So many people are reluctant to try aromatherapy but it has the power to send messages we cant decode to our brain, naturally helping our bodies to relax, focus, sleep, etc.
The power of smell!!
Our sense of smell is estimated to be 10,000 times more acute than any other of our senses. Once Aromas are registered, scent travels faster to the brain than both sight or sound, crazy right!
Aromas can trigger emotional and even physical responses as well as allow vivid memory recalls of people and places.
Think of a time a smell has reminded you of something.
Maybe your favorite place, a loved one or even a childhood memory. This is because the sense of smell is linked to some of the oldest and deepest parts of the brain.
The physical structures of smell found in the nose and brain are together called the Olfactory system.
The sense of smell is a dynamic sense, its effect is not constant but immediate and then it fades.
So how exactly does it work?
Aromatic molecules are volatile meaning that they become gases and spread really quickly. We can then inhale them with the air we breathe which is the first step to detecting an aroma.
When the molecules connect with hair like cilia in our nose, the olfactory cells produce a nerve impulse which reaches the Limbic System.
The Limbic system is one of the most primitive parts of the brain concerned with survival instincts and emotions. Scientists believe that the activity of the nerve signals passing through this region causes mood changes by altering brain chemistry.
The nerve impulse eventually passes beyond the Limbic system to the Olfactory cortex, located towards the back of the brain.
Here, the aroma will finally be recognized but by this time the brain and body will already have responded to it.
- Stress Relief Essential Oils
- Lavender-relaxation
- Chamomile-sleep
- Meditation-orange
- Anxiety-sandlewood
- Stress-clary sage
- Mood lifter-lemon
- Self-love journey-rose
- Depression-jasmine
- Insomnia-ylang ylang
Self-Love Journey Oil Blend Recipe
Purchase a diffuser and add 4 drops of jasmine, 6 drops of lavender, and 2 drops of sandlewood. This will help you to really destress after a long day of helping others get ahead.
Add the same amount of essential oil to 1/2 cup of grapeseed oil and rub it into your temples, on the bottom on your feet, your wrists, and neck.
Take the same blend of essential oils and add it to a spray bottle with distilled water and 1 tsp of alcohol. This is a DIY linen spray so get crazy and spray it on anything you sit on, stand on, or lay on. You can add more essential oil since this is a room spray depending on the size of your bottle.