The prescribing of the Bach flower remedies is done on the basis of disposition and “Mentals”. Each remedy provides a snap–shot of the “Mentals” and the theory is that a remedy selected on this basis, no matter what the physical manifestations of disease, will cure the disease or the negative behavior patterns. Sometimes more than a single remedy may be indicated, and, in fact, up to three remedies may be mixed in a single vial.

Illness forces attention to that part of the body that is displaying dysfunction or obvious change or causing discomfort. However, physical disease is usually accompanied by some sort of altered state of mind – who has not experienced or witnessed the fear and doubt, the worry and despair, the peevishness or anger that accompanies many illnesses? To look at this interlinking of mind and body from the other aspect, we know about the body’s “Fight or flight” response to what it perceives as a threat, the raised BP, the flushed face, the rise in temperature when someone is enraged, the thudding of the heart, the dry mouth after a bad fright, etc.

We do as we think. We are what we believe. These are not mere aphorisms, but actual fact. The power of the mind is enormous. What we think and how we feel influences all our responses, and affects our physical bodies. Hypnosis can alleviate pain to an astonishing degree. Affirmations are said to change lives and deep–seated patterns, working as auto–suggestions. This is no more than holistic healing, which presumes an interdependency of mind and body. It is, therefore, not so difficult to understand that a remedy based on an individual’s mental patterns can cure his bodily ailments, as Dr. Bach’s system propagates.