Dementia is often framed as a cognitive decline, but beneath the surface lies a profound emotional landscape; one shaped by suppression, disconnection, and unprocessed grief. Yet, emotional stagnation in dementia is often overlooked despite its profound impacts on quality of life, social connection, and cognition. Within this 75-minute workshop, we will explore plant medicines that support emotional release, mood regulation, and neuro-emotional regulation in individuals with dementia: Passiflora incarnata (passionflower), Lavandula angustifolia (lavender), Bacopa monnieri (bacopa), and Rhodiola rosea (Rhodiola). The neuro-emotional lens utilized throughout this talk emphasizes the role of plant energetics in gently unlocking unprocessed emotional states, and combines their qualities with touch, music, and ritual to shift and release stored, cellular memories. These botanical allies do more than calm the nervous system; they invite reconnection. When paired with sensory therapies and intentional presence, these plants become catalysts for emotional liberation, helping individuals with dementia reconnect to themselves and others in meaningful ways, despite their neurocognitive limitations.

Moreover, this workshop will equip you with an enhanced understanding of how emotional suppression may contribute to the progression of dementia, and how by addressing these hidden layers not only mood and behavior can be improved, but cognitive clarity and relational depth. Participants will leave with a deeper understanding of how to integrate botanical medicine into dementia care; not just to manage symptoms, but to honor the emotional and spiritual dimensions of the lived, human experience.