Aromatherapy

1. What is aromatherapy?
2. What is modern day aromatherapy?
3. Why do we need aromatherapy?
4. Why is aromatherapy so popular?
5. How does aromatherapy work?
6. What is holistic medicine?
7. How can aromatherapy help?
8. The Art of the Healing Touch and Aromatherapy
9. The Art of a Healing Massage
10. Did you know?

Aromatherapy can be defined as ‘ the Art of Healing Mind, Body and Spirit’ with essential oils, the scented natural remedies found in aromatic plants.

Aromatherapy is a natural healing therapy that helps body performance, promotes good health, improves immune defence, increase stamina and is particularly helpful in stress related illness or ailments of psychosomatic origins. e.g. eczema, insomnia and many other conditions.

Aromatherapy is widely accepted by the general public and healthcare professionals as a therapy that can be used:

1. For the Prevention of ill health or the onset of psychological problems such as depression
2. As a Supportive therapy for anyone undergoing medical treatment or facing very difficult emotional challenges that can lead to ill health
3. As a help to the Recovery from illness particularly in the convalescence phase when people are just beginning to get better but are vulnerable and need some form of gentle holistic caring.

The origins of modern day Aromatherapy can be pinned down to the turn of the 20th century, but it is only in the last twenty years, that aromatherapy has been efficiently developed and safely delivered by professional aromatherapists in the UK and more recently in many foreign countries.

A modern professional aromatherapy treatment offers a range of benefits and can involve a full body massage or an essential oil formula or prescription to be applied directly to the skin or to be inhaled as instructed. Each aromatherapy treatment is carefully designed to address the fact that different individuals respond in a very personal way to the effects of essential oils and/or massage and bodywork.

Contemporary life is proving to be increasingly complex, as it requires from us that we respond to many situations with intensified speed and precision.

Living under constant pressure can take its toll on our well being or happiness and can manifest as muscular tensions, restlessness, broken sleep, irritability or inner discontent. These simple enough discomforts if persisting, can lead to other problems such as: persistent headaches, chronic fatigue, debility, psychosomatic problems (respiratory or skin disorders), organ malfunction or nervous depression.

Aromatherapy is not a substitute for conventional medicine but as it offers a spectrum of healing possibilities with smaller or greater benefits, it can be used on its own or can be easily incorporated with other forms of therapeutic treatments.

Aromatherapy is presently the fastest stress release therapy and a visit to a professional practitioner can help easily adjust to pressurised or disappointing situations. While it does not claim to be a cure to all ills, it can restore our sense of wholeness and harmony. It is very easy to apply and many people use self-help aromatherapy in the home for minor ailments.

Aromatherapy really owes its healing power to the dynamic and versatile therapeutic properties of essential oils (the scented essences of aromatic plants) as these have an amazing capacity to positively influence Body and Mind.

Indeed, the medicinal activities of essential oils and their scents can have an immediate effect and choosing an essential oil for a specific therapeutic purpose can result in more than one problem being helped at once.

e.g. Essential oils with respiratory and expectorant therapeutic properties once inhaled, can improve breathing capacity, help the lungs do their work and keep infectious micro-organisms from causing illness.

They will energise tissues and organs as they are carried around the body by the blood circulation. Better breathing capacity also equates better oxygen supplies reaching the brain, resulting in a clearer Mind and better concentration as well as increased vitality.

Aromatherapy works on more than one level due to the activity of essential oils. The therapeutic activities of essential oils have already been well researched and many essential oils are found in pharmaceutical products, skin care and personal hygiene products and household products.

Essential oils have been successfully used in aromatherapy to treat both physiological and psychological problems

Physiological effects of essential oils on the body:

1. 1. Essential oils can be used in the same manner as many pharmaceutical remedies as they have therapeutic properties similar to many conventional drugs used to treat common ailments, such as antiseptics, anti-inflammatory or cicatrisants products, etc.
2. They can benignly interact with the human body e.g. common colds - use of Pine essential oil in an inhalation - may relieve symptoms, prevent complications and enhance the immune system
3. They can help ease disorders such as allergic reactions or IBS (which are often caused by over-sensitivity to external factors or stress) by reducing the hyper-excitability of some nervous reflexes.
   

Psychological & Spiritual effects of essential oils on the Mind.

Our sense of smell seems to be closely involved with some of our instinctive deep processes and smelling an essential oil can result in mood or emotional changes.

This is not entirely a surprise as the sense of smell is known to be the most direct contact the brain has with the external environment. It is the oldest of the five senses and is quite unique in the way it conveys sensory signals to the brain.

