Stress Coping Strategies- Lavender

When it comes to stress coping strategies, Lavender is my favorite essential oil. Aromatherapy is a very effective way to reduce stress – here’s why. Have you ever caught a whiff of perfume on a breeze and suddenly been filled with memories of another time or place?

Aromas have the power to evoke distant memories of people and places because of all our senses, the sense of smell is most strongly linked to the subconscious. Scents are capable of producing immediate, intense responses because they are processed by the part of the brain that controls memory and emotion.

Just a quick whiff of lovely Lavender calms nerves, quiets anxiety and promotes relaxation. Heck, even visualizing fields of waving lavender flowers will reduce stress!

Not only is Lavender a beautiful flower used in a wide variety of products like soaps and lotions, it’s unique flavor makes it a popular addition to chocolate, cookies and jams. It’s also one of two essential oils that can be applied directly to the skin, without first being mixed into a carrier oil. I often use it as perfume, dabbing it on my wrists, behind ears and under my nose so I continuously breathe in all it’s goodness.

Essential oils (pure, concentrated plant extracts) are valued both for their fragrance and ability to produce profound changes in the mind and body. They’re particularly effective in treating stress-related conditions, and are frequently used as home remedies.

The practice of healing with aromatherapy using essential oils dates back to ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome, when extracts of specific plants’ flowers, buds, roots, and bark were used to treat disease.

It was revived in the 1930’s when chemist Rene-Maurice Gattefosse burned his hand and plunged it into a container of pure lavender oil for relief. His hand healed in hours, leading him and other scientists to further experimentation, developing aromatherapy treatments still in use today.

Essential oils have varying physical and psychological benefits. Their properties can be antiseptic, warming, cooling, astringent, stimulating, soothing, relaxing, sedative, decongestant or antispasmodic.

Aromatherapists’ believe certain aromas can improve your sense of well-being and alleviate emotion related disorders. Various studies that measured the heart rate, muscle tension and skin temperature of test subjects before and after inhaling different scents support this belief.

Studies demonstrated how aromas affect an individual’s stress, behavior and performance levels, establishing that inhaling certain fragrances caused subjects’ positive moods.

Lavender is so gentle you can add a drop to a baby’s bath to calm them and help them (and you!) sleep longer.

For a soothing, relaxing bath, try adding eight drops of Lavender oil to a full tub, or four drops a foot bath. Spraying essential oil mixed with water adds a pleasant fragrance to the room as well as calming the nerves and promoting a sense of well-being in everyone in it.

You also may want to keep stress at bay by sleeping with a ‘dream pillow’ filled with dried lavender. Dabbing lavender on the soles of your feet will also promote deep restful sleep.

Give lavender a try, and it’s sure to become one of your ‘go to’ stress coping strategies! And please, drop us a line and share your success stories!

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Alexandria http://AlexandriaBarker.com