what is Aroma Therapy

Skin conditions and the mind

holistic aromatherapy

Consultations & customized care products.

Aromatherapy consultations and individual, therapeutic products for your particular physical or psychological need. The consultations are provided by a qualified, natural health therapist (Dip aromatherapist / osmologist - ISAO) specialized in skin conditions and individual skin care. All products used are of 100% therapeutic quality.

Essential Oil Therapy is a truly holistic approach, treating mind, body & soul, enhancing both your physical and psychological health at the same time.

Treatments with 100% pure and natural essential oils, herbal extracts and cold pressed plant oils.

For more information about products & for scheduling appointments please contact Aromansi.

Consultations include establishment of a detailed case history, osmology (assessment of psychological reactions to essential oils), individual skin care products and suggestions on further treatments & supplements.

Sessions à $ 40.00 incl. your individual product.

What is holistic aromatherapy? Article "Healthy Options May 05" by Ann Schmitt

The healing art of aromatherapy is very much misunderstood. Not many people know about the essential oils’ ability to heal and prevent many different conditions. Since essential oils are often seen solely as aromatic substances, it can be rather difficult to understand how they are capable of having such an impact on one’s health. While these materials’ most dominant feature is their scent, their true capabilities are determined by their chemical composition.

For the healing purpose it’s very important to use the 100% pure and natural essential oils and not any kind of synthetic, aromatic substances. Most of the skin care products on the shelves today, labelled aromatherapy, have little or nothing to do with the healing properties of pure essential oils. Aromatherapy is not a protected term and can be used for any product containing fragrant substances.

Holistic Aromatherapy is the therapeutic use of pure, unadulterated essential oils to treat and prevent various illnesses. It can be used alone or in combination with any other conventional, alternative, complementary treatments and gives us the ability to treat a vast number of everyday ailments in a completely natural, effective manner. These powerful essential oils are the most fascinating and complex of all natural therapies.

An essential oil is a volatile substance, obtained from leaves, flowers, roots, bark, seeds or fruit of a plant and is a product of the plant’s metabolic processes. Essential oils are non-oily, extremely concentrated and highly aromatic. Plants produce essential oils for a variety of reasons: attracting insects, repelling pests and fighting off bacteria, moulds, viruses and fungi. A variety of tasks yield a vast spectrum of chemical compounds within any given essential oil. Depending on the material, they have antibacterial, antiviral, antifungal, antipruritic (stops itching), regenerative and anti-inflammatory properties. They act balancing, calming or stimulating on the central nervous system.

Of all complementary therapies, essential oils could be considered the most similar in structure and application, to many drugs in allopathic medicine. Synthetic commercial medication are very often based on the biologically active compounds of essential oils, but unfortunately the chemical substitutes often lack the all-important trace elements and life force needed for holistic healing. But like other systems of medicine, aromatherapy can be dangerous if misused. Do not underestimate the strength of essential oils – the therapeutic action of some of those available is up to seventy times stronger than the fresh herb or source plant. This is why it’s so important to use the highest quality essential oils (preferably from organic cultivation) to dilute them, and to use them appropriately.

The term holistic refers to the entire patient. Holistic therapies address the health of the entire organism by slowly and surely balancing the systems of the body, strengthening the immune system and preventing disease at the same time as dealing with the problem. The essential oils contain a life force which make them capable of recognising where they are needed in the body. They help the body to heal itself. Modern medicine does not treat the entire human, it directly addresses the problem, suppressing the symptoms, aiming to correct it as quickly as possible. The holistic therapist will ask "Why is the person exhibiting a certain condition in the first place?" Did the condition occur due to environ -mental influences, diet, allergens, aso. Natural remedies may work more slowly than traditional medicine, but that doesn’t make them any less potent.

Osmotherapy

Osmotherapy is a method by which aromatic substances are chosen based on the person’s preference for them. If someone like the scent of an essential oil then they must have a physiological or emotional need for it. Not only the scent preference but also the body’s reaction to a certain aroma is to consider. Aromatherapy works on multiple levels: physically, emotionally and mentally. When inhaled, essential oils address your emotional state and stored memories, along with triggering an effect that eventually involves the endocrine system. A scent is made up of minute aromatic molecules of different shapes. When detected by the tiny hairs in the nasal cavity, these molecules set of a chain reaction via the olfactory system. The tiny hairs (cilia) pick up the different shaped molecules then transmit a signal in the form of electric impulses along the nerve fibres to the olfactory bulb. Here the stimuli are processed and you then respond to these messages which are passed from the olfactory system to the limbic system, the area of the brain where emotions and memories are stored. In this way, aromatherapy has a great impact on your state of mind and can cause a cascade of internal responses. The limbic system and the hypothalamus gland instruct the release of neurochemicals throughout the body. They include endorphins and encephalin which reduce pain, serotonin which relax and calm and noradrenalin to stimulate and enliven. The hypothalamus gland is responsible for keeping a balance of this release and stimulating the correct release of these neurochemicals for this physical response. After the messages have been picked up by the limbic system, the aroma molecules are transferred from the lungs to the bloodstream and consequently to every organ in the body.

