Easy Aromatherapy

Goodsmellas – a beginner’s aromatherapy kit

2007-09-30T22:05:00.000-07:00

I used aromatherapy for two years without completely believing it really worked, but then something happened that convinced me.

I was a college kid in a dorm, and I'd been using a few basic essential oils - rosemary to sharpen my concentration during study hours, and lavender to get me to bed early the night before an exam (my usual schedule involved sleeping at around 3-4 am). It worked for me, but I believed it was probably Pavlovian in nature - still, whatever works, hey?

I hid my hobby from my friends, fearing they'd laugh at me for this flaky woo-woo new age stuff.

Then, one of my friends couldn't sleep the night before her exam - she had tried just about everything, and was near tears by the time I walked into her room and placed two drops of lavender essential oil on her pillow.

I didn't see her until after her exam the next day, when she came up and asked me, "What *was* that stuff? I fell asleep in about 5 minutes after you came in."

I was convinced – and so was she, and so were all our friends.

Aromatherapy – from aroma (smell) and therapy (treatment) – is one of the oldest, most pleasant, and most sensuous ways to affect your mood and your health. Essential oils extracted from plants are placed into a burner, or diluted in a carrier oil and used for massage. Experiment with different blends in your burner (or in your bath). A total of 4-6 drops of essential oil should be enough to fragrance a medium-sized room.

If you want to get started with aromatherapy, you’ll need some essential oils. Be sure to buy them from a reputable source, and get those that are marked 100% pure – some places sell essential oils pre-mixed with carrier oils. Some oils may seem a little expensive, but as you only use a few drops at a time, they go a surprisingly long way.

For a beginner’s kit, I’d recommend the following essential oils.

Lavender: soothing and floral. Relaxing, anti-inflammatory, antiseptic – great for traveling, as you can use it for first aid as well as to combat the effects of jet lag and being in an unfamiliar hotel room. Put a few drops into your bathtub for an evening soak, or wear a few drops behind your ears as perfume!

Tea Tree: medicinal. Antiseptic, antifungal, antibacterial – wonderful to have on hand for first aid, and good for acne. Put some in the burner if someone in the house has a cold or the flu.

The above two oils are among a very small number of oils that are generally recognized as gentle enough to apply undiluted to the skin. Most essential oils should be diluted in a carrier oil before use, but you can experiment by testing a small amount in the crook of your elbow – if you experience redness, swelling, itching, or any other form of irritation, you need to dilute this oil, or perhaps stop using it altogether.

I’d also recommend:

Geranium: light, rosy fragrance. Particularly good for balancing women’s hormones. Combines well with lavender to combat PMS.

Rosemary: sharp, refreshing. Improves alertness and concentration.

Citrus oils like lemon, orange and grapefruit are popular and inexpensive, but these deteriorate fast, so you should use them quickly.

Personally (though your mileage may vary), I like patchouli oil – this is one of the only essential oils to improve rather than deteriorate with time. I tolerate it well, and wear a drop or two as an earthy, long-lasting perfume.

Beyond this, just use your nose, and pick out essential oils that resonate with you and that you like the smell of. There is a vast range of essential oils to choose from – good luck with your beginner’s kit, and just have fun!

Flu Season

2007-09-29T04:27:00.000-07:00

It's that time of the year again - everyone's coughing and sneezing all over each other in the MRT.

While sensible nutrition, enough water, and regular exercise (you do exercise regularly, don't you? ;) ) will go some way to keeping your immune system healthy - if you do fall prey to the virus-of-the season, here are a couple of essential oils that can help relieve your symptoms and make you feel better.

Put these essential oils in your burner, and get well soon!

Antivirals:
Tea Tree
Ravensara

Soothers:
Lavender
Frankincense

Stuffy-head clearers:
Eucalyptus
Rosemary

Bugs!

2007-08-05T08:07:00.000-07:00

Many essential oils are natural insect repellents - the ones I use most often for this purpose are citronella and red thyme. You can put a few drops in a spray bottle with some water, and use that to keep insects at bay. I often add a few drops to the water I use to clean the floor.

Be careful with these oils, though, as red thyme is known to cause skin/lung irritation, and you shouldn't use it in a vaporiser or diffuser. Citronella is used in natural insect-repellent candles, but at higher concentrations it's also likely to cause skin/lung irritation - I'm slightly sensitive to citronella, myself, and I can vouch for this! (However, it's useful enough that I use it anyway - but at a low concentration, not more than a couple of drops per 500ml/18oz water.)

These are a few of my favourite oils

2007-08-04T12:11:00.000-07:00

My two must-haves are Lavender and Tea Tree.

Unlike most essential oils, these oils are gentle enough to apply neat on most people's skin, which makes them, um, essential items in my first aid kit.

Very briefly:

Lavender is a very soothing, calming oil, and it speeds healing, making it great for burns and cuts (it also has antiseptic/anti-inflammatory properties). A couple of drops on the pillow may help with insomnia.

Tea tree oil is a potent antiviral, antibacterial and antifungal. It's rather medicinal and not as floral as lavender oil, but that can be a distinct advantage if you're trying to apply essential oil to someone who'd rather not smell like a flower shop ;)

Welcome to Easy Aromatherapy!

2007-07-13T06:47:00.000-07:00

Aromatherapy is a wonderfully sensuous skill to pick up - I'm glad you're here!