Oak
Struggling on well past exhaustion because stopping is not an option
What it feels like
You do not stop. You went to work with the flu, you took the call on vacation, you have been the reliable one for so long that everyone has arranged their lives around it. The tiredness is real and you have decided it is not relevant. Asked how you are, you say busy, and change the subject. Rest feels like letting people down, so you push through, and the pushing has been going on for months or years rather than days. It usually ends the same way, with something giving out, because the only stop you have is the one that is forced on you.
Signs you might need it
- You keep going long after you should have stopped
- You work through illness and vacations
- Resting feels like letting other people down
- You are the dependable one and everybody knows it
- You have been exhausted for months and carried on anyway
- You only stop when something forces you to
What it helps with
You start allowing yourself a break before you have to take one. The reliability stays, and it stops costing quite so much, which everyone around you benefits from too.
Not to be confused with
Elm, which is a temporary wobble in someone normally coping well, and Olive, which is exhaustion that has already stopped you. Oak is exhausted and still going, which is exactly the problem.
For those who are struggling and fighting strongly to get well, or in connection with the affairs of their daily life. They will go on trying one thing after another, though their case may seem hopeless. They will fight on. They are discontented with themselves if illness interferes with their duties or helping others.
The plant
The English oak, the tree that holds on through storms that take everything around it. It can stand for several hundred years and supports more other species than any other British tree, which is a fair picture of the person this remedy describes.
How to take it
The usual way is two drops from the stock bottle into a small glass of water, sipped through the day. If you are mixing several remedies, put two drops of each into a 30ml bottle of spring water and take four drops from that, four times a day.
There is no need to time it around meals, and you can take it as often as you like. Most people give it two weeks before deciding whether it is doing anything. The full guide to taking them covers mixing bottles, timing and the alcohol question.
Often mixed up with Oak
Often taken alongside
Blends that include Oak
Combinations mixed for a situation rather than for a person. Each one is shown with the reason Oak is in it.
Common questions
These are about Oak. The questions about the remedies in general, alcohol, children, timing, live in the FAQ.
What is the difference between Oak and Olive?
Whether you have stopped. Olive is exhausted and has run out, often after illness or a long stretch of caring. Oak is just as exhausted and is still going, because stopping does not feel allowed. Many people need both.
Is Oak good for burnout?
It suits the pattern that leads there, the refusal to stop. Once you have actually run out, Olive tends to be the better fit. Both work best when you also let yourself take the rest you have more than earned.
How is Oak different from Elm?
Length of time. Elm is a capable person swamped for a week or two. Oak has been carrying a heavy load for years without complaining about it.
Not sure Oak is the one?
Choosing works by recognizing yourself in a description, so if this one only half fits, it is worth seeing what else comes up. The quiz narrows all 38 in about a minute, and the despondency and despair group holds the nearest neighbors.
Where to buy Oak
Bach remedies are widely stocked. If you are buying online, check the bottle says Oak and comes in the standard 20ml stock size.
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