INFORMATION
ON ESSENTIAL OILS
and
how they may help ease anxiety in some individuals (this is not
medical advice - use discretion)
A friend recently asked me if I knew anything about essential oils.
I only know a little, but I'm happy to share what I know.
I prepared the following information for a workshop on anxiety run by the Nelson Branch of Autism NZ some time ago.
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Pure
Essential oils have therapeutic benefits. Perfume oils
(inferior quality) can smell nice, but do not have the true
therapeutic benefits. Perfume oils are often the result of further
extraction after the pure essential oils have been taken from the
plant – or can even be synthetic. The use of cheaper perfume oils,
or cheap essential oils can be detrimental.
A
Pure Essential Oil will always have the Latin name of the
plant on the bottle, and will cost more than a perfume oil. Our
research has lead us to mainly:
Available
from Health 2000 shops, or
and
Upper
Trafalgar Street, Nelson or order online (Consultations available)
The
following information is from the Aromaflex website.
*****
HOW OILS WORK
There are three ways oils
enter the body:
Direct Application and Massage
Blends
and Essential
Oils can be
applied directly onto the skin for therapeutic benefits. The
chemistry of the individual oils is absorbed through the
permeable layers of the skin into the blood stream. This happens
because therapeutic grade oils are small enough to penetrate through
the pores and hair follicles on the skin, thus enabling them to be
absorbed by our largest organ, the skin. The level and intensity
of absorption is different for every person depending on health, skin
type and dilution i.e you would not put pure essential oils on an
open wound.
When massaging
an area of the body you increase the circulation to an area which
increases absorption. The heat created helps to transport the oils
faster. Therefore, applying body blends after your shower when
the pores are open, is a good option.
Hydrosols
'spray' oils onto the skin for absorption. Hydrosols are a much
diluted form of essential oils and are great for wound care, facial
sprays and gargling in the mouth for sore throats and infections of
the teeth.
****
Is
it not necessary to do a great amount of research to benefit from the
use of essential oils (unless you are a “research” person and you
want to do the research!). A look at a couple of websites, or a
consultation with an aromatherapist will give you a good idea of how
oils may be able to help in the case of anxiety and ASD. The Nelson
library has some good aromatherapy books. I recommend
cross-referencing at least two or three sources when you are making a
final decision on which oil to use.
Be
aware there are warnings for the use of some oils (some should be
avoided in pregnancy, some are phototoxic – do not apply and then
expose to the sun - some are best not used for small children, some
have high or low blood pressure warnings …) so if you are not being
advised by a professional take care to read up a bit about the use of
the particular oil you are choosing.
The
Heritage Essential
Oils website
http://heritageessentialoils.com/
has information on each oil, and includes testimonials from people
who have used them which is very helpful. I highly recommend the
use of this website for information on the oils, and interesting
advice from those who have used them.
For
instance on the page for Vetiver oil I found the following
testimonial:
Vetiver
on my 11-year-old son's big toe and diluted on his spine and/or
brain stem work great for my son to calm his anxiety.
Potential has worked well to curb his hyperactivity - just a couple
drops/day of that on the back of his neck. When I do too much of
either oil it seems to cause the opposite effect. Lavender has the
opposite effect on my son and Cedarwood didn't do anything. He has
sever ASD and epilepsy. - Sarah
Most
people will say “Lavender is supposed to help you relax and
sleep ...” but one of my children finds it gives the
opposite effect, and it was good read this lady's report above
that it does the same for her child – we are trying Vetiver and
Frankincense together, in almond oil, instead.
Here
is some information about both of these oils:
FRANKINCENSE
(not
for use with small children)
Properties
and Usage:
Expectorant,
antitumoral, immunostimulant, and antidepressant.
Researchers
today have discovered that frankincense is high in sesquiterpenes,
which helps stimulate the limbic system of the brain (the center of
emotions) as well as the hypothalamus, pineal and pituitary glands.