The simple action of inhaling an essential oil can begin a whole process that can have a physical effect throughout your body.

How to use the essential oils for various conditions?

One of the most satisfactory aspects of using essential oils medicinally and cosmetically is that they enter and leave the body with great efficiency, leaving no toxins behind. Each single oil is used for many diverse purposes, for example:

Peppermint

Anti-inflammatory is used to treat rheumatism and arthritis, an excellent, refreshing mouth wash and prevents travel sickness. Its pain relieving action is very useful to ease aches and sport related muscle pain.

Lavender

Soothes skin irritations, has a pronounced healing effect on burns and sunburns. Excellent for many different kind of skin disorders.

Manuka Oil

The most important first aid essential oil, acting against bacteria, viruses and fungal growth. Increases the immune system defence and is a very powerful antiseptic.

Essential oils can be used in many different ways:

Flu, cold and coughs

The most common method is to add 5-10 drops of essential oil to the water in a burner. Ideal to prevent the spread of bacteria and viruses in case of cold & coughs. You can also add 5-10 drops of non irritant, immune system boosting essential oils (Eucalyptus radiata, Manuka oil, Lavender, Ravensara) neat to your bath or dilute it into a bubble bath or liquid soap. A couple of drops on your handkerchief is all what you need for a quick inhalation to clear a stuffed nose.

Muscle & Joint pain

To get the most out of the pain relieving properties of essential oils you can dilute analgesic oils like Cajeput, Peppermint, Lavender or Black Pepper in a base oil so that they can get massaged or rubbed on to the skin. Essential oils should never be used neat on the skin as they are highly concentrated. It needs approx. 25 drops of essential in 50ml of base oil. Good base oils are almond oil Macadamia nut oil and olive oil.

Minor wounds, cuts & stings

There are two essential oils that may be used directly onto the skin and that is Manuka Oil and Lavender oil. Manuka is excellent to disinfect smaller wounds, scratches and cuts. Lavender oil promotes the growth of new cells, speeds up the healing process and prevents scarring. It is also pain relieving and detoxifying on insect stings.

Other conditions that can be successfully treated with essential oils:

Allergies
Eczemas
Acne
Wounds
Warts
Cellulites
Sunburn
Hair loss
Aches & pain
Depression

Essential oils and beauty skin care

Cellular regeneration is the key to a youthful skin, and essential oils provide a way of doing this in a very efficient and pleasant manner. The circulation stimulating properties of the oils oxygenate the blood which in turn energises the cells, allowing them to regenerate. Geranium is the number one anti-ageing oil and will bring a radiant glow when used on your skin. It balances sebum and keeps the skin supple. Dilute 5 drops of Geranium oil into 50ml of apricot kernel oil and you will have a real treat for your skin. Lavender oil is known for its rejuvenating cell stimulating properties. Carrot seed oil improves the skin complexion due to its strengthening effect on red blood cells, adding tone and elasticity tot the skin. It has a formative action on epidermal cells and is the best anti-wrinkle oil.

Aromatherapy and animals

Many animal ailments can be safely treated with essential oils but it is very important to use the correct dosage. You can treat a horse with a higher concentration of essential oils than you would use for a dog.
Cats shouldn’t be exposed to essential oils as they have very different metabolic functions to horses and dogs. They are not capable of excreting the essential oils efficiently, and sometimes not at all. This means that they stay in their bodies, and build up to reach toxic levels !

Conditions that can be successfully treated with essential oils:

Sarcoids

Warts

Fungal infections

Rain scald

Summer eczema

Mud fever

Ticks, mites, fleas

Proud flesh

Arthritis

Immune defence deficit

Respiratory disorders

Brittle hooves

Ann Schmitt is a natural therapist, dip. aromatologist/osmologist specialized in skin conditions and individual skin care. Her consultations include establishment of a detailed case history, assessment of patient’s psychological reaction to essential oils, individual skin care products and suggestions on further treatments. She is also successfully treating horse’s sarcoids and other pet related skin condtions.

Skin conditions - Holistic aromatherapy and the mind

Essential oil therapy and skin conditions

Skin is more than a physical interface between our internal and external environements, it is also a psychological interface and mirror. Mental health and physical health are intimately connected. One’s thoughts, feelings, emotions and expectations can have a huge effect on one’s health. This is particularly true in the field of dermatology. That is why osmotherapy works so well with skin conditions as it produces both physiological and psychological benefits.

How close the relation between our skin and our mind is states the simultaneous development of skin, brain and all sense organs out of the same body tissue, the ectoderm.

