AROMATHERAPY

Uses essential oils extracted from nature’s herbs and flowers. The aroma is inhaled, or applied to the skin, and each of the oils (or combination thereof) addresses a specific disorder. It appears that the body is able to utilize the healing properties of the oils through the olfactory system of the body, and so initiate the healing process. Aromatherapy practitioners would also have an understanding of the psychological and emotional factors of illness.

(See also: AROMATHERAPY , Alternative Health, Holistic Health, Body Mind and Soul)

Aromatherapy:

Aromatherapy means “treatment using scents”. It is a holistic treatment of caring for the body with pleasant smelling botanical oils such as rose, lemon, lavender and peppermint. The essential oils are added to the bath or massaged into the skin, inhaled directly or diffused to scent an entire room.

Aromatherapy is used for the relief of pain, care for the skin, alleviate tension and fatigue and invigorate the entire body. Essential oils can affect the mood, alleviate fatigue, reduce anxiety and promote relaxation. When inhaled, they work on the brain and nervous system through stimulation of the olfactory nerves.

(See also: Aromatherapy , Alternative Health, Body Mind and Soul)

AROMATHERAPY - the art of healing & wellness using essential oils and oil blends. Depending in the remedy, application may be internal, external or as an inhalant.

(See also: AROMATHERAPY , Wiccan Pagan, Paganism, Pagan Dictionary)

Aromatherapy: The therapeutic use of fragrances and “essential oils” (the volatile oils distilled from plants), to improve the health and balance of body, mind and soul. For example, this technique is used to relax the nervous system, to stimulate circulation, lift depression, reduce inflammation and ease aches and pains.

(See also: Aromatherapy , Alternative Health, Body Mind and Soul)

aromatherapy

The art of healing and wellness using essential oils and oil blends. Depending on the remedy, application may be internal, external or as an inhalant

(See also: Aromatherapy , Body Mind and Soul)

AROMATHERAPY: 

1) use of various flower, herb, oil and incense fragrances and smells.   

2) HOLISTIC AROMA: uses massage and smell. 

3) MAGICKAL AROMA: uses smell and visualization.

(See also: AROMATHERAPY , Witchcraft, Wicca, Paganism, Pagan Dictionary)

AROMATHERAPY

The use of essential oils (which are extracted from herbs, flowers, resin, woods, and roots) in body and skin care treatments is known as aromatherapy. Used as a healing technique for thousands of years by the Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans, essential oils aid in relaxation, improve circulation, and help the healing of wounds.

Aromatherapy diffusers are utilized to fill the massage room with the scent of the oils. Specific essential oils are blended by the aromatherapist and added to a carrier oil, such as almond oil, to be used during the massage. Each of the oils has its own unique characteristics and benefits.

Use of this technique declined as the modern pharmaceutical industry developed. However, the French chemist Gattefossé revived the art by coining the term aromatherapy and by publishing a book on the subject in 1928.

(See also: AROMATHERAPY , Alternative Health, Massage, Bodywork, Body Mind and Soul)

Aromatherapy: Herbal medicine, use of essential oils from plants, flowers, trees and herbs to achieve health, vitality and rejuvenation of the body, mind and spirit.

(See also: Aromatherapy , Alternative Health, Body Mind and Soul)

Aromatherapy – Pure essential oils are used to treat stress and anxiety as well as a wide range of other ailments. Aromatherapy is often used in conjunction with massage therapy, acupuncture, reflexology, herbology, chiropractic, and other methods of holistic healing.

(See also: Aromatherapy , Alternative Health, Body Mind and Soul)

olfactory aromatherapy: Direct or indirect inhalation of essential oils. Olfactory aromatherapy unlocks odor memories and encourages realignment of natural forces within the body.

(See also: Olfactory aromatherapy , Body Mind and Soul, Alternative Health, Alternative Health Dictionary)

AROMATHERAPY: uses essential oils from flowers, trees, roots, herbs, berries and fruits, to treat emotional disorders such as stress and anxiety as well as a wide range of other ailments and to promote physical, mental and emotional wellness. Oils are either massaged into the skin in diluted form, inhaled, placed in baths, or applied on and around the body.

Aromatherapy is often used in conjunction with massage therapy, acupuncture, reflexology, herbology, chiropractic and other wholistic healing.