The hypothalamus is the master gland of the human body, controlling
the release of many hormones including thyroid and growth hormone.
Frankincense is now being researched and used therapeutically in
European hospitals and is being investigated for its ability to
improve human growth hormone production.
The sesquiterpenes
in Frankincense, enable it to go beyond the blood
brain barrier.
It increases the activity of leukocytes in defense of the body
against infection.
Frankincense
has helped with asthma,
depression, and
ulcers.
High in sesquiterpenes, it is stimulating and elevating to the mind
and helps in overcoming stress and despair, as well as supporting
the immune system.
Frankincense may also help with allergies,
bites (insect and
snake),
anxiety, bronchitis,
cancer, respiratory infections, diphtheria, skin issues, headaches,
hemorrhaging, herpes, high blood pressure, inflammation, stress,
tonsillitis, typhoid,
and warts.
We
have a small roller bottle (like a perfume bottle with a roller top)
in which we have almond oil, plus 5 drops of Vetiver, and 5 drops of
Frankincense. Our 6 year old asks for his oil when he is becoming
anxious or angry (if he is able to remember), and I roll it onto the
back of his neck. I do not overuse it as Frankincense is not advised
for use with small children.
VETIVER
Properties
and Uses
Vetiver essential oil is well known for
its anti-inflammatory properties and is commonly used for painful
joints. It is antiseptic, antispasmodic, a relaxant and
circulatory stimulant.
Vetiver is used for ADHD,
anxiety, joint aches and pains, depression (including
after giving birth), insomnia, skin care such as for
wrinkles, oily, aging and acne.
And
another of our favourites, both for smell and therapeutic benefits:
MANDARIN
Properties
and Usage
Mandarin
is used as a digestive
tonic, is
anti-fungal and stimulates
the gallbladder. It
has a high limonene content, which has been studied for its ability
to combat tumor
growth in over 50
clinical studies.
Used for digestive
issues, fluid retention, insomnia, anxiety, intestinal issues,
skin (such as acne,
oily, scars), stretch marks
(especially when combined with another oil such as Jasmine,
Lavender, Sandalwoods, or Frankincense). It is noted to help
regulate
metabolic processes
and aid the secretion of bile breaking
down fats.
Known
as the children's
remedy and is
used to relieve tummy
upset of babies
and children. It is soothing
and calming and
sometimes referred to as the "happy
oil."
We have made up a small bottle of almond oil with
mandarin essential oil added to it. When someone is a bit anxious,
upset, tummy achey or has an unspecified concern (very common with
one of our children), I rub their tummy and/or back with this oil.
The combination of the rub (for the children who like to be touched),
the attention, the calm quiet moment, and the oil works very nicely.
Another
of our children chose the Aromaflex “Uplifting and Soothing”
synergy (mix) which contains orange, geranium and ylang ylang. We
bought a small 5ml bottle - $13.00 - to see if it worked.
We
used a small roller bottle ¾ full of almond oil, and then 10 drops
of the “Uplifting and Soothing” synergy into the bottle. This
has proved very successful in calming this child down when anxiety
creeps or leaps up. One of the greatest successes has been in the
supermarket – this was a very good test for the oil, and it worked.
***
It
is important that the person likes the smell of the oils! Many of
our children and both Mum and Dad are intolerant of synthetic smells
– perfume, air freshner etc but high quality essential oils are
totally different, and tolerated by almost all of us.
If
the smell is not acceptable you can try putting the oils onto the
soles of the feet (diluted with a carrier oil, with the exception of
lavender which can be put onto the skin neat) in which case they are
not so easy for the wearer to smell (depending on how
sensitive/hyper-sensitive their “smeller” is!).
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Hopefully you have found something interesting in this article. I'd just like to add that if I were to choose my favourite five oils to start a collection I would have to say
1. Lavender
2. Tea tree
3. Chamomile
4. Frankincense
5. Sandalwood
