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The History of Aromatherapy

June 1st, 2011    Subscribe To Our Feed

The history of aromatherapy is a very long one! Aromatherapy, though most Americans have only heard about it in recent years, goes way back to ancient societies on the Mediterranean. Aromatherapy began over 6000 years ago in places like Greece, (what’s now) Italy, and Egypt. Although some of the initial uses of aromatherapy were more for perfuming than for healing or cleansing, the tradition has very ancient roots regardless of where exactly those roots were placed. Aromatherapy in ancient civilizations was used to perfume away body odor and other unpleasant things that people were not too keen on smelling; it’s no wonder that the use of aromatherapy was concentrated around this warm-climate area. In the first place, a lot of the plants from which essential oils are produced are plants, which thrive in such warm weather climates. On the other hand, nobody needed perfume more than people who were in the sun and heat all day. One can imagine that the problems related to body odor were less frequent and less severe in places that had colder climates.

In those ancient times, aromatherapy oils were either applied directly to the body to disguise other, unpleasant, odors, or they were added as diffusions to baths or massaging oils. These uses of essential oils began to become slightly medical when it was determined that some essential oils had cleansing and anti-bacterial properties. When this was discovered, the use of essential oils started to become more of a question of health maintenance than a question of bettering the sphere surrounding oneself in terms of the air being breathed by your neighbors. Over time, the healing properties of essential oils were discovered, but only little by little and only through anecdotal evidence.

Aromatherapy as we know it today was born in the 1930s in France. This was the birth of the term aromatherapy, meaning using scents to heal the mind and body. It’s curious because the man who coined the term did so out of amazement that lavender oil cured burns on his body without leaving scars behind. This is so interesting because that is not a typical use of aromatherapy; applying essential oils directly to the body is not the most common form of aromatherapy and many practitioners advise against it almost as strongly as they advise against ingesting essential oils. Today, the term most often applies to using the actual scent to bring about change, such as a diffuser spray changing the atmosphere in a room or in your entire house. Massaging with essential oils diluted in carrier oils is considered mainstream aromatherapy, but simply applying essential oils to one’s skin is not considered good practice.

Starting in the 1930s, people began to experiment to find out all of the various things that essential oils could either cure or mask the symptoms of. As mentioned above, such experimenting was done in an ad-hoc way, most often in the form of someone reporting their own usage and results of a particular oil. Still today, essential oils are not tested or recommended by the FDA; they are still all natural (at least the good quality ones are), but all natural does not mean that it is completely safe and it certainly does not make any sort of claim about whether or not the product will work at all for what you’re using it. It also does not tell you what the known or possible side effects of use are. Aromatherapy has come a long way in 6000 years, but nowhere near as far as it needs to in order to take its proper place among the modern medicines of the western world.

Your Guide for Substitutions in Aromatherapy Recipes.

November 17th, 2009    Subscribe To Our Feed

Quite a few different essential oils or extracts have the same effect. However, it may be hard to remember all of the various aromatherapy oils that you can blend to create the effect that you want. You may want to know that you have more than one option in case one type of scented oil or other aromatherapy product is not available where you are.

This article could not possibly cover every aspect of aromatherapy, or all the different aromatherapy oils and extracts that could work in any case. However, some of the most important ones will be covered in this article.

One of the most common problems that a person has is insomnia. One of the causes of insomnia (the inability to fall asleep or to stay sleeping) is the buildup of excess stress. Anxiety and worry can also cause a person to stay awake as well. These undesirable feelings can be reduced or eliminated, however, and if they are then a person may be able to sleep.

Since relaxation is one tool that will aid a person in falling asleep faster, essential oils such as lavender or chamomile can aid a person to fall asleep. The reason why is because these plants/flowers aid a person in the calming process. When a person is calm enough that person will finally fall asleep. Both of these oils can be used, but if one is not available, then the other can still be used.

The aromatherapy scents of marjoram and ylang-ylang can also be used to aid a person to fall asleep. You can experiment with mixing these along with lavender or chamomile, or you can just try using these instead. It does not mean that you will get the same exact effect, but it would be worth a try to make use of what you have in case you run out of a certain aromatherapy essential oil, or other aromatherapy scent product.

Other variations and substitutions that can be made is allowed in the concocting of a potion which will help treat a cold. One cold recipe calls for three parts of ravensare, and one part naiouli, along with one part each of lemon, rosewood, and lavender. However, if a person does not have access to naiouli then a different ingredient called Eucalyptus can be used. In fact, utilizing Eucalyptus is more common for the use of a homeopathic home remedy anyway, so you may consider using that instead.

Another example of how substitutions can be used is in that of the recipe which helps relieve backache. The base recipe includes a variety of ingredients such as blue chamomile, birch, rosemary, and ginger, along with lavender and carrier oil (the product base).  However, Eucalyptus can but used instead of the rosemary, and black pepper can be used instead of the ginger.

Substituting various aromatherapy herbs for others may just be a matter of personal preference-what your nose likes better. On the other hand, it could mean the difference between the right combinations of ingredients, which would be especially designed for your situation. In most cases, it could be both the fact that there is a certain aromatherapy scent combination that you like better and one that will work better for you.

The practices of making your own aromatherapy combinations for different purposes can seem overwhelming at first. However, if you remember a few things the mixing and matching of various scents can make your life easier.

One tip to help you in the processing of your own aromatherapy remedies is to find an easy reference guide which tells you what the purpose of each aroma product is used for. You may also want to find simple recipes that will tell you approximately how much of each substance to use.

A small amount of research can help you in the process of blending different aromas for homeopathic use. However, in the end it will be your instincts that will most lead you to what will work for you.

Again, it will most likely be what smells most appeal to you that do work for you, because often times your body sends your brain a signal to tell you what it needs. This may not be true all the time, but if you are already treating your body as kindly as possible it will learn to speak for itself and guide you in the rest of your physical and emotional healing process.