Bach flower therapists: What does their everyday work look like?

Bach flower therapists often work in their own practice, where they use Bach flowers as a complementary method to other naturopathic treatments.

First of all, the Bach flower therapist gets a personal impression of the patient. Precise clarification of the patient's current condition and personality is a prerequisite for drawing up a treatment plan. With his extensive knowledge of the individual Bach flowers and their effects, he can determine the appropriate flowers and inform the patient about their properties and effects.

For more complex difficulties, the therapist creates a personal Bach flower mixture and advises the patient on how to take it, its effects and other support options.

Target group and skills: Who is the Bach Flower Training course suitable for? What qualities and skills are required?

The following target group is addressed with training in Bach Flower Remedies:

• People who are interested in the applications of flower essences and would like to use them for themselves and their immediate environment
• Trained naturopaths or complementary therapists who would like to continue their training
• People who would like to become self-employed as Bach flower therapists

The following qualities are required to work successfully as a Bach Flower Therapist:

• Interest in psychological issues
• Enjoy working in an advisory capacity
• Tendency towards herbal and energetic healing methods
• If you have your own practice: economic skills to run your own business

Prerequisites for admission to Bach flower training (cert.):

As a rule, Bach flower training is open to all interested persons. No specific previous training or professional experience is required.

Some schools require the following points for admission:

• Age of majority
• Apprenticeship qualification with federal certificate of proficiency (EFZ) or several years of professional experience
• Sufficient knowledge of German

Good to know:

As there are no protected professional designations or titles prior to the OdA AM industry certificate or the federal diploma for naturopaths, it is important to prove your own seriousness and professional competence in some other way. This is usually done by registering with the ASCA and/or the EMR.

Input: Why is registration in the ASCA and/or EMR registry important?

Both the ASCA and the EMR are quality labels for activities in experiential medicine. They both maintain a so-called list of methods, which specifies how many hours of basic medical training and specialist training (method) must be completed in order to be registered with the ASCA and/or EMR.

Many health insurance companies are based on the ASCA and EMR. This means that therapists who are registered with the ASCA and/or EMR can often work in a way that is recognized by health insurance companies (via supplementary insurance). But beware! This is not always the case.

More and more health insurance companies are demanding an industry certificate or a federal diploma from professional organizations (OdA AM, OdA KT, OdA MM, ODA ARTECURA, Swiss Association of Osteopaths FSO-SVO) in order to be able to work in a way that is recognized by health insurance companies. This will continue to increase in the future.

Subject matter and content of the training

The subject matter of a Bach flower training course is determined independently by the schools; it can therefore vary.

The following topics are often covered in the course:

• Bach Flowers Introduction / Basics
• 7 States of mind
• Production of Bach flowers
• 38 Bach flowers and their personality types
• Emergency drops and their areas of application
• Dr. Bach and his philosophy
• Introduction to the various clinical pictures
• Preparation and use of Bach flowers / mixtures
• (Duration of) taking the Bach flowers
• Therapy for children, adults and animals
• Carry out a consultation (anamnesis, selection of the right flower, consultation protocol)
• Legal aspects relating to the use of Bach flower essences

Costs and financing of further training

How much a Bach flower training course costs is determined by the schools themselves. The costs can therefore vary from provider to provider.

You can expect the following costs for basic specialist training:

• Course feesBetween CHF 600.- and CHF 1'000.-, which usually also includes theExamination feeincluded.
• Some providers requireExtra costsfor
  • Teaching aids
  • Training documents

Please contact the provider of your choice directly to find out the actual costs.

Course structure, duration of study, training options, teaching format and learning effort

• Bach flower training is generally designed to be part-time and has a modular structure. This means that each module is taken and completed individually.
• The duration of specialist courses in the field of Bach flower remedies varies greatly and depends on the provider, range and level: As a rule, courses last between a few days to several months.
• The schools decide independently when the lessons take place. Some courses offer lessons two days a week and on selected Saturdays. Others only offer lessons one day a week. Still others also offer intensive variants.
• The training generally takes place in face-to-face classes. However, there are also schools that offer online courses.
• You should allow sufficient time to prepare for and follow up on the lessons and for self-study - how much depends on your previous knowledge, working style and learning speed. We recommend that you allow at least 4-6 hours per week as a precaution.

Degree, diploma and title

Those who have successfully passed all modules of the Bach flower training course are admitted to the final examination.

The final examination is conducted by your personal teacher and serves to check your confidence in handling and using the flower essences.

Diploma and title

Successful graduates receive a school certificate / diploma from the respective school: "Bach Flower Therapist [name of school]" or "Graduate Bach Flower Therapist [name of school]".