The skin that covers our body reacts to our emotions so that people under stress for example often find their skin becoming dry and taut, and in severe emotional states even dehydrated. Hormonal changes produce spots and blemishes, as well as increases oiliness. Climate also effects face and body skin.

One example is the civilization disease neuro dermatitis, brought on by many of the factors present in today’s hectic lifestyle. When a condition is the expression of years of subscribing to a certain lifestyle though, it is unlikely to be reversed instantaneously through the use of essential oils. However by applying the essential oil of Chamomile to counteract the itching, a degree of symptomatic relief will take place. When complemented with lavender to relieve stress and rosemary to recondition the gastrointestinal tract, increased metabolic activity will lead to elimination of toxins and re-equilibration of the nervous system. An overall psychosomatic improvement will occur and very likely contribute to a recovery from the condition. The results of such a treatment are not limited to the immediate effect of the applied oils, but include a cascade of developments following the first successful use. This cascade creates a gradual change in how the mind relates to aromatherapy. It serves to encourage a more natural lifestyle, the intake of fewer toxins, and so on – all factors that will ultimately benefit the recovery from complex civilization diseases.

The essential oils are absorbed through the skin and lungs, their natural and extremely small molecules penetrate the dermis and enters the blood – and lymph stream. They work medically, cosmetically and anti-ageing in several ways. They stimulate skin cells into reproducing in a quicker way. Skin that has been treated with essential oils becomes more dynamic and stronger. Essential oils can prevent the congestion of toxins and expedite the elimination of toxic debris by improving the lymphatic flow and general condition of the lymph glands. They improve circulation which aids oxygenation. Some can balance the rate at which sebum is produced by the sebaceous glands, thereby stabilising a healthy skin condition. As bactericides they neutralize unwanted bacteria, preventing blemished conditions and as anti-inflammatories, they calm sensitive and damaged skin. Since some essential oils contain phyto-hormons they create an equilibrium within our endocrine system. Their action on then peripheral nerve-endings helps to relieve the stress and tension that so often leads to an ageing skin.

Osmotherapy asessment

To be able to treat a person’s skin condition individually and in a holisitic, psychosomatic way, it’s very important to assess the patient’s psychological response to the scent of essential oils. Selecting the correct essential oil is similar to choosing a homeopathic remedy.
In the initial session a detailed case history is taken including visible symptoms, medical history, mental symptoms, general symptoms and genetic disposition. Then the patient’s mental reaction is asessed on 4 different essential oils representing the 4 elements. The scent molecules will travel through the nose and reach the limbic system where emotions and memories are stored triggering different responses of symphaty or antipathy. We are trying to find the scent or group of scents that arouse the most positiv feelings and likes and then incorporate this in our treatment. The chosen essential oil/s is than administered to the patient to inhale and/or added to the therapeutic blend and applied to the skin.
The different essential oils represent various themes in life and act like a mirror of the soul telling us in what areas there is a weakness or need for a change. When we are ill, depressed or just exhausted there is a lack of energie that needs to be compensated. It’s like a low car battery that needs to get recharged. The essential oils contain a life force that is able to restore the emotional balance and recharge the battery. Now the body has enough energie to induce healing.
Many psoriasis, dermatitis and acne patients have been successfully treated with the combination aroma-, osmotherapy. Other conditions that can be, improved and healed with essential oils are warts, eczema, fungal infections and cellulites.
Healing is not the exclusive privilege of science and aromatherapy reminds us that science needs to be complemented with respect for the immaterial phenomena of life. Humans respond to oils because plants and people have always communicated in their own way.

Essential oils and beauty care

You can benefit a lot if you integrate aromatherapy in the daily beauty care to keep your skin healthy and good looking and to boost your emotional well being.

All the essential oils possess a time quality that makes them even more efficient at certain times of the day. If you have troubles getting started in the morning use a shower lotion containing the refreshing, uplifting and awakening oil of rosemary. In the evening after a hectic day you might feel stressed and unable to relax, then a geranium scented bath will soon get you into another state of mind and ensure a good night’s sleep.
You can also incorporate your personal scent into skin care products like day and night creams or body lotions. If your preference for the time being is lavender than apply a face cream containing the essential oil of lavender and it will work wonder. Your preference or situation may change with time and you might need another more invigorating scent, than you can profit from adding your preferred oil to a body lotion.
An individual, holistic skin care is able to improve your skin texture and emotional wellbeing dramatically.

warning:

Never use essential oils neat on the skin (exceptions: Tea Tree, Lavender)
.
Do not administer essential oils internally or apply them during pregnancy without asking your GP !
Stop the treatment immediately if you notice any allergic reaction.
Do not apply the oils for longer than 4 weeks. (If there is no improvement seek your GP's advice).

*Aromansi is not liable for any adverse reaction to herbal treatments!