The holidays have arrived, we are spending more time with family and friends, smelling the smells of the season, shopping and eating galore! We look forward to these times and do a great deal in order to experience the holidays to their fullest. We are excited to spend extra time with family, and to share with them gifts we hope will bring them greater joy and happiness in their lives. However, the holidays have brought with them a bunch of stress. Although we mostly see this stress as good, it still has an effect on our bodies.
There are many things we can do to help with stress and the impact it has on our bodies. Meditation is an amazing tool. Even simply doing some deep breathing by counting to four on the in breath, then count of two on the out breath can benefit our physical health and relaxation. Many people come to our office during the holidays to experience acupuncture to help alleviate stressful feelings. One of our favorite things is aromatherapy during a massage. Let’s face it, massage alone is great at reducing stress. However, the benefits of aromatherapy when coupled with a relaxing massage can do a great deal to help minimize the stress of the holidays.
Aromatherapy is the practice of inhaling the scent of essential oils to improve your well-being. One theory of how they work is that by stimulating the smell receptors in your nose, they can send messages to your nervous system and those nerves send messages to the rest of the body. They are also thought to have a subtle effect on the body’s chemical and energy systems. Because of this, aromatherapy is often used as a natural remedy to relieve anxiety and stress.
This year, in hopes of helping you find greater peace and happiness through the holidays we have created a few specially themed holiday blended aromas to add to your massage. As a token of appreciation, and our gift to you for the holidays, if you come in and get a massage you can request an aromatherapy scent of one of the items listed below for FREE. If you want to experience any of these extra benefits after the holidays then there is an increased fee. However, to help bring you and your family happiness for the holidays we wanted to share a special gift with you. Contact our office to schedule your amazing aromatherapy massage today.
- Gifts of Christmas (Frankincense) – This amazing oil demonstrates antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-fungal properties. No wonder it was given as a gift at the birth of Jesus. People used this for its many healing properties. It is believed to reduce feelings of anxiety and to stimulate the immune system. its astringent and cytophylactic qualities help Frankincense oil to reduce the appearance of wrinkles and skin imperfections such as discoloration. It stimulates the growth of new cells, thus when used on cuts it promotes faster healing. We recommend this for help with pain, and just to help relax unless you have something with skin that would benefit from some extra attention.
- Candy Cane (Peppermint) – This oil will help you to remember the joy of childhood when you would suck your candy cane into a point and use it to torture your siblings. This treatment will not cause pain but instead will help with it. It helps with digestion and eases cough which is great during this time of year when people catch colds and flu. The greatest benefit for this time of year is that it helps with mental fatigue. This will help you to accomplish all of your tasks for the holidays.
- Christmas Tree (Cypress, Spruce & Fir) – The greatest benefits of all of the aromas related to the Christmas tree is for respiratory help. This is very beneficial this time of year with so much exposure to germs and sickness. This helps your respiratory system, coughing spasms, pain, inflammation, and increasing blood flow. You can help yourself from being down and out with the yuck and a box of tissues by using this treatment and it helps your skin!
- Stress Free holiday (Lavender) – One study found that lavender oil aromatherapy calmed the nervous system – lowering blood pressure, heart rate, and skin temperature as well as changing brain waves to a more relaxed state. The scent of lavender stimulates brain pathways including our limbic system, which is connected to our emotional response and memories. Studies using EEG, which measures brain waves, and brain imaging using MRI showed significant changes during lavender aromatherapy consistent with its relaxing effects. After a long day of shopping, wrapping presents and cooking yummy holiday treats this can help calm your mind and help you get a relaxing night’s sleep.
