Rose - For the Heart

Looking out the window this morning on my garden, I delight in the wonderful display of roses on my rosebushes. This beautiful flower has the power to stir my soul and take me down wonderful paths of fancy.

I have profiled Rose in the past, there is a mini profile of Rose on my website and it has also been featured in one of the blogs Rose - Rosa damascena but today I feel drawn to revisiting the psychological power of this wonderful flower and essential oil.

A great deal has been written about Roses in folklore and traditional use and one of the most common themes that seems to run through many of these is that the intrinsic qualities of love, trust and self-acceptance are core qualities of both the flower and the essential oil.

In his bookAromatherapy for Healing the Spirit - Gabriel Mojay says:

On a more subtle level, the power of rose may be symbolized by its traditional classification as a Herb of Love. Sacred to Aphrodite, Greek goddess of love, beauty, and fertility, the enticing floral sensuality of rose oil has made it a renowned aphrodisiac. At the same time, the damask rose is the Holy Rose, a symbol of God's love for the world. It is often shown surrounding the Virgin, as when she appeared to St Bernadette at Lourdes.
The compassion of the flower is revealed through its ability to heal emotional wounds. When rejection or loss has injured our capacity for self-love and self-nurturing, rose oil brings a sweet, gentle comfort, binding the heart-strings of the Mind. Bringing warmth to a soul grown cold through abuse or hurt, rose oil can touch the deepest despair, restoring the trust that makes it possible to love again.

In her book The Blossoming Heart - Robbi Zeck says about rose:

Loved - Isolated. Since ancient times, the mystical Rose has been used as a symbol of the soul, evoking the essence of spiritual renaissance. The glorious Rose enfolds the soul within its own fragrant song, aligning it with the higher angelic realms.
It is the nature of human love to provide the pattern through which whole-heartedness and divine love can flow. Awakening the heart energy, the exquisite fragrance of the velvety rose calls forth a sense of deeper identity and belonging.

In Aromatherapy & Subtle Energy Techniques - Joni Keim Loughran and Ruah Bull tell us:

In general rose brings in positive energy. For the Second Chakra it connects sexuality with the Heart centre. Promotes creativity and love of beauty. For the Fourth Chakra it promotes love, compassion, hope and patience. Heals emotional wounds, especially grief. and for the Seventh Chakra it promotes a sense of spiritual connection and completeness.

In Vibrational Healing - Deborah Eidson says:

The Key to Rose's transformation: Comprehending the Individuality of Oneness Allows the Experience of True Unconditional Love.

In The Fragrant Heavens - Valerie Ann Worwood says of Rose:

The breath of Rose Otto is like the beating of angels' wings. It operates with a light far brighter even than the sun, with a frequency that cannot be measured but is still everywhere, and that we can feel if only we stop to smell the rose.
Rose otto vibrates with the energy of universal love, operating in the light of unconditional love and giving. The rose offers itself in sacrifice for the love of the human race, and the planet. While all plants used in herbal medicine suffer in their sacrifice to help us, rose Otto is the quintessential fragrance of love, the love that touches our very soul, and it is for the awakening of love in us that it offeres itself.
Rose Otto eases the sorrow of the soul, bringing harmony and comfort. It is gentle, yet euphoric.

No wonder the sight of the roses in bloom lifts the heart so much and no wonder rose essential oil has a core role to play in many of the emotional challenges that we face.

Upcoming Workshops

September 12 & 13: Reiki Master Level
September 19: Reiki Level I
October 24 & 25: Lymphatic Stimulation
November 7: Reiki Level II
November 21: Advanced Massage Techniques - Back and Neck
December 12 & 13: Aromatherapy Caddy Chemistry

Aromatherapy Courses are available to start at any time during the summer - so if you are looking for something to do this summer perhaps one of our aromatherapy courses is the way to go.

If you don't want something as formal as a course perhaps you'll find what you are looking for in one of our E-books or our aroma massage DVD.

Essential Oils and Depression

The other day I came across a couple of abstracts on PubMed with respect to depression which confirms what we have known for a long time and that is that essential oils can be helpful for this condition:

A Review on the Effects of Aromatherapy for Patients with Depressive Symptoms.
Yim VW, Ng AK, Tsang HW, Leung AY. J Altern Complement Med. 2009 Feb 13. Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong.
Abstract Purpose: We reviewed studies from 2000 to 2008 on using essential oils for patients with depression or depressive symptoms and examined their clinical effects. Methods: The review was conducted among five electronic databases to identify all peer-reviewed journal papers that tested the effects of aromatherapy in the form of therapeutic massage for patients with depressive symptoms. Results: The results were based on six studies examining the effects of aromatherapy on depressive symptoms in patients with depression and cancer. Some studies showed positive effects of this intervention among these three groups of patients. Conclusions: We recommend that aromatherapy could continue to be used as a complementary and alternative therapy for patients with depression and secondary depressive symptoms arising from various types of chronic medical conditions. More controlled studies with sound methodology should be conducted in the future to ascertain its clinical effects and the underlying psychobiologic mechanisms.
PMID: 19216657 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher

