Aromatherapy is experienced by more than our sense of smell with essential oils being akin to the life force of a plant.

Every country in the world grows a multitude of blooms, leaves, branches, bark, berries & fruits that joyfully impart their essence for the art & science of Aroma Therapy and our wellbeing. With the more exotic essential oils being sourced from their indigenous regions from all over the world, many growers are generations in their craft and farming. For true essential oils that hold their inherent value and purity with extraction, as opposed to the use of synthetic or adulterated oils, the benefits of an aromatherapy oil are many in our every day life, health and wellbeing.

Not only do essential oils offer healing though application, ingestion, inhalation, they connect us to the history of our planet, a collective vibration with every drop. Think of the fabled stories of the Silk Road, the ancient Pharoahs & Cleopatra, ships sailing out to foreign shores & returning with kegs and bales of exotic smelling oils, herbs and spices, the bible with stories of frankincense & myrrh. Centuries of ancient practices & plant medicine have accumulated for our pleasure & good health.  Aromatherapy, traditionally being the blending of plant extracts for the treatment of illness, discomfort and malaise, grew with the appreciation of aromatics to encompass the sensory pleasure of subtle and not so subtle aromas affecting our emotions, thinking and behaviour – magical don’t you think?

Such beauty is found in a Rose, an expression of love with every bloom

The variety of intended uses makes Aromatherapy truly a Holistic practice.

Our reference to Holistic practice when talking of Aroma therapy, brings together the various ways you can engage aromatherapy oils in your daily life and in medicinal use. Holistic being that the parts of something are intimately interconnected to and explicable only by reference to the whole. Within the practice of Aromatherapy and use of essential oils, we are referring to the Holistic treatment of the whole person, taking into account mental and social factors, benefitting the whole person, rather than just the symptoms of a disease, state of mind or activity. Basically this means, you may be adding a few drops of lavender to your bath simply because it smells nice, but you are also affecting and enhancing your thought patterns and mood, alleviating any headaches, stress or tiredness, healing any scratches or skin irritations, making your bath water antiseptic and ensuring you have a great nights sleep.

Our Olfactory system or our sense of smell, is more than the nose. This is one of the oldest and most vital parts of the brain and how we process our environment. Briefly, the nose contains many specialised sensory nerve cells with hair like fibres on one end. The other end of the nerve cell or neuron, has a nerve fibre called an axon, which connects to the olfactory bulb, a brain structure just above the nose. This “olfactory brain” communicates information to the limbic system (particular structures of the brain that deal with memories, emotions, often called the feeling & reacting part of the brain) and the brain cortex itself ( where conscious thought occurs) and also with the taste information stored in our brain. So the Olfactory system is sharing information with the parts of our brain that affect our thoughts, emotions and behaviour. Smells that we sense beyond any visual impression we may have, may therefore influence our behaviour, our feelings, the way we find certain foods, people, environments attractive…or not! A plate full of food may look beautiful in its presentation & colours, but the smell of the dish may have you walking away before you can pick up a fork!

Uplifting or repelling..

This helps to explain why some people find some essential oils so calming, uplifting, pleasurable or repelling, depending on the memory or emotion they may have associated with the particular aroma of an oil. It is useful to have a blend of aromatherapy oils in a vaporiser or oil burner to create an ambience you desire – productivity, clear mind & focus would benefit from a combination of Basil & Orange or Peppermint & Cypress. To relax and destress, a combination of Lavender, Chamomile & Clary Sage is perfect. In times of chesty coughs or colds, a combination of Tea Tree, Eucalyptus & Peppermint is excellent to have in the house for actual sense of wellbeing as well as inhaling into the respiratory system to benefit recovery. Romance is fanned with Ylang Ylang, Sweet Orange, Patchouli or Rose Geranium, Sandlewood & Mandarin. Again, for personal impressions, we all have our own conscious and subconscious reactions to different aromas. Here lies the fun is in experimenting with different blends and remember the amount of drops of each oil will influence the final aroma of the blend you make.

The science behind the anecdotes

In recent years more and more of the health benefits of essential oils are being scientifically tested and documented, for example Melaleuca Alternafolia – Tea Tree, is one essential oil that has been vigorously researched and tested, adding to the age old wealth of knowledge that supports the benefits and varied uses of essential oils in aromatic medicine and general daily use. Every aromatherapy oil has specific properties and the various concentrations of these properties makes them unique in their profile, potential use and benefits and in their aroma.

While one should not be fearful of engaging the use of aromatherapy in ones day to day life as the pleasure and benefits are immense, one should definitely be respectful. Less is more with essential oils, they are akin to the life force of the plant, their hormones if you like, and when using good quality and pure oils, you must respect that they have their own set of rules that deserve to be observed so that you can confidently enjoy them. Always follow the directions on the bottle and investing in an Aromatherapy bible is a very good idea. Highly recommended is a book by Patricia Davis ‘Aromatherapy an A-Z” available on Amazon and most good bookstores.

To begin the journey of making pure Rose essential oil, harvest begins before sunrise.

Source and sustainability

Mayella® Skin care Blends are 100% pure plantbased, clean formulations, organic & natural.  Made by us for you with the ultimate in beautiful skin and good health in mind. Pure organic essential oils are an intrinsically potent & active ingredient in our formulations. Gluten free, pesticide, toxic chemical, GMO and palm oil free with no fillers or bulking agents. Simply concentrated goodness as Mother Nature intended with a little help from us to get them to you, in your daily life. We source globally from the optimal geographic destinations, and it is our privilege to work with growers of fairtrade and sustainable origins.  Your skin will appreciate the difference.