'Bach' with a Bang! A "Rescue Remedy" Rant

I know, I know. I have been veering off course for some time now. My apologies. As with all moms, I am forever in the throes of trying to balance life and kids and somehow, I just wasn't finding the inspiration I needed to write a new post. Throw in the new job (yes commuting to the city daily, sigh) and voila! You have one hodge-podge of stress and little time for anything else.

Fear not, however, as I am 'bach' to talk about Rescue Remedy and how I have used it in different situations.

Bach remedies are essentially flower essences that are homeopathically prepared (for FAQs on homeopathy, please see my links section on the home page) and address emotional imbalances by gently transforming negative emotions into positive ones. The most common of these is a combined essence called "Rescue Remedy" and this is a blend of 5 of the flower remedies (there are 38 in total) which help with stressful situations. As with homeopathy, the key to identifying the correct remedy is to really look at the emotional state of the individual; however the Rescue Remedy blend basically addresses the main causes of stress and thus works well on children. It contains:

Impatiens
Keynotes => Impatience & the frustration that comes with it. Prefers to be alone. Low energy [Hmm, all moms with small children?!]
Positive Change => Teaches empathy and understanding of and patience with others.
Star of Bethlehem 
Keynotes => For trauma and shock, whether experienced recently or from some time ago. Withdrawn.
Positive Change => Teaches the ability to come to terms with the trauma and regain sense of normalcy.
Cherry Plum
Keynotes => Fear of losing control of one's mind/thoughts, especially afraid of doing something bad. A child in the middle of a temper tantrum is an e.g.
Positive Change => Teaches trust in one's wisdom and the courage to charge ahead, even in the face of adversity.
Rock Rose
Keynotes => Extreme panic or terror - a child just having woken from a nightmare for e.g.
Positive Change => Provides courage in the face of fearful situations. Creates a sense of calm
Clematis
Keynotes => Dreamy state, not connected to reality and lives in imaginary world 
Positive Change => Brings clarity and focus - teaches ability to stay grounded in reality

Rescue Remedy can be used for 'acute' situations i.e. ones which are not chronic and are temporary. Examples (for kids especially but by no means limited to):

-- Before an exam
-- Before & after a doctor/dentist visit 
-- First day of school
-- After a shock (e.g.death in the family)
-- To calm general anxiety
-- To help calm an overactive mind before sleep (Rescue Night)

My first experience with Rescue really goes back to the time that my father passed away. I used it a lot along with homeopathic remedy Ignatia (which is for grief) and truly believe that it helped me get through this very challenging time in my life. Since then, I have used it for both R & Z to help them sleep better (Rescue Night) and also generally when tantrums were nigh and not an ounce of patience was in sight (Rescue Kids).

You can purchase the remedy in many different forms, the most common of which is liquid in an alcohol base. If, like me, you don't want the alcohol based one, you can use Rescue Cream, Rescue Kids, Rescue Night Melts or Rescue Pastilles which are all equally effective. {See Where to Buy section to purchase}

For treating more long term emotional issues (or more complex ones), it is best to consult with a Bach Flower Practitioner who can help determine which remedies best apply to your child. Often a practitioner will make a customized blend and ask that you administer a few drops several times a day over a period of several weeks. To find a practitioner, check out http://www.bachcentre.com/found/ref/usa.php that gives a listing for the USA by state and you can search by other countries as well.

You know - one of the core reasons why I love natural remedies, and try to learn about as many as I can, is because they give me hope; the hope that there are cures out there for my family that I can rely on, that are safe and easy to use. As many a theorist on happiness has pointed out, hope is really one of those essential 'tools' in life to help you stay happy. On that note, I leave you with a quote (by self-help author Dr. Anthony Robert) that I came across recently:

"Hope is the expectation that something outside of ourselves, something or someone external, is going to come to our rescue and we will live happily ever after.”

With hope,

~S~