What is aromatherapy?

It is the controlled use of natural essential oils in the process of physical and emotional healing. You may have discovered that in some ways, you've been experiencing aromatherapy most of your life without even knowing it.

We have all experienced memory recall triggered by a particular scent; perhaps the scent of a favorite flower, or the perfume your grandmother used to wear, or an aunt's linen closet. The event can produce positive or negative memories. Certain scents may trigger negative thoughts of a person or place in your past. Whatever the case, the importance of scent in our lives is quite profound and in some ways, unique to each of us. Aromatherapy is a way to enjoy a controlled use of natural oils to enrich and benefit your life.

What are essential oils?

Whole, pure essential oils come from nature; they are the "essence" of plants. They are droplets of water-like fluid contained in the leaves, stems, bark, flowers, roots and/or fruits of different plants, and give the plant its unique scent. Essential oils are volatile, whereas they easily transfer from a liquid to a gaseous state at room temperature or higher. The amount of essential oil found in most plants is 1 to 2%, but can contain amounts from 0.01 to 10%. They can change in composition and location with a particular plant. For example, orange trees produce neroli oil in their blossoms, orange oil in their citrus, and petitgrain oil in their leaves. Essential oils are also very concentrated and extremely potent, and sometimes 75 to 100 times more concentrated than say, the herb it is present in. This is all the more reason to use these oils with thorough knowledge of their potency.

How are essential oils extracted?

There are two common procedures for extracting true essential oils:

1. Steam distillation
2. Expression

 The process of steam distillation has 5 steps:

1. Steam plant material
2. Collect steam carrying aromatic molecules
3. Cool in cold-water bath
4. Produce floral water and essential oil
5. Separate essential oil, then bottle

This process is also the most popular for obtaining the essential oils from plants. The steam is forced into a vat containing the plant material, which ruptures the oil glands and releases the oil. The volatile oils are cooled, separated from the water content, and bottled. It may take hundreds or thousands of pounds of plant material to distill a single pound of the essential oil. Bulgarian Rose oil requires about 4,000 pounds of hand-picked flower petals to make 1 pound of oil, obviously making this one expensive oil!

The second method, extraction, has 4 major steps:

1. Have citrus peels
2. Machine press
3. Obtain essential oils and fruit waxes
4. Separate oils, then bottle

This method is primarily used in the perfume and food industries, and does not produce a 100% pure essential oil. Solvents are used in the process to pull out the soluable molecules; therefore making them incomplete oils. Resins, concretes, absolutes, and pomades result from this method.

How are essential oils taken in?

Essential oils are absorbed into the body two ways; through the skin and through nasal inhalation. Our sense of smell, controlled by the olfactory system, is some 10,000 times greater than any other sense. The olfactory system is directly linked to the limbic system, which is responsible for our emotional state, memory, and certain regulatory function.

Essential oils also penetrate the skin, or the integumentary system. Because essential oils have a low molecular weight and are organic in nature, they are absorbed through the pores and hair follicles of the skin, and unlike synthetic chemicals, they do not accumulate in the body. Absorption can take place anywhere from 15 minutes to 12 hours, and take from 3 to 6 hours to be metabolized in a healthy body. Excessive fat or toughened skin may slow down the rate of absorption; whereas heat, water, exercise, or broken skin may speed it up.

How are essential oils used?

Aromatherapy is used to self-heal and soothe common, everyday health challenges. It is by no means a replacement for the opinion of a licensed physician, and should always be used with respect.

As with all things derived from nature, some essential oils are considered hazardous, and under certain circumstances, should be avoided. Some are phototoxic, neurotoxic, or carcinogenic, and safety precautions should always be considered when working with and administering any essential oil.

Here are common-sense safety points to note:

1. Avoid essential oils deemed as hazardous
2. Keep all essential oils out of the reach of children.
3. Remember essentail oils are very potent.
4. Do not take orally.
5. Follow dilution guidelines carefully. Never use an oil without first diluting.
6. Use 1% or less dilution during pregnancy.
7. Be aware of others with sensitivities or allergies.
8. Do not use on or near the eyes.
9. Do a skin patch test if prone to sensitivities.
10. Use extra care on broken or damaged skin.
11. Avoid phototoxic essential oils if history of skin cancer.
12. Keep them away from light and heat sources.
13. Use only therapeutic genuine and authentic essential oils.

