Why are Essential Oils so Calming?

The skies are blue, the temperature is warm and the day is peaceful. You are sauntering your way through the hours at a leisurely pace, and everything seems to be going right. Until it’s not.

Did you unplug your curling iron? Is the stovetop turned off? Why did you agree to go to that networking event? How on EARTH are you going to master that pitch by early next week?

Anxiety can come out of nowhere and feel absolutely crippling. It stops you in your tracks and can manifest itself out of thin air. There are a million and a half articles about managing anxiety, but today we want to focus on essential oils and how they help.

According to Britannica, the first records of essential oils were from ancient India, Persia and Egypt. The Encyclopedia assumes that these oils were created by placing flowers, roots and leaves in fatty oils. However, during the Golden Age of Arab culture, essential oils were distilled using ethyl alcohol from fermented sugar.

Today, essential oils are used for a myriad of reasons, including aromatherapy. Aromatherapy is the practice of inhaling essential oils for your well-being. One such use is to aid in the calming of anxiety. But why do pleasant smelling aromas result in a calming effect?

According to healthline, there are a few possible reasons. One is that your nose has smell receptors (gasp!). These receptors send messages to your nervous system, which results in a “subtle” effect on the chemical and energy systems within your body.

There are dozens of essential oils that can help relieve your anxiety. A few that Medical News Today highlighted include bergamot orange, chamomile, clary sage, lavender, lemon, rose, ylang-ylang and neroli.

However, while essential oils can help some ease anxiety, they are not an end all, be all. They can provide a little relief, but if you have severe anxiety, make sure to address that with a medical professional.

It’s undoubtedly a stressful time for everyone, so it’s understandable to suffer from a bit of anxiety. While we’d love to see you at Sewickley Spa, we are currently closed for safety while COVID-19 is addressed nationally. However, please don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions about essential oils!