About Aromatherapy - Ancient Healing Revisited

Aromatherapy has been used for centuries as a way to relieve stress and decrease anxiety. The ancients realized that natural plant extracts and essential oils unlock powerful healing effects when inhaled or applied to the skin.

In antiquity, it was used for its healing properties in a number of cultures around the world including India, Japan, Egypt, Greece, and Rome. Burning of aromatic woods and plants, as well as applying aromatic salves and oils directly to the skin, was common in these cultures for medicinal and ceremonial purposes.

Improve Psychological and Physiological Health

Safe and natural aromatic oils have profound effects on both psychological and physical well being. But a lot of people still tend to dismiss it as a simple mood setter, and aren't really aware of its healing power. It turns out that science is beginning to confirm what the ancients and modern practitioners already know - that aromatherapy is an effective treatment for a variety of ailments and reduces stress, speeds healing, and improves energy and vitality.

Properties of Essential Oils

Each essential oil used in aromatherapy has properties that affect the body in a specific way. For example, chamomile, lavender, and sandalwood work to reduce inflammation and swelling. Still others, like basil, pine, and rosemary, assist the body in new cell formation to speed the healing process. In addition to their specific functions, these powerful plant compounds create an overall sense of calm to relax the body, relieve pain, and ease tension. And a relaxed body is a happy and healthy body.

Techniques

There are a number of different methods for using therapeutic essential oils. These include direct application of essential oils to the skin in baths, massages, and compresses, along with inhalation, burning, and diffusion. Different techniques are useful for specific medicinal purposes, and each introduces the essential oil into the body though a different channel.

Therapeutic baths allow healing oils to more effectively enter the skin, since the bath causes the pores to open and relax. The warm waters of the bath also create an inhalation effect as the oils evaporate off of the water to create a relaxing, calming aroma.

Massage involves the holistic use of essential oils rubbed directly into the skin. Therapeutic touch and aromatherapy complement one another to bring about total body relaxation.

Both cold and warm compresses can be used to apply concentrated essential oils to specific areas of the body. Compresses are used to treat conditions including muscle pain, cramps, swelling, and headache, among many others.

Burners and diffusers are perhaps the oldest form of aromatherapy. These techniques release essential oils into the air to enhance mood and improve wellbeing.

Safe, Natural, And Effective

While western medicine is often suspicious of non-traditional therapies, a growing body of research shows that essential oils are an effective treatment for a variety of maladies, from dermatitis to dementia. These life-giving oils have a real physiological effect on the body, and study after study has shown their effectiveness for relaxation and stress management.

Both science and the experiences of those who use aromatherapy confirm that it a safe, natural, and effective healing tool for optimizing mental and physical well being.

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