The scents of essential oils are known to stimulate the area of the brain that houses the control for the emotions (e.g. unpleasant and intense emotions such as rage, hostility, etc).

The messages from the scents of essential oils can reach deep within the mind and tend to bring into consciousness difficult and latent feelings and help release them.

Although the effects of the scented essential oils, may only be temporary, it can help restore feelings of inner peace and deep contentment and in general bring in a more optimistic outlook to life.

This is why Aromatherapy has shown itself to be a precious tool in the treatment of psychosomatic disorders.

Where do psychosomatic problems come from?

Such problems arise from an unconscious place in the Mind, which is not directly under our control.

It is interesting to note that when confronted with demanding situations what we think or do, can be in direct opposition with what we feel.

Inner contradiction and denial of feelings can be responsible for some of these psychosomatic problems or illnesses.

Holistic Medicine seeks to address the 'whole person' rather than just the symptoms and a Holistic Aromatherapy treatment will also involve looking at the spiritual aspects of life.

In an ideal world, staying healthy or repairing ill-health should be everyone’s priority and any form of medicine, therapies or healing that can contribute to getting better should be used to achieve this end but of course this is not quite the case today.

Although, still in its infancy, the holistic movement is now an accepted way of looking at ill health and looking more closely at the circumstances that surrounds or brought on the problems increases the chance of resolving health issues.

With the holistic approach, the practitioner looks at the relationship between individual susceptibility or sensitivity and the manifestation of dis-ease.

Psychosomatic Medicine & Aromatherapy

Ailments that are said of psychosomatic origins are real ailments caused by psychological or emotional states such as being distressed or depressed. Not only do they originate in the Mind but often they are maintained by certain emotional conditions, this in turns produces biochemical reactions in the brain which also helps maintain the illness, creating a vicious circle. If this happens, the only way to improve the situation is to begin to look at the whole picture and to include all factors when elaborating a treatment.

Acute stress, physical tiredness and/or intense emotions make it difficult for people to remain in 'a positive mood’ or for the body to function properly as so much of the energy is used by the nervous and endocrine system just to help cope with the crisis state.

The Spiritual connection to Aromatherapy

Aromatherapy treatments rely on the individual response of a client to particular scents and the ancient connection that human beings have with nature. Scents seem to contact our deepest survival instincts and help us retrieve a part of ourselves, a spiritual dimension that is often being lost in the bustle of everyday life.

Repeating the Aromatherapy experience can become synonymous with well being and it encourages a progressing healing pattern.

The subliminal effect of scent from essential oils makes a link with our instinctual nature and can help release us from the grip of negative or destructive patterns.

Touch is stimulated by encountering an object and provides us with a wide range of sensations and information. With massage, Touch is the gateway to feelings of comfort, reassurance, and relaxation.

Massage given by an experienced therapist will clear the body of unwanted stress, decrease any nervous hyperactivity, and restore an overall sense of balance.

Body structures are constantly subjected to external and internal forces (gravity, physical exertion, emotional tensions, and environmental or occupational hazards) which results in a need to make constant adjustments and Massage is very useful to help free the body, relax the mind and improve stress levels.

Nicole Perez has combined her experience of various bodywork, massage, and subtle healing and has developed a rhythmic, fluid and dance like approach to applying a massage.

Giving a Massage is actually like a dance and the art of a good massage is to create a peaceful atmosphere where the massage movements are delivered in a skilful, continuous and comforting manner.

This often has a very profound effect on the recipient and has been reported to be as ‘walking on air’ after the aromatherapy massage.

Students on the course are encouraged to become more aware of their own subtle body sensations as a good aromatherapy treatment depends on the therapist ability to interpret the client’s unique needs.

Ultimately, practice makes perfect and all students are expected to practice regularly and often and to develop these very important skills.

The use of Aromatic plants by men for Spiritual or Medicinal purposes is known to have existed for centuries, in China and India.

Aromatic plants and massage appear to have been used in combination for healing well before the birth of Christianity. In fact, the oldest surviving medical text, dated 2700BC, was found in China and details some 365 medicinal plants.

The Ancient Egyptians were also knowledgeable in Medicine and Magic ceremonies.

They were master in perfume making and cosmetics. They believe in the Afterlife and were famous for embalming their dead using plants and aromatics.

References to bizarre religious practices can be found in textbooks from Ancient Greece and Rome.

The word 'per fume' originally applied to fumigation, as it has play an important role in the history' of religion and medicine where it was common practice. 'Holy Fumes' were regularly inhaled to induce a state of prophetic trance.

Sweet smells were associated with Holiness and the Soul of the Angels while foul smells were believed to be of the Devil and carry diseases.