Aromatherapy & Botanical Medicine
I received my Aromatherapy training from the Pacific Institute of Aromatherapy and through course work in Switzerland
I was raised using botanical and aromatherapy treatments as the first line of defense for all common ailments and apply that knowledge in working with my clients.
I did the following course work with Dr. A. Weil's Institute of Integrative Medicine:
- Nutrition & Botanicals for Cancer
- Nutrition & Botanicals for Prostate Cancer
- Nutrition & Botanicals for Cardiovascular Disease
- Nutrition & Botanicals for Depression & Anxiety
Aromatherapy has only become popular in the Us in recent years, but it has been know
and
used as a form of healing for over 5000 years. Gums and
resins, such as myrrh and cedar were used for healing purposes
and spiritual ceremonies in ancient
Egypt.
The Greeks ended up learning a great deal from the
Egyptians concerning the properties and uses of
"aromatics." Hippocrates, the father of modern
medicine said that
"the way to health is and aromatic bath and a scented massage
everyday."
The last century has brought a
renewed interest in this form of healing, especially in Great
Britain, France
and Italy. A number of European scientists
have been conducting
experiments with essential oils since the 1930's.
Today we understand that essential oils enter our body in two
ways;
absorbed by the skin they reach the organs via the circulatory
system
and through our breathing process they reach the brain. When we
inhale fragrance molecules they reach the innermost control
center of our brain,
the place where "our emotions are made."
Scent stimuli in that part of the brain release a number of
neurotransmitters that effect our mood and reduce the experience
of pain.
Because essential oils act in accordance with a holistic
approach to healing they are more and more becoming a treatment
of
choice as we begin to understand that illnesses often originate
in
the body and the mind. The list of ailments that can be
addressed with essential oils is endless, however here are some
of
them that respond particularly well:
- Stress
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Insomnia
- Headaches
- Respiratory Infections
- Weakness of the Immune System
- Allergies
- Muscle Spasms
- Digestive Disorders
- Skin Conditions
- Hormonal Imbalances
