Aromatherapy is more than just an air freshener. While oils used for aromatherapy have a pleasant odor, there are more benefits to incorporating them into your massage.
We use a plant’s aroma-producing oils, which are taken from plants’ flowers, stalks, bark, roots, rind or leaves, and either apply them to the skin, spray them in the air or inhale them. For massage therapy, the most common way to use oils is to apply them to your skin. Oils can be added to massage oils and creams, or used by themselves, and applied during your massage. The fragrances from the oils stimulate the nerves in your nose, which may send impulses to the part of your brain that controls emotion and memory. Different oils can have a calming or stimulating effect. Aromatherapy is used to help you relax and relieve stress.
How It Works
Though use of aromatherapy has just recently started to be studied by the scientific community, there have been several studies that concluded aromatherapy affects brain wave activity. Researchers at the Toho University School of Medicine in Tokyo did a study that measures brain waves that showed inhaling jasmine produced a stimulating effect similar to coffee, and sandalwood oil produced a calming effect. In another study, Japanese researchers found that inhaling lavender and sandalwood oils increased alpha- wave activity in the brain (causing relaxation). Arthur O. Tucker, Ph.D. has compiled much of this research in “Research Reveals the Healing Powers of Aromatherapy.”
How Aromatherapy Enhances Your Massage
Stress relief and relaxation are both major benefits of massage therapy. Add in aromatherapy and you only receive added relaxation benefits. Your massage experience should be as unique as you are, and adding aromatherapy to the mix can help your therapist customize your massage. Different aromatherapy oil blends can have different effects on your body, and they can be customized to what you would like to get out of your massage experience. Some oils may help promote circulation, decrease pain and aid tissue recovery. A different blend could help ease anxiety and irritability. Some chronic headache and migraine sufferers swear by use of aromatherapy to help ease their pain.
The key to a blissful massage and aromatherapy experience is communication with your therapist. Let him or her know where your problem areas are and what your general health concerns are. Allow your massage therapist to put his or her education and expansive knowledge to use to find an aromatherapy blend and massage technique that will leave you on cloud nine. Come in and let us customize your massage and aromatherapy experience. Call us today at 703-686-4092 or 973-800-5194, or visit our website.
This article is for informational purposes only. The products and services described on this website are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Please speak with a doctor before beginning any new health regimen.