(See also: Aromatherapy , Alternative Health, Body Mind and Soul)

The Herbal Dictionary

A herbal dictionary with definitions.

Please note that all words in grey, like "yoga", "enlightenment" or "kundalini" are hyperlinked to archives further explaining the term. At the corresponding archive you will also find articles related to the term.

Aromatherapy

Aromatherapy is the therapeutic use of scent, particularly essential oils (concentrated plant extracts or diluted hydrosols), to promote healing, relaxation and overall physical and emotional well-being by applying the oil to the skin and/or inhaling the smell.

(See also: Aromatherapy , Alternative Health, Body Mind and Soul)

Aromatherapy:

therapeutic use of essential oils extracted from flowers, stems, leaves, roots, or fruits of a plant or tree. Physiological and psychological benefits of treatment are achieved by absorption through massage, hydrotherapy, and inhalation.

(See also: Aromatherapy , Alternative Medicine, Body Mind and Soul)

Aromatherapy: The practice of stimulating the senses through fragrance by using natural botanical essential oils from plants, leaves, bark, roots, seeds, resins and flowers. Aromatherapy refreshes and relaxes the skin while soothing the mind by helping to induce a sense of well-being. Each individual essence is used to produce a specific beneficial effect. (See Essential Oils, below, for more information).

(See also: Aromatherapy , Alternative Health, Body Mind and Soul)

Aromatherapy: French chemist Rene Gattefosse's experiments with pure essential oils derived from aromatic plants led him to coin the term "aromatherapy" to describe the physical and psychological benefits of the powerful scents given off by these oils. Today aromatherapy remains a specific and specialized branch of herbal medicine.

(See also: Aromatherapy , Alternative Health, Body Mind and Soul)

chakra healing (chakra balancing, chakra energy balancing, chakra therapy, chakra work): Subject of The ABCs of Chakra Therapy: A Workbook (Samuel Weiser, Inc., 1998). chakra healing is any means of energy clearing that focuses on or has been geared to chakras, including aromatherapy, hatha yoga, reflexology, and visualization (see creative visualization).

(See also: Chakra healing , Body Mind and Soul, Alternative Health, Alternative Health Dictionary)

Aromatherapy

The use of essential oils from plants, flowers, trees and herbs to achieve health, vitality and rejuvenation of the body, mind and spirit.

(See also: Aromatherapy , New Age Spirituality, Body Mind and Soul)

cosmetic aromatherapy: Topical use of skin- and hair-care products that contain essential oils.

(See also: Cosmetic aromatherapy , Body Mind and Soul, Alternative Health, Alternative Health Dictionary)

aromatherapy (aromatic medicine, conventional aromatherapy, holistic aromatherapy): Branch of herbal medicine that centers on using fragrant substances, particularly oily plant extracts, to alter mood or to improve individuals' health or appearance. The benefits of aromatherapy range from stress relief to enhancement of immunity and the unlocking of emotions from past experiences. Although aromatherapy has ancient roots, proponents did not call it aromatherapy before the 1930s. It derives from the French word aromathŽrapie, coined by RenŽ Maurice GattefossŽ, a French chemist whose book of the same name was published in 1928. After a lab explosion GattefossŽ conveniently plunged his badly burned hand into a vat of lavender oil. He noticed how well it healed, and thus began the development of modern aromatherapy, which French homeopaths Dr. and Mme. Maury revived in the 1960s.

In aromatherapy substances are essential oils (oils that are volatile, aromatic, and flammable) from flowers, fruits, grasses, leaves, roots, and wood resins. Manners of use of such oils include sniffing, ingestion, addition to bathwater, and application to the skin (typically with massage). One of aromatherapy's principles is that essential oils have a spiritual dimension and can restore balance and harmony both to one's body and to one's life. One of its principles, the doctrine of signatures, holds that a plant's visible and olfactory characteristics reveal its secret qualities. For example, because the configuration of the violet suggests shyness, aromatherapists hold that its scent engenders calmness and modesty. Some proponents have characterized essential oils as the soul or spirit of plants.

(See also: Aromatherapy , Alternative Health, Body Mind and Soul)