Part 1: Introduction and Symptoms Part 2: Treatment and Conclusions

Introduction and Thesis

Above: Something not necessary.

Warning: This post necessarily covers Flowey’s dark, traumatic, and sad backstory. For simplicity’s sake, this article will refer to the first fallen human as “Chara”.

In many works, Flowey receives a SOUL or SOULs or regains his original SOUL, gets an Asriel-like body, and acts largely as Asriel. The implicit understanding of these works is that gaining a SOUl and become Asriel-like/Asriel again is the only way Flowey can be happy.

But what if gaining a SOUL wasn’t actually necessary?

As Devichonee pointed out in a tragically missing post, some of Flowey’s symptoms, such as unhappiness, disassociation from reality (i.e. “This is all just a GAME.”), and inability to connect with others parallel symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), especially child cases. His backstory, after all, is traumatic enough to cause PTSD. By Undertale logic, humans would still have SOULs even after developing PTSD, so Flowey’s soullessness isn’t necessarily the cause of his symptoms. If he does indeed have PTSD, treating it would help him get a happy ending too.

Strong/Best-Supported Symptoms

While Flowey has several symptoms which seem to match a PTSD diagnosis, some symptoms are more consistent or intense than others.

The symptoms which match best are:

“Loss of interest in things they used to enjoy: detachment; general lack of responsiveness; feeling numb”/“Lack of Positive Emotions”



Kind, compassionate Asriel likely enjoyed helping others. He and Chara baked a pie for Asgore, and he initially helped Chara with the buttercup plan with only a little coaxing/manipulation. Note that Flowey first used his power for good: he became “friends” with everyone and “solved all their problems flawlessly”. However, helping others did not make him happy, and he eventually grew bored.

Flowey characterizes himself as “empty inside”, and is disconnected (or detached) from others. His soullessness means he cannot feel or understand love and compassion. However, he is not actually emotionless: he can feel a wide variety of emotions. He’s even capable of positive ones: he’s amused or delighted at the prospect of killing Frisk over and over. Thus, his numbness and “lack of positive emotions” is relative.

“Trouble feeling affectionate”



As a flower, Flowey couldn’t feel love for his parents, no matter how much he tried or how much time he spent with them.

While he cannot feel love nor compassion, he nonetheless seems fond of who he thinks is Chara, and arguably even acts affectionate. (“Chara…I think if you’re around…just living in the surface world doesn’t seem so bad.”) Yet, he probably doesn’t feel affectionate:

“There’s only one person [Chara] I could care about anymore.

And even then, I couldn’t TRULY care about them.

I just like to think there’s someone out there…

Someone that I won’t get tired of.”



“Irritability, more aggressive than before, or even violent”

While Flowey is certainly more aggressive and violent than Asriel, it’s unclear whether his irritability is reasonable under the circumstances or related to his PTSD.

“Reenactment of an event for a period of seconds or hours or, very rarely, days/Relieving [sic] the event over and over in thought or in play”

As Devichonee pointed out, when Flowey woke up as a flower he called out for help: his mom, his dad, or anybody. But nobody came. Similarly, when Frisk is trapped in an inescapable ring of bullets in the Omega Flowey fight, he dares them to call for help. When they do, he changes his face to an Asriel/Toriel-like one and says: “Mommy! Daddy! Somebody help!”

The lines “Don’t you get it? This is all just a GAME.” suggests Flowey thinks his life is just a game. (He’s only coincidentally right.) This idea might be a coping mechanism helping him feel better, something that excuses his depravity, or both: coping mechanisms can hurt others.

Weaker/Less-Supported Symptoms

These are less consistent and intense symptoms. Some, arguably, are not PTSD symptoms at all, but are better explained by other factors.

“Becoming very upset when something causes memories of the event”



Flowey may have been so distressed at Frisk repeatedly sparing him at the end of the Omega Flowey fight because it paralleled Asriel’s own behavior: kind, compassionate Asriel refused to fight the humans attacking him.

“Intense ongoing fear or sadness”

Flowey was sad at Chara’s death, but since the time span of events in the Flowey Runs is unclear, it’s not clear whether his sadness or fear is “intense” or “ongoing”.

“Acting helpless, hopeless or withdrawn”.



Flowey is certainly not helpless; he has powers over time. Yet, his Flowey Runs may suggest feeling hopeless and withdrawn. Before he discovered his power of SAVE, he was despondent. He spent weeks trying to feel some love for his father, but eventually concluded he couldn’t love others. He explains that even killing people has grown tiring, and says: “I’ve done everything this world has to offer” with a somewhat dejected expression.

“Lasting worries and beliefs and people and the world being unsafe”

Having absorbed Chara’s SOUL, Asriel brought Chara’s lifeless body to a flower patch in the nearby human village. The humans then attacked him, but he did not fight back. He picked up Chara’s body, went back to the Underground, and died shortly after from his injuries.

Asriel: “This whole time, I’ve blamed myself for that decision. [to not kill the humans attacking him]

"That’s why I adopted that horrible view of the world.

"Kill or be killed.”

Flowey believed being kind and compassionate as Asriel only got him killed, and that if had killed the humans then, he wouldn’t be stuck as a flower and things would be better. Only by the flowerbed speech (see link above) does he stop regretting that decision.