Bach Flower Database

Botany: Populus tremula
Production: Boiling Method
Represents: Conscious Sensitivity

The aspen personality is characterized by its extreme sensitivity to stimulus. Aspen people tend to unconsciously perceive (and then internalize) the excitement, conflict, happiness and stress of everyone around them.

For people in a positive aspen state this makes them hyper-aware of situations and allows them to become fearless warriors. They have the ability to understand complex situations and work through crises in a meaningful and positive way.

In a negative aspen state, though, the imagination simply refuses to shut itself off. Negative aspen personalities are haunted by vague anxieties. They may not be able to point to one single fear as the cause; negative aspens struggle with sensations of "something" that's about to happen.

Bach believed that children are especially prone to developing negative Aspen states and that those states are often rooted in abuse. He blamed this condition on childhood fears like fear of the dark or fear of monsters lurking in the closet. Bach also felt that many nightmares are rooted in a negative aspen condition.

Imagine a woman who, early in her childhood, was abused or neglected by a parent. This abuse doesn't have to be the kind of severe abuse that leads to criminal charges. Simply neglecting to nurture the child is enough to break that critical trust between a parent and a child.

As our woman grew up, she became overly cautious. After she became a parent, she became the kind of "hover parent" that smothers her children with her attention. She is well aware that she is over-protective and perhaps even stifling her children's growth. But her fear of "what might happen" is simply too strong.

To ease her fears, this woman turns to occult practices. She consults physic after psychic, even though she only half-believes in their power. She collects "lucky" items and religious icons to protect her.

This woman is in a negative aspen state. She has an overwhelming fear of some yet-unknown danger but she is desperately embarrassed to discuss her fears with others.

The Positive Aspen State

In a positive aspen state a person is extremely sensitive to the goings-on around them. But rather than letting all the activity and emotion overwhelm her, a person in a positive aspen state has learned to channel that sensitivity into a positive energy. A person in this state is able to enter a higher state of understanding to work through even complicated problems.