Essential Oils For Fibromyalgia
Fibromyalgia is a very difficult illness to deal with. Because fibromyalgia causes so many different symptoms, ranging from chronic headaches to muscle pain, it can be hard to find a treatment that works for them all. And many medical treatments cause so many side effects that can sometimes be worse than the fibromyalgia symptoms themselves. As a result, more and more fibromyalgia patients are looking towards alternative treatments to help reduce their symptoms. Aromatherapy promises to help fibromyalgia sufferers decrease their pain, while improving their mood and outlook on life.
What is Aromatherapy? Aromatherapy refers to the practice of using essential oils to treat various psychological and physiological problems. It involves inhaling or applying essential oils, which have been extracted from plants, seeds, bark, and flowers. There are over 150 different essential oils, which can be used alone or in combination with each other, to help treat many illnesses and disorders.
How Does Aromatherapy Work? Aromatherapy is believed to work by stimulating our sense of smell. Humans are capable of detecting over 10,000 different scents, and every scent causes our body to respond in a slightly different way. When we inhale scents, 15% of this inhaled air goes straight to our brain. It specifically affects the limbic system in our brain, which is responsible for controlling mood and emotions. Once activated by the scent, the limbic system releases hormones, causing us to experience a certain mood or emotion.
How are Aromatherapy Essential Oils Used? There are over 150 aromatherapy oils. Certain scents are purported to help certain conditions. These oils can be:
inhaled directly from the bottle
applied to the skin
added to a bath
dispersed around the room with an aromatherapy candle or aromatherapy oil burner
When applied directly to the skin, essential oils must be combined with a carrier oil for safety. This is because essential oils are very strong, and have the potential to aggravate or burn the skin. Essential oils should never be taken internally or applied to the eyes.
What Conditions Can Aromatherapy Treat?
Aromatherapy is purported to be able to treat a wide range of physical and emotional disorders, including:
anxiety
depression
arthritis
muscle pain
digestive disorders
menstrual disorders
fatigue
Can Aromatherapy Help Relieve Fibromyalgia?
Aromatherapy is becoming more and more popular amongst fibromyalgia sufferers. This is because of the effects that aromatherapy appears to have on pain and mood.
In a recent study performed by Serge Marchand, a neuroscientist for the American Pain Society, the effectiveness of aromatherapy in reducing pain and improving mood was tested. The study involved 40 participants, both male and female, who were first asked to rate their mood and pain levels after inhaling ten different scents. The participants were then asked to dip their hands in hot water for three minutes. Every fifteen seconds, the participants were asked to inhale a smell and rate their pain levels and mood. The results showed a correlation between pleasant scents and increased mood levels in both male and female patients. Female patients also showed decreased pain scores when inhaling a pleasant scent.
Aromatherapy also seems to offer fibromyalgia patients:
improved circulation
increased pain tolerance
improved mood
sense of rejuvenation
Where Can I Purchase Essential Oil Blends for Fibromyalgia?
At Botanical Delights we take Fibromyalgia seriously. Having friends with this life debilitating condition, I was extremely motivated to find relief for their suffering. The Botanical Delights products below have been extremely helpful to my friends and customers alike.
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