Bach Olive Remedies

The remedy Olive is one of the 38 flower essences or remedies developed in the 1930s by British doctor Edward Bach. According to the Bach Centre in Mount Vernon, Oxfordshire, England, Bach began working in homeopathic medicine and tested thousands of different flowers, the most developed parts of plants, to find his remedies. Each remedy concentrates on a specific emotion or mental state, and Bach believed Olive corrected emotional imbalances. While Bach Flower Remedies are considered safe, any person suffering from severe emotional or mental illness should consult a medical professional before starting a remedy.

Olive

• In his work Bach describes Olive "as the remedy for tiredness and exhaustion after an effort of some kind, such as hard physical or mental labour, or the long struggle against illness." He contrasts Olive with another of his flower remedies, Hornbeam, "which is the remedy for tiredness felt before an effort has been made." In his book The Twelve Healers and Other Remedies, Bach described Olive as treatment for those who "have have suffered much mentally or physically and are so exhausted and weary that they feel they have no more strength to make any effort. Daily life is hard work for them, without pleasure."

Grouping

• Bach divided his 38 remedies into seven basic groups of emotional states. Olive falls under "Insufficient Interest in Present Circumstances." It is described as helping to "regain interest, energy and vitality in life." As with all of Bach's remedies, people should be careful to take the proper remedy for their particular circumstance. Olive may help those who have lost interest in life, but for those who want to let go of past experiences, Honeysuckle would be the best choice. Mustard is recommended for sudden onset of depression. Wild Rose has a similar description to Olive, but "helps you to take responsibility for your own life."

Who Should Use Olive

• According to Feel Bach, individuals in need of Olive remedy are often in a state where they simply want to be left alone or sit by themselves. People who are under long-term strain may find themselves in a negative olive state. Putting themselves in a positive olive state after regularly taking the Olive essence brings a restoration of balance, peacefulness and regeneration. Feel Bach states that those suffering from a negative olive condition may have physical ailments such as kidney problems, low oxygen flow or an internal toxic malady. Olive may also help those battling alcoholism.