Healing your body and senses with aromatherapy

Aromatherapy – you just say it out loud and it already gives you an idea of how it feels like. Can you smell the incense? Can you see the candles slowly burning? Can you feel the floral smell? Can you hear the smooth music playing in the background? I don’t know about you but that’s what I feel when I hear the word aromatherapy. I know it seems really fancy but believe it or not aromatherapy is not so complicated once you get the grip of it. Let's get to the basics so you can start using aromatherapy in your everyday life. 

Aromatherapy is the use of essential oils extracted from plants for psychological and physical well-being purposes. Aromatherapy can be used in various ways such as inhalations, massages and even swallowed (these cases are less frequent, and I personally didn’t give it a try yet). Inhaled or applied on the skin, essential oils are becoming an alternative treatment for infections, pain, stress and other health problems. Essential oils have been used for therapeutic purposes for nearly 6,000 years. The ancient Chinese, Indians, Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans used them in cosmetics, perfumes, and drugs. They were also used for spiritual, therapeutic, hygienic, and ritualistic purposes.

Note: You should never take essential oils by mouth without specific instruction from a trained and qualified specialist.

Aromatherapy can be used for more than healing proprieties. It can also be used for:

• Air freshening
• Bathing
• Compresses
• Recipes for creams and lotions
• Floral waters
• Foot and hand baths
• Hair care
• Jacuzzis
• Massage
• Saunas
• Showers
• Sits bath
• Steam inhalations
• Vaporization / diffusing

So what are essential oils?

Essential oils are concentrated extracts taken from the roots, seeds, leaves or blossoms of plants. Each contains its own mix of active ingredients, and this mix determines what the oil is used for. While some oils are used to promote physical healing (to treat swelling, fungal infections, nasal decongestion, allergies and so on) others are used for their mood shifting powers (help you relax, energize your body, induce a well being feeling, make a room smell pleasant and so on). Many of the oils have powerful antibacterial and antiviral qualities which, unlike pharmaceutical drugs, do not leave behind dangerous toxins.

For example, orange blossom oil contains a large amount of an active ingredient that is thought to be energizing, whereas lavender essential oil can be used to help you relax. Essential oils, the pure essence of a plant, have been found to provide both psychological and physical benefits when used correctly and safely.

Keep an eye out for "perfume oils" or "fragrance oils", since they are not the same as essential oils! Fragrance oils and perfume oils contain synthetic chemicals and do not provide the therapeutic benefits of essential oils. Because of the chemical substances they contain they can actually be harmful if ingested. This doesn’t mean you should avoid them; just don’t apply them of the skin or even worse swallow fragrance oils. Use them just for the pleasant smell they have – air freshening. Of course it’s best if you use essential oils at all times but fragrance oils are cheaper.

How to tell if essential oils are genuine

Not all ready-made aromatherapy products labeled with the word aromatherapy are pure and natural. When shopping for essential oils you should always check the ingredient label to be sure that the product does not contain fragrance oils or impure (chemical) components. A general rule-of-thumb is to be wary of products that do not list their ingredients and those that do not boast of having pure essential oils (look for products that contain pure essential oils on their ingredient list and avoid those that have words like fragrance).

Using essential oils

Inhaling essential oils. Essential oils that are inhaled into the lungs provide both psychological and physical benefits. The aroma of the natural essential oil stimulates the brain to trigger a reaction, and when inhaled into the lungs, the natural constituents (naturally occurring chemicals) can supply therapeutic benefit. Diffusing eucalyptus essential oil to help ease congestion is a good example.

Applying essential oils to the skin. Another way of using essential oils is to apply them to the skin from where they will be absorbed into the bloodstream. The constituents of essential oils can aid in health, beauty and hygiene conditions. Since essential oils are powerful and concentrated, they should never be applied to the skin in their undiluted form. To apply essential oils to the skin, they have to be diluted into carrier oil. The carrier oil, also known as base oil or vegetable oil, is used to dilute essential oils before they are applied to the skin in massage and aromatherapy. They are so named because they carry the essential oil onto the skin Common carrier oils include sweet almond oil, apricot kernel oil and grape seed oil.

In addition to therapeutic benefit at the emotional and physical level, essential oils are helpful in other applications. Essential oils can be used in household and laundry cleaners. Some oils act as a natural insect repellent and pesticide. Citronella essential oil is well known for its ability to repel mosquitoes.

Essential Oil Blends

Essential oils can be blended together to create appealing and complex aromas. Essential oils can also be blended for a specific therapeutic application. For example a blend of tea tree, sandalwood and rosemary essential oils, make a great “cocktail” that’ll help you fight hayfever (the mix has to be diluted with a carrier oil and will be used for inhalations or massages). Essential oils that are carefully blended with a specific therapeutic purpose in mind may be referred to as an essential oil synergy. A synergistic essential oil blend is considered to be more powerful in total action than each oil working independently.

Wishing you the best,
Rachel