Aromatherapy is not a new concept, not at all. It is one of the most ancient methods of affecting consciousness. Skillful use of smells allows invoking different emotional states. Even the people of prehistoric Rome, Egypt, Greece, and China knew about it.
The scents of essential oils affect us on all levels: physical, psychological, and social. But how does this influence on the psycho-emotional sphere occur? It seems that they are simply… odors! But no, they are not “simple” at all!
We have five main senses, and each of them has its own receptors. The smell is the ability to sense and recognize odors. Our nose perceives them, but then the information is transmitted further through the central nervous system to the brain. We have over 10 million olfactory receptors. Just think about this number!
The smell is the most developed of the five senses that a child has when she is born. Smell, unlike sight or touch, develops even before the baby has even been born. After birth, the child recognizes her mother primarily by smell.
The limbic system, which is responsible for emotions, participates in the regulation of the functions of internal organs, smell, memory, sleep, wakefulness, is very close to the olfactory center. Therefore, the perception of aromas causes certain emotionally colored sensations and associations.
Emotional memory is closely related to smells. Remember how you mentally return to kindergarten when you catch the smell of milk porridge or a lentil soup? Or even after ten years, having felt the scent of the perfume of the one with whom you have parted a long time ago, you suddenly find yourself there, in Seattle, in his arms, completely against your will.
Vanessa says: “When I was little, my mum and I used to go to a café for kids. It would smell of cotton candy and freshly baked pastries. To me, this is the most pleasant combination of smells!”
Negative associations work just as well. When Sergio was 5 years old, his parents used to quarrel in the kitchen late at night, when his mum was making fish pies for sale. Little Sergio would cover his head with the pillow and freeze in fear. The smell of fish still brings a sense of anxiety in adult Sergio.
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The influence of fragrances on the success of business and trade is now being actively studied. It has been proven that some smells can cause certain desired behaviors in people. For example, the smell of bread and freshly baked goods makes people not only go to the coffee shop from which it comes out but also increases their desire to make more purchases at the mall.
So, the influence of aromas on the psyche is enormous. It would be strange not to use this to learn how to improve your emotional state with their help, right?
Aromatherapy is healing the body with essential oils. Their effect is realized on an unconscious level, and the awareness of “like or do not like” does not always reflect the particularities of the response of our nervous system to a given scent.
Different essential oils have different effects: some tone up, others soothe and relax. If you choose the right aroma, you can achieve an amazing effect. The main thing is to approach the choice individually and carefully and know the properties of oils. It is best to select compositions with the help of a specialist so that the effect is as lasting and positive as possible.
Combined with other psychological methods – psychotherapy, relaxation techniques, etc. – aromatherapy becomes magical by complementing them.
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