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Tip 4: Aromatherapy

Aromatherapy: Put simply aromatherapy is how smells affect us. Aromatherapy can be used very effectively to assist with ailments on all levels; physical, emotional, mental and spiritual.

Olfactory: In your nose, aromas travel to the top of the nasal cavity and fit like a puzzle pieceinto specific receptors on nearly 10 million olfactory (epithelia) cells. These fuzzy looking patches (olfactory bulbs) located on the roof of your nasal cavity are your sensory organs for smell. The olfactory bulbs are connected to the limbic system (also referred to as the “primitive brain”) which influence behaviors. I may cover more on this in the future, but for now, it is important to know that the limbic system mediates our innermost moods and external behavior.* Have you ever had memories flood in with the smell of a certain aroma? Essential oils can affect our emotions to help us heal through these sensors. Therapeutic grade essential oils are very small, highly concentrated particles and therefore travel easily to these olfactory receptors and assimilate into our systems with ease.

A few ways to use aromatherapy: Drop on cloth or cotton ball: When I am traveling long distances I like to put a drop or two of peppermint on a cotton ball, napkin or cloth and put it where the vent blows air into the car. This wonderful aroma of peppermint helps mental and physical fatigue. For nausea, pregnant women can keep a cotton ball with a few drops of peppermint, sweet orange or Inside-Out (all found in my Motion Sickness Nausea Kit) and store it in a sandwich bag for quick accessibility. The cotton ball in a bag idea is good for any essential oil you might want to inhale throughout the day. Just open and take a whiff, then close the baggy to preserve the aroma for later. Warm water: You can diffuse essential oils by adding a few drops to a warm pot of water (don’t boil). The aroma willrise like steamand fillthe room. If you can smell the aroma, you are assured it is getting into your body through the olfactory receptors.

Misting: Using a small bottle with a misting spray tip, you can put some oil (about 10-20 drops per 4 oz. is what I like) in the bottle and mist the room, or spray on your face. I like Sweet Orange for this. It is a real spirit lifter and a nice refreshing fragrance. Putting Deliverance (or any oil because they are all anti-bacterial all to one degree or another) in a bottle and keeping it at work to mist when others are sick around you works well. This is especially good for teachers who seem to always have a sick child sneezing on them.

Cleaners: Using the oils in a spray bottle to clean with is an excellent way to clean and enjoy a lift by inhaling the oils. You receive an uplifting support that is good for you instead of inhaling caustic cleaners. I like to use Lemon or Sweet Orange to clean with. Don’t mix too big of bottle or, as it sits in your cupboard you will lose the aroma over time.

Bath or shower: When your sinuses feel a little clogged, putting a few drops of Breezey (an allergy, upper respiratory blend) on the floor while taking a shower can help to open up your sinuses. I know several people who use Deeper (a wonderful pain blend) in their bath water for fibromyalgia. Just add a few drops in the bath water just before
it is full (so it won’t evaporate before you get in) and enjoy soaking. On your wrists: Just putting your favorite oil on your wrists is good. Every time you wave your hands in front of you it gives you support. This is great for people who
like to talk with their hands. On your body and clothes: You can put a drop of essential oil on the collar of your
clothing. (Be sure it is not one with color that may stain – like Millenia, which is blue. To keep a needed aroma where it is smelled throughout the day, put a drop behind your ears, at the base of your nose or on your chest where the aroma easily rises to your nose. Just smelling Sweet Orange, Lemon, Grateful-Heart or Heart-Song throughout the day lifts my spirits.

Open the bottle and take a whiff: This is great for making oils last longer. Just opening the top of an essential oil and taking in 3 big whiffs gives you the benefit of the oil. Be sure to replace the cap so the small particles do not escape.

Drop on pillow case or sachet: Putting a drop of Lavender or Good-Nite (helpful in reducing mind chatter) on your pillow case has been known to help some people relax and go to sleep more easily. Good-Nite is my (and my husband’s) favorite oil for using as a sleep aid. It is a very inexpensive nice smelling blend for people like me who don’t
like the aroma of Lavender. I have made sachets out of dried herbs (like Lavender and Chamomile) and then added a drop of good night on the outside of the herb pack. It feels calming and good to put over your eyes.

Humidifiers, vaporizers and fans: Butterfly oils being 100% Pure Therapeutic Grade – will not hurt the motors of humidifiers and vaporizers unless you are using high resin oil like Myrrh. Adding a drop of Deliverance to the water and diffusing it when a child is getting sick will give their immune system a boost. If a cold has already set in the chest,
any of the oils in my Allergy, Cold, and Flu Remedies would be good to diffuse. This method could be used to diffuse oils throughout the house to kill germs (Deliverance is good for this), or to boost your spirits. Some of my favorites are; Lemon, Sweet Orange, Heart Song and Grateful Heart. Fans can be made useful for diffusing oils by putting a few drops on a cotton ball and putting it on the fan where the air blows out.

Diffusers: I love these. They can send aroma through a room easily and continuously. If you can afford a diffuser, they are wonderful to have. Some diffusers allow you to attach the actual bottle to them. Many of these, I’ve been told, use a lot of oil. One of the diffusers I really like is the Ultra Sonic. It allows you to choose several settings of how much to diffuse (a lot or a little) and several settings of “off and on” at different time intervals. It uses a drop or two per use and is easy to clean. You can also just buy a cheap electric warmer; like those that melt aroma candles, and use a little water and a
drop of essential oil in them instead of the candles. Some fountains could also make good diffusers if you aren’t ready to invest in a good diffuser yet.

Washes and Compresses: The oils can be used in warm water as sits baths or in small wash tubs for hemorrhoids or other surface things like sores, rashes, athlete’s foot etc. Just add a few drops to the water and soak or run a wash rag over the top of the water (it will pick up the oil) and lay over the area of concern. Mela‐plus and Deliverance are
both good for athlete’s foot and toe nail fungus.

I hope you have found this useful. Happy oiling!

Thanks to LaRee Westover’s book Butterfly Miracles with Essential Oils and Steve Parker’s The Human Body Book, where some of this tips information was found.

*This information does not represent any implied or express warranties and has not been evaluated by the FDA. not intended to prescribe, diagnose, prevent or cure any disease or condition. “Le” denotes Butterfly express blend.