Aromatherapy – What’s it all About?
First of all, what are essential oils? The oil itself is obtained by extracting the “essence” out of a plant. This extraction could be from various parts of that plant, the leaves, flower, bark, fruit rind or the fruit itself. The oil will be highly concentrated and extracted using the process of distillation. With these oils in hand, an aromatherapist would then use them to help patients attain a better state of physical and mental well being.
Oils can be used by themselves or blended together with a variety of other oils. Generally, combinations are used to create a more desirable effect than could be obtained when just using a single oil.
So, how does aromatherapy work? With our sense of smell, or olfaction. When we inhale a scent our olfactory nerves are stimulated. This process creates an impulse that’s to the emotional centers of our brains. This part of our brain is called the limbic system and is linked to areas of the brain that control such things as your memories, breathing and blood circulation. To illustrate this process, have you ever breathed in a scent and automatically had a memory related to that scent triggered? This part of the brain is also connected to you endocrine glands, and they regulate your body’s hormone levels. Understanding what scents impact what parts of the brain, and how they sooth or stimulate them is the basis of aromatherapy.
How can you take advantage of aromatherapy yourself? Well, you could check out your local spas and see what kind of services they offer. You can also buy an aromatherapy kit to use at home. However, the most common way people take advantage of aromatherapy is to buy bath products with essential oils and find out what works best for you.
