Since it was formulated more than one decade ago, the Grief Relief™ formula has brought comfort and acceptance during times of personal and collective loss. It was originally developed in response to the needs of healers and relief workers in Manhattan after the tragedy of September 11, 2001. So many people had lost friends, family members or work colleagues, that that they could not simply return to the workaday world without taking some time and inner space to deal with their losses. The Grief Relief™ formula proved to be an essential aid and comfort during the grieving process.
Since then the Grief Relief™ formula, now part of the FES Flourish Formulas™, has been part of major disaster relief work during the Katrina disaster, and in such countries as China, Haiti, Chile, and Japan. It is also foundational for grief counselors working in hospice programs. The Grief Relief™ formula is also helpful in dealing with such personal losses as relationships ending, death of a pet, or loss of a job.
Grief Relief™ was first formulated as the intersection of two triads, three pink flowers to strengthen our hearts, and three blue flowers to uplift our soul.
The heart remedies at the top of the pink triad are Pink Yarrow, giving boundaries to our heart feelings so we are not so overwhelmed by the suffering around us, and Bleeding Heart, creating an inner space of emotional containment and wholeness to overcome the feeling of loss. At the base of the pink triad is California Wild Rose, a robust, deeply rooted plant, that provides an anchor for our heart. The California Wild Rose teaches us that an open heart that has the capacity to love is also one that must feel deep pain.
At the base of the blue triad is Explorer's Gentian, to infuse us with the strength of spiritual purpose when we feel defeated or exhausted, and Borage, to bring buoyancy when we are weighed down by life's challenges. Borage helps us go within to find uplifting courage, and Explorer's Gentian give us the strength to continue meeting our outer destiny after a setback. At the apex of the blue triad is Forget-Me-Not, lifting our soul to make a spiritual connection that transcends physical separation.
We then added a seventh essence at the center of the formula, Love-Lies-Bleeding , a magenta-colored flower that integrates the pink and blue triads. Love-Lies-Bleeding speaks to the deep suffering of the heart, encouraging us to offer it up to a higher power or purpose.
With Grief Relief™ we can be fully present to the pain of our loss, while finding strength and feeling uplifted, so we can continue to fulfill our life's purpose.
My cat had been diagnosed with a urinary blockage and given just a short time to live. I resigned myself to the fact that he would die. He was the very best cat ever, with all the best ‘cat qualities’ imaginable. I was curled up on my bed in a fetal position, all depressed and crying, and already grieving over him, while he was lying at the foot of the bed. I saw the Grief Relief nearby and took a couple of sprays. Instantaneously, I felt different – I was still sad – but I moved over to him and started petting him, giving him love and attention, and telling him that he would be okay. I didn’t put him through all the agony of the extensive medical procedures that were recommended for him, and he seems to be doing just fine now!
— M.W., Concord, NH
Clients who have experienced particularly strong grief reactions, following what occurred [9-11 disaster] have been helped enormously by Grief Relief to work through, integrate, and process the grief without having it repressed, but at the same time without it overwhelming them.
— Dr. John Gosling, New York |
Primary Indications for the Grief Relief™ formula:
* To assist in re-building the soul’s foundations due to the death of a beloved one – whether human or animal
* To help in the dissolution of any meaningful relationship, such as divorce or dislocation
* During any natural disaster punctuated by death, destruction and loss, both for relief workers and for victims
* During times of personal loss or set-back when the soul feels empty and is searching for new direction or meaning
The Grief Relief™ formula features:
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Bleeding Heart – For strengthening the heart forces especially at times of broken-heartedness and dissolution of relationships |
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Pink Yarrow – Helping feelings to find containment and centering during times of crisis and emotional diffusion |
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California Wild Rose – To provide encouragement and strength for the heart during times of hardship; to help in working through the thorns of life toward transcendent love forces |
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Love-Lies-Bleeding – Ability to accept suffering and sorrow, and to understand its larger spiritual meaning and life purpose |
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Borage – To relieve the weight of deep grief in the heart; to help uplift during times of depression and emotional heaviness |
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Forget-Me-Not – To build alignment with the soul presence of those who are no longer with us in the physical dimension; ability for the soul to realize that death and departure are not the end of a spiritual relationship |
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Explorer’s Gentian – To help with crisis, loss and set-back; when the soul must learn to take another turn or make another choice in life purpose and path |
Essential Oils: Melissa, Myrrh
Text by Patricia Kaminski and Richard Katz, Photos by Richard Katz
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