So you have been suggested essential oils to sleep better, boost your energy, improve your concentration, boost your libido, to banish Stress, Anxiety, and depression, or to provide you with moments of relaxation and well-being.
Maybe you have even experienced their effect, and you are already convinced of their effectiveness. But you still keep asking yourself, "How, and by what magic, can these essential oils have so much power over my brain, my emotions, and my cognitive abilities?"
A detailed answer to this question requires a thorough knowledge of the chemical characteristics of essential oils and a great knowledge of the anatomy of the brain and its various functions. However, in the following paragraphs, you can find an abbreviated answer that will give you a general idea about the processes by which essential oils can affect your Mental Health and Psychological Balance:
Essential oils, the olfactory system, and the limbic system:
The limbic system is the area of the brain that includes the fornix, cingulate gyrus, amygdala, septum, thalamus, and hippocampus.
It is also known as the limbic brain or emotional brain and is responsible for the memory, learning, and regulation of emotions and the endocrine system.
The limbic system is also the seat of the olfactory system that is responsible for receiving, processing and interpreting odors and acting as an anatomical interface that allows essential oils to exert their effects on the brain and emotions.
What happens, in fact, is that when you inhale or inhale an essential oil, the aromatic molecules that emerge from it will activate receptors present in the neurons of the olfactory epithelium that is in the top of your cavities nasal. Once activated in contact with these molecules, the neurons of the epithelium transmit nerve impulses that will reach the olfactory bulb and, through it, will stimulate other areas of the limbic system.
The particularity of the aromatic molecules of the essential oils is that, in contact with your epithelium, they start a sequence of events that leads to the stimulation of different areas of the limbic system to give rise to secretions of hormones and neurotransmitters beneficial to your psychological well-being and your mental health.
Essential oils and the blood-brain barrier:
When you inhale an essential oil, either by inhaling its perfume directly from the bottle, or by diffusing it through your diffuser of essential oils, its molecules eventually reach your blood through the lungs.
Aromatic molecules also spread through your bloodstream when you ingest an essential oil or apply it to the skin.
What happens next is that, given their structural characteristics, these aromatic molecules can cross the blood-brain barrier that separates the blood and the central nervous system to exert their effect on the different areas of your brain.
Essential oils in the service of psychotherapy:
The mechanism of action of essential oils:
Essential Oils can penetrate the human body through absorption of the skin and inhalation. Inhalation is the fastest and most effective way to use essential oils in the treatment of emotional problems. Essential oils contain tiny molecules that disperse in the air and reach the nose when we inspire them. When inhaled, the odor molecules reach the olfactory epithelium, consisting of two groups of approximately 25 million receptor cells situated at the top of the nostrils. The smells are then converted into messages, which are transmitted to the brain for working. Inhalation gives the most direct route to the latter.
Brain activity has been noticed and documented by different imaging techniques. The smell triggers psychological and physiological reactions in the body. The cells of the olfactory receptor transmit impulses to the olfactory zone of the brain in the limbic system, which is linked to emotions, hormones, heart rate, memory, and sexuality. These impulses trigger the secretion of neurotransmitters and endorphins that can stimulate, calm, relax, produce rewarding sensations, and restore emotional balance or euphoria, leading to mental or physical change or response.
Essential oils and stress
Stress is a normal state of the body, a protective natural mechanism designed to ensure a person’s survival in adverse conditions. However, if stress is your constant companion and does not let you go for a second - it's time to sound the alarm!
After all, in a state of stress, your body functions almost at the limit of its capabilities. In an emergency, the mechanism of stress is certainly useful; it helps us to get together as much as possible to get away from danger. But if stress is present in your life on an ongoing basis, it will very quickly deplete all the resources of your body and will inevitably lead to physical or mental illness. Therefore, it is very important to track and get rid of this condition in time.
Now let's talk about which particular essential oils most of all have a calming effect on the overexcited nervous system. The best soothing essential oils are chamomile, frankincense, geranium, lavender, marjoram, ylang-ylang, patchouli, valerian, lemon balm, sage, jasmine, sandalwood oils. If you need to calm down and return to a steady state of mind after a strong emotional shake, these particular oils will come in handy.
If you have been under stress for quite a long time, and this led, on the contrary, to depression of the nervous system, to depression - oils of rosemary, thyme, peppermint, basil, black pepper, all citrus, and coniferous aromas can also help you. These oils invigorate, give strength, improve mood.
Fortunately, the nature of stress is already well studied, and there are many ways and methods of getting rid of it (both from a one-time, short-term stress phenomenon, and from a permanent state of mental stress). Exercises, breathing techniques, relaxation and meditation, psychotherapy, etc. can help you here.
Jonathan Otto, a leading research journalist, in his education 7 episode series about the Bible Health Secrets has explained how the essential oils are truly a blessing for human health. He also explains and describes the modern uses of such oils.
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