By the editors of this ezine, and a new, occasional feature. These letters are from our electronic mailbag....sorry we cannot answer every question we receive here and may not be able to give personal answers.

Editor Deborah Bier answers:

Every semester I lecture at Massachusetts College of Pharmacy about essences and one recent semester, the students and I were talking about the exact same thing: a collection of essences for the stress of school. Unfortunately, they were SO BUSY and STRESSED OUT they never finished working with me on choosing them! But this is what they told me before they got absorbed by exams. (These are all Whole Energy Essences, except where indicated):

Master Harmonizing Mixture or Rescue Remedy (Bach) or 5 Flower Formula (Healing Herbs) for general balancing; Pale Yellow Lily, Adolescence, Young Adult, Restedness, Rudbeckia, Sunset Lily.

I also invite you to look at the fine article Pink Roses for the Back to School Blues by Patricial Meyer in an earlier edition of this publication.

Contributing editor Lesley Rokjer answers:

There are a number of essences that may help at times like this. Which one(s) to choose depend on why you're experiencing the block. From what you've said, it looks like you might be expecting too much from yourself or trying too hard.

The Whole Energy Essences blend New Creative Outlook might help you rekindle your interest or readjust your focus to something fresh and more enjoyable. It's great for cutting through the fog if you've become bored, distracted, or stuck in habitual ways of thinking or seeing.

Indian Root from Desert Alchemy may help if you're trying too hard, or if you believe on some level that you must toil or suffer in order to bring forth your projects. It helps us value simplicity and release fears that block our creative flow.

Setting too rigid standards can also result in blockages to your natural creativity. Prickle Poppy, also from Desert Alchemy, may help you relax, be more spontaneous, and enjoy the process more. According to the company's literature, "It helps us to be in touch with our natural rhythms and cycles, both physically and emotionally."

And speaking of cycles, it may also help to look at this "block" as a normal and perhaps necessary phase in your creative process. Sometimes we need some fallow or "down" time to let our ideas germinate below the surface of consciousness. If this is so, you might try to work with that energy. Desert Alchemy's Integrating Being and Doing formula "helps us to find the balance of stillness within action, being while we are doing" (from catalogue). It can also enable us to appreciate the purpose of not doing for a while. You might try spending your morning studio time doing something else for a while--gardening, going for a walk or just sitting quietly in pleasant surroundings. Perhaps after some time has passed, you'll feel the creative spark again and can fan it into new brilliance.

For further reading, we have several articles about essences and creativity on the World Wide Essence Society site:

An In-Depth Portrait of the Iris by Donna Cunningham

Essence Painting by Deborah Bier

Essence Poetry by Jennifer Miller

The World Wide Essence Society does not mean to imply any recommendation of nor give certification to any individuals or companies above. This article is provided purely for informational purposes. We ask consumers to make their own determination as to quality of the services and products offered above. This article is not meant to be advice, and the information is not meant to replace medical or psychological treatment.

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