[Effects of aroma hand massage on pain, state anxiety and depression in hospice patients with terminal cancer] [Article in Korean] Chang SY. Department of Nursing, Keimyung University, Jung-gu, Daegu, Korea. so726@kmu.ac.kr Taehan Kanho Hakhoe Chi. 2008 Aug;38(4):493-502.
PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of aroma hand massage on pain, state anxiety and depression in hospice patients with terminal cancer. METHODS: This study was a nonequivalent control group pretest-posttest design. The subjects were 58 hospice patients with terminal cancer who were hospitalized. Twenty eight hospice patients with terminal cancer were assigned to the experimental group (aroma hand massage), and 30 hospice patients with terminal cancer were assigned to the control group (general oil hand massage). As for the experimental treatment, the experimental group went through aroma hand massage on each hand for 5 min for 7 days with blended oil-a mixture of Bergamot, Lavender, and Frankincense in the ratio of 1:1:1, which was diluted 1.5% with sweet almond carrier oil 50 ml. The control group went through general oil hand massage by only sweet almond carrier oil-on each hand for 5 min for 7 days. RESULTS: The aroma hand massage experimental group showed more significant differences in the changes of pain score (t=-3.52, p=.001) and depression (t=-8.99, p=.000) than the control group. CONCLUSION: Aroma hand massage had a positive effect on pain and depression in hospice patients with terminal cancer.

There is an article on Aromatherapy and Essential Oils on the main website as well as the Depression Buster Blends which can serve as a starting point for anyone wanting to blend around this condition.

Of course there are many different types and degrees of depression and I am not suggesting that in severe cases one throw out the medication and move to essential oils only. What I am suggesting is that essential oils can be incorporated into a daily practice and become part of the arsenal against this sometimes debilitating condition.

In class workshops continue to be offered once a month throughout the year.

Upcoming Workshops

August 15: Advanced Massage Techniques - Shoulders, Arms and Legs
September 12 & 13: Reiki Master Level
September 19: Reiki Level I
October 24 & 25: Lymphatic Stimulation
November 7: Reiki Level II
November 21: Advanced Massage Techniques - Back and Neck
December 12 & 13: Aromatherapy Caddy Chemistry

For my Special Diffuser Blend for today I thought that I'd try the oils mentioned in the second abstract but I've changed the proportions around: Bergamot 5 drops; Lavender 3 drops; Frankincense 2 drops.

Essential Oils for the Respiratory System

The latest fires that are raging in BC have made me think about what essential oils we could use to help alleviate the potential damage to the respiratory system inhalation of smoke could do.

As I understand it the smoke that is inhaled can cause damage to the body in a number of ways.

1. The smoke carried into the body by hot air can actually damage or destroy tissue in the mouth, nose and upper respiratory system.
2. Smoke can also cause damage by irritating tissues. Materials found in smoke can be toxic to the cells or they can cause physical damage by rubbing across the tissues.
3. Smoke cuts off the supply of oxygen to the body and therefor can starve the body of the oxygen needed to remain alive and function normally.

First and foremost it is important to make sure that anyone exposed to smoke inhalation is getting enough oxygen into their system. If they are breathing easily this is simple enough to do, if they are wheezing their airway may be blocked or restricted and they will need a bronchodilator to help the muscles of the respiratory system to relax so that the oxygen can get through.

We certainly have a number of essential oils that could help to relax and soothe the respiratory system and using these in any form for inhaling such as a personal inhaler, diffuser, mister etc could be helpful in the recovery of the system. Essential oils to help boost tissue repair and the immune system could also be added.

Oils that have an antispasmodic action include: bergamot, cajeput, cedarwood, chamomile, cypress and thyme.
Oils that have a soothing action include: benzoin, frankincense and myrrh.

People faced with losing homes and businesses due to these disasters are probably dealing with a lot of stress and anxiety and they could also benefit from many of the emotional properties of the essential oils. My thoughts and prayers are with them all.

Mini profiles for many of these oils can be found on the Articles Archive Page of our main website.

In class workshops will continue to be offered once a month throughout the year.

Upcoming Workshops

August 15: Advanced Massage Techniques - Shoulders, Arms and Legs
September 12 & 13: Reiki Master Level
September 19: Reiki Level I
October 24 & 25: Lymphatic Stimulation
November 7: Reiki Level II
November 21: Advanced Massage Techniques - Back and Neck
December 12 & 13: Aromatherapy Caddy Chemistry

Aromatherapy Courses are available to start at any time during the summer - so if you are looking for something to do this summer perhaps one of our aromatherapy courses is the way to go.

If you don't want something as formal as a course perhaps you'll find what you are looking for in one of our E-books or our aroma massage DVD.