Aromatherapy

What is aromatherapy?

Aromatherapy is the art and science that aims to explore the physiological, psychological, and spiritual effects of the individual's response to aromatic extracts and to observe and bring out the innate state of healing in the individual.

As a holistic medicine, aromatherapy is both preventative and active during the acute and chronic states of an illness. It is a natural, non-invasive treatment system designed to affect the whole person, not the symptom or disease, and to assist the body's natural ability to balance, regulate, heal, and sustain itself, with the correct use of essential oils.

An aromatherapist is the person who administers through the olfactory system and the skin the essential oils in the right measure to affect the person as a whole physically, mentally and spiritually.

"Aromatherapy is a controlled and precise technique of using essential oils for physical and emotional health for well-being," Valerie Cooksley.

How does it work?

Aromatherapy acts on our sense of smell and by absorbing it into the bloodstream. About 15 percent of the air we inhale goes to the roof of the nose, where olfactory receptors carry odors directly to a part of the brain called the limbic system.

It is believed that ancient civilizations used aromatherapy in many ways and for many reasons, such as in massage, baths, as medicine, and even to embalm bodies.

This area is connected to instinct, mood, and emotion and it is believed that aromatherapy can stimulate the release of chemicals that play a role in the release of emotions (think of how even the simple smell of floor wax can quickly take you back to the days of the classroom).

History of Aromatherapy

It is believed that ancient civilizations used aromatherapy in many ways and for many reasons such as massage, bathing, as medicine and even for embalming bodies. The concept was probably originally used at the same time in China, Egypt, the Middle East, and by Native Americans, and was later introduced to Europe by the Romans.

The practice of modern aromatherapy was primarily attributed to the French chemist René-Maurice Gattefossé. He began researching the healing powers of essential oils in the first quarter of a century after observing how lavender oil seemed to aid in the healing of a severe burn on one hand.

In 1937 he also published the first treatise on the subject: Gattefossé's Aromatherapy, a publication still available today. The word aromatherapy comes from the Greek, from the words aroma meaning fragrance or pleasant smell and therapeia meaning healing.

How can it be used?

These oils of high therapeutic quality are those that should be used in aromatherapy or in the therapeutic treatment with essential oils, of which three models are followed : English, French and German, which differ in the way they are administered.

"The English model puts a small amount of essential oil in a large amount of vegetable oil to massage the body in order to relax and relieve stress. The French model proposes the topical application of pure (undiluted) therapeutic-grade essential oils and/or their ingestion.  They usually add a few drops of the oil to agave nectar, honey or on a piece of bread. The German model focuses on the inhalation of essential oils, true aromatherapy," he explains, while explaining that inhaled essential oils can produce unconscious responses, while research has shown that they can also exert strong effects on the brain.  especially in the hypothalamus (the command center of hormones in the body) and directly to the limbic system (the place of emotions).

In the description of the oils section you can see the different oils, blends and their uses. Enjoy them.

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