Alternative Medicine

“With immediacy and intensity, smell activates memory, allowing our minds to travel freely in time.” — Tom Robbins, Jitterbug Perfume

Aromatherapy is an alchemic practice that has been used for centuries in many ancient cultures for a myriad of purposes. The aromas of each oil have a different and beneficial effect on the olfactory and limbic systems and can be used to treat both physical and emotional disorders. Below you will find some easy applications and recipes that you can incorporate into your daily lives to great benefit, particularly during this holiday season…which can be stressful as well as fun!

• Basic Essential Oil Kit
• Chamomile
• Clary Sage
• Eucalyptus
• Geranium
• Lavender
• Lemongrass
• Orange
• Peppermint
• Rosemary
• Sandalwood
• Tea Tree
• Ylang-ylang

Lavender oil and tea tree oil are among the few essential oils that can be applied to the skin in their pure form – most are too strong and must be used with a base oil as a carrier. There are many base oils to choose from–jojoba, sesame, wheat germ, evening primrose and grapeseed, to name a few. Most health food stores sell these oils by the half or full gallon, as well as in smaller quantities.

Proportions

Choose no more than three essential oils for each blend. Where more than three oils are listed in a category below, choose the three that most appeal to you.

• A helpful measurement guide is 20 drops of oil = 1 milliliter (ml), and 9 ml = 2 teaspoons.
• In general, use between 20 and 60 total drops of essential oil in 100 ml of base oil.
• When blending an oil formula to be applied to the face or body, mix 3-4 drops of each essential oil into a base oil of your choice (9 to 12 total drops for a blend with three essential oils).
• When using a diffuser, drop no more than three oils at a time directly into water.
• For a bath, drop 6-10 drops total of your selected oils directly into bath water.

For specific issues with the skin, use these oils:

Blemishes/breakouts - tea tree, lavender, camphor (note: tea tree oil can be used alone, without a base oil)
Burns - ice the area for 10 minutes first, then follow with lavender oil applied directly to the skin. Finally, use a dry cold compress soaked with five drops of lavender oil.
Mature/dry skin: lavender, rose (otto), carrot, geranium, frankincense; use evening primrose oil as a base
Sensitive/irritated skin: lavender, carrot, chamomile; use evening primrose oil as a base

Body care:

Athlete’s foot - tea tree oil, applied directly to the affected area; lemon oil can also help
Tired feet - rosemary, peppermint, cypress, in a bowl of warm water as a foot soak or in the bath
Bronchitis - lavender, eucalyptus, pine, rosemary, blended with a base oil and used as a chest rub
Digestive disorders - peppermint, ginger; in this case, use peppermint leaves or ginger root infused as a tea
Depression - rose, orange, rosemary, ylang-ylang and sage; you can use these oils in a body blend, in the bath, or in a diffuser
General fatigue - all the citrus oils, particularly lemongrass and orange, and peppermint, used in a diffuser or the bath
Jet lag - ylang-ylang and lavender, used in the bath
Hangover - geranium and lavender as a cool compress on the forehead
Menopause/PMS - clary sage, geranium, sage, pine; use in the bath
Bruising - geranium, lavender; in a base oil and applied to the skin

Mind:

Insomnia - lavender, rose, lemon, in the bath or a diffuser. Lavender dropped sparingly on your pillow is also very effective.
Concentration - ginger, black pepper, rosemary, in a diffuser, the bath or in a base oil blend
Loss of memory - rose, geranium, peppermint and lavender, in a diffuser, the bath or in a base oil blend
Stress - sandalwood, geranium, clary sage, orange, lemongrass and ylang-ylang, in a diffuser, the bath or in a base oil blend
Aphrodisiac - ylang-ylang, rose, clary sage, lavender, jasmine, patchouli, in a diffuser, the bath or in a base oil blend

“There’s flowers for you; hot lavender, mints, savory, marjoram;
The marigold, that goes to bed wi’ the sun,
And with him rises weeping; these are the flowers
Of middle Summer, and I think they are given
To men of middle age.”

– William Shakespeare, “The Winter’s Tale”