I’m writing this post the day before Valentine’s Day whilst sipping tea in bed and listing to love songs. Well, my idea of love songs are really more emotional, melancholy songs. Currently playing is The National’s “Trouble Will Find Me” album. Nevertheless, I’m setting the mood in this special way so that I can tell you all the amazing and medicinal qualities of rose, an herb that has an affinity for the physical and emotional heart.
Through and through, rose is incredibly calming for the pitta dosha and nourishes the tissues that pitta governs such as our heart, blood, skin, digestive fire, and reproductive system. Still, rose is pacifying to all doshas and also has a healing effect on our nerves. It’s cooling in nature, so it’s super for cooling off in the summer or simply to cool your mind in any season (read: chill out, dude).
In a more specific sense, rose’s ability to nourish the reproductive its means aiding in treating PMS (especially irritability), excessive menstrual bleeding, vaginal inflammation, endometriosis and fibroids. In the same way, it’s affect on the emotional heart allows it to act as an aphrodisiac and enhances fertility. Rose is used in both treating depression and anxiety and in combination of treating the nervous system and heart, it reduces heart palpitations and headaches. Inflammatory skin conditions can be cleared by using rose water as a toner and consuming rose can treat inflammatory digestive conditions like hyperacidity. Take that, heat.
My Favorite Ways To Use Rose:
Drink rose water. Thank you baby Jesus that the Unbakery started selling bottles of rose water with B12 and trace minerals because this has served as my favorite beverage while at work or during times when pitta can flare due to excess goals or tasks. If you don’t have someone that is mixing and selling it already packaged as a beverage, you can simply blend (to taste) rose hydrosol with filtered water. We can freely and safely consume pure, undiluted rose hydrosol daily, but I’d stick to no more than 1-2 cups a day. The light pink color of this drink will be the prettiest you’ll ever see.
Rose hydrosol for a facial or skin pick-me-up. Rose works wonders in treating “red” skin conditions such as eczema, psoriasis and acne. Also, having some rose hydrosol at the ready in the summer is like having an air conditioner in a bottle. It’s really cooling, especially for skin that has been in the sun too long (I can expand another time on how rose hydrosol may or may not have saved the lives of two novice vacationers in Hawaii after forgetting to put sunscreen on the gluteal fold region while snorkeling).
Rose hydrosol as an eye wash or for dry eyes when traveling. I’ve been known to take a mister of rose hydrosol on airplanes and spray my eyeballs throughout the flight. Professionally, that doesn’t seem like the best advice to give, so I’ll also tell you that you can buy eye wash cups that look like shot glasses (but almond shaped like our eyes) and you can use this as a way to hydrate, rinse or clear redness from your eyes.
As a tonic for blood and skin, especially in the summer. In the summer, our skin gets red and our blood boils. Making a decoction or tea with rose, hibiscus and manjistha is great if you’re trying to treat an inflammatory skin condition or to simply weave into your summer routine. It’s okay to have during other seasons, but stick to just once a week to avoid excess cooling. I’ve provided a recipe and pretty picture of my rose tonic below.
