet needs to be divided soon, and last time it took quite a while for the transplants to look healthy. So between now and then, I'm going to treat with Feel5ive.

Yours for health and happiness,
Marte

"The Secret" and your energy fields

Lately I've been talking to several people who want to use the law of attraction and the teachings found in "The Secret," but they're having trouble with it. They can't seem to get beyond their own feelings to begin focusing on what they want rather than what they don't want.

Right now in our part of the country too many people are focused on what's wrong - everything from high gas prices to too darned much snow! And then that negativity carries over into every other part of their lives.

But my group of friends would really like to shake free of that and just enjoy this new year.

It has occurred to me that their energy fields may be playing a large part in their problems. These blocked fields are keeping them trapped in negative thought patterns which further feed their inability to focus on happiness.

Thus I've been telling my friends to think about using flower essences. Since they are completely harmless and only serve to bring the body back into balance, there is no danger of the negative results which generally come with the use of drugs.

The list of flower essences and their uses at the FeelBach! site can help identify the feelings that are getting in the way of positive focus and help them to begin using the law of attraction to attract good things - instead of the things they're complaining about today.

Everyone deserves to feel good, so I hope my friends take my advice. And if you're stuck in this unhappy rut, I hope you do too!

Here's to a good year ahead...

Marte