The Power of Rose
Rose is a flower of almost unparalleled depth.
A universal symbol of love, it’s been revered for millennia for its ability to both open and heal the heart. It combines aspects of love often thought to be opposites: affection and sexuality, purity and passion, gentleness and strength, vulnerability and boundaries.
This duality is the essence of rose’s magic, as it captures the complexity of being human.
My Journey with Rose
Rose called me several years ago, but it was only after doing a dieta with the Amazonian plant Noya Rao (within the Shipibo tradition) that she really made herself known. She began working with me powerfully in the lead-up to my 28-day diet with her, and even more intensely during the diet and integration.
Here’s what she showed me:
Rose is fiery. She is a goddess, a queen—but a young queen: vibrant, sexual, emotionally alive, and unapologetically passionate. She welcomes the full expression of you.
Deep heart healing. Rose brought me to the places that my heard had been broken - even places that I thought I had healed. She walked me through anger, grief and trauma, showing me that all emotions were welcome and valid. She encouraged me to give myself completely to the experience. And in doing so, she brought me—unexpectedly—to forgiveness. Rose showed me that the heart is sacred space: a temple where love, grief, passion, and innocence all live together. She invited me to honour the wildness and tenderness of the heart - to celebrate its depth and contradictions - and to reclaim the power of letting it remain open.
“Stop trying to fix yourself.” I’ve been on the spiritual path for 20 years, and I came onto it with a deep sense of being defective and broken. Rose showed me that, although I’ve spent much of the last 20 years “healing”, I’ve also spent a lot of that time reinforcing a message to myself that I needed fixing, that I wasn’t lovable as I was. She told me in no uncertain terms to put it down - that I didn’t need to change, and that I am enough as I am. I can’t overstate how deeply this landed. Once I absorbed it, I began to see just how widespread the “not enough” message is—how it shows up in the media, in spiritual communities, in therapy spaces, even from the people who love us most. But Rose was vehement: your feelings are valid, your mess is holy, and you are enough as you are. You don’t need to change to be worthy of love. In fact, this whole idea of “working on yourself” can just deepen your sense of shame and unworthiness. The more you accept who you are - including your “damage”, the more life sends you people who love you for it. That’s not to say the self-help journey is over! It’s just reframed. It’s no longer about “working on myself” - it’s about coming back to myself.
Boundaries. Rose gave me the energetic boundaries that I so desperately needed. Her thorns are part of her medicine: clear boundaries that guard the sacredness of the heart. She shows me how to stay open without self-abandoning—how to say no with love, and yes with integrity. The boundaries she gave me also helped me learn self respect, and to realise that I don’t need everyone to like me (a major reason a lot of us have weak boundaries.) Viva Rose!
Integrate Love and Sexuality. One of Rose’s greatest gifts is her ability to hold what we often think of as opposites. She blends affection with desire, purity with passion, softness with strength. She invites us to bring love and sexuality into harmony—to honour the sacredness of desire while still holding the heart with reverence.
Rose and Science
I’ve talked about the spiritual and emotional healing Rose has given me, but there’s plenty of otherl benefits too, which recent clinical studies have uncovered.
Antidepressant Effects: Research using animal models has shown that low doses of aqueous extracts of Rosa damascena can produce antidepressant-like effects. In a forced swimming test with mice, a low dose (15 mg/kg) of the extract significantly increased swimming time and decreased immobility time, suggesting potential mood-enhancing properties. AdvBiores+3ajp.mums.ac.ir+3ajp.mums.ac.ir+3
Sleep and Relaxation: Studies have indicated that Rosa damascena extracts may have sedative effects. In mice, administration of the extract prolonged pentobarbital-induced sleeping time, suggesting a potential for promoting relaxation and sleep. Brieflands
Memory and Learning: In animal models of Alzheimer's disease, Rosa damascena extract has demonstrated neuroprotective effects. Rats treated with the extract showed improvements in spatial and long-term memory, as well as enhanced neurogenesis and synaptic plasticity in the hippocampus. PubMed
Oxidative Stress Reduction: Chronic stress can lead to oxidative damage in the brain. Studies have found that rose oil vapor can attenuate depression-induced oxidative toxicity in the cerebral cortex of rats, indicating its potential to mitigate stress-related neuronal damage. PubMed
Neurotrophic Support: Following ischemic injury in rats, treatment with Rosa damascena extract increased the expression of neurotrophic factors such as NGF, BDNF, and NT3 in the hippocampus, suggesting a role in supporting neuronal survival and regeneration. acta.tums.ac.ir
Anxiety and Stress Reduction: Inhalation of rose oil has been shown to significantly reduce anxiety levels in various settings, including preoperative patients and individuals experiencing burn-related stress. ScienceDirectPubMed
Pain Relief: Rose oil aromatherapy has demonstrated effectiveness in alleviating different types of pain, such as postoperative discomfort and menstrual cramps. PMC
Mood Enhancement: The antidepressant properties of rose oil have been observed in both animal and human studies, suggesting its potential to uplift mood and combat depressive symptoms. PMC
Improved Sleep Quality: Rose oil aromatherapy has been associated with better sleep quality, particularly in individuals dealing with stress-related sleep disturbances. PubMed+1ScienceDirect+1
Rose in My Practice
Rose is the main plant I am apprenticed to, and her teachings guide much of my work. I work with her personally through oils, teas, tinctures, cleansing practices, and have now done multiple Rose diets. In practice, I hold Rose ceremonies and diets for others.