Pain, Massage Therapy and Aromatherapy uses

Working with others is where I have gained the most experience.

Almost all the people that come to me for massages are people that are feeling pain somewhere in their bodies and are doing something to ease that pain. I do chair massage in a health food store where people come find alternatives to a pill centered health system.

There are quit a few people in their eighties going in and out the store and I talk to them all the time. There is one common thread with these people. All the healthy people in their eighties are active and almost all of them exercise daily. They do good diets, exercise, get good rest and do body cleanses to keep their bodies free of toxins.

Well anyway when I am massaging people I feel what is going on in their necks, backs arms and hands while performing my massages. 

The amazing thing I have found out it is if I use essential oil based oils on them the massages go much better then not and they respond much better to the massages with essential oils.

Another amazing thing is that their bodies are telling them in body laungage and signals to the brain where the pain is coming from and the intensity of the pain. When I massage a knot between the shoulders I can feel that area relaxing and I also feel and sense a relief from the brain when the knot begins to break up.

The amazing part of this is the body sends messages to the brain and if the brain can do something about like rubbing it the body senses this and relaxes and stops sending the message. If the brain does not do anything the pain remains and can stay there for a long time is nothing is done. 

When the area gets massaged it increases the blood flow and gets the oxygen, food, new cells and detoxes the area all at the same time. The Circulatory system in our bodies does a lot for us. (I like Cayce saying about taking care of your self. Circulatory, assilimation, rest, and elimination)

If a person is experiencing pain the body is telling the brain that something is wrong. Very often it is a blockage of the circulatory system and the body is sending a message to the brain for help to clear out the blockage get the brain and other things flowing in the area. I have worked on people who have had blockages and knots and have suffered for weeks until enough pressure and movement has be applied for the normal circulation to return and all that pain goes away…

There are certain areas in all of us that are prone to bad circulation and hence pain. Massage, heat and cold can help you get the circulation going again and the pain will go away.

The babyboomers was and still are the greatest generation!

In Special Honor to the Babyboomers…

World War II ushered peace into a world that had seen millions killed and wounded by war and brought about the biggest baby boom in the history of mankind. Prosperity like never before was achieved in the following years unmatched by any period in time by mankind on the earth. It truly was a golden moment for mankind because all citizens were equal. We were born during these times.

We witnessed the first 9" television screen sets inside those 50 to 150 pound wooden boxes holding vacuum tubes and watched 3 channels of TV with our parents. As the screens grew larger and then in color we was awed by the space race unfolding between us and the Russians and then watching an American make the first step on the moon and hearing "One small step for man, One giant leap for mankind".

Transistor and stereo radios came on the scene and everyone was listening and singing to the new revolution of music that evolved quickly into rock and roll and everyone was feeling happy just being alive. We cruised main street in cars that would burn rubber and do a quarter mile at over one hundred miles an hour. We studied and learned about computers the size of whole floor of a university building at college. Disco became hip and we danced the nights away singing Elvis and the Bee Jees and all the other great bands and partying like there would be no end of the good old days. Looking back I still get a really nice feeling about everything from that era and how innocent we were.

Eventually we drifted apart, each of us on our own mission of the life. Some of us has already passed over out of this life into the unknown. Those of us remaining are now in middle age and heading towards the dreaded word, elderly.

I spent most of my life from those good old days to now doing the good old thing of working and paying the bills just like most of you. Then something happened and I changed course from what others wanted me to be to what I wanted to be and I found my bliss. I went to school and become a Massage Therapist and worked in gym and then into a health food store as a massage therapist. In order to renew my Massage licenses I took a Aromatherapy course and liked the health results that Aromatherapy made to my life so much I took a National Certification Course in Holistic Aromatherapy and recieved certification in 2003. I have been practicing Aromatherapy since then and have observed the world from inside the gyms and health food stores that have all the plant, herbal products and essential oils and have observed people who use them and how they can help one stay healthy without using all those dangerous drugs that are being used currently.

People are always telling me that the creator created the earth, the plants and humans in the same vein and we are closely related in many ways. Through the plants he created, he also created a way for animals and human beings to use these plants for a healthy life. Would any of us be here if there was no plants on the earth? I look into the night sky and am totally amazed that life on earth even could of started considering how big, vast and dangerous it is out there. I personally believe this earth was created for a reason and that guiding hands have guided it to this juncture.

I am proud to be one of those babyboomers and I think I was born during these great times for a reason. I am writing about what I have seen and to pass on this knowledge to others in the hope that it help other babyboomers through middle age and how to live a healthy and happy life. There are alternatives that one can do to stay healthy and learning about these are in your own self interests not some big company that cares about their profits more then your health.

It is not just about babyboomers however. We unlike any other generation born before on the earth was blessed with the ability to actually lead mankind into the next level coming up. We experienced life from an angle that had never ever been experienced before. We are the only ground breakers that can steer humanity in the right direction into the future.

Everybody is all freaked out about the depression or recession depending on who you listen too. Listen to me now. The rich has been almost wiped out and their power over how everything is run is ebbing. That is the best thing I have heard in my whole lifetime! The good news is all the generations after us are going to be able to buy homes at a affordable cost and get health care at a affordable cost.

As far as health care is concerned in the future a society that really takes care of "all" of its people in a caring matter and uses all the "Natural" ways to meet this vital means is a society that is worthly of the what we are and where mankind needs to go for everyones sake…

Robert B Tisserand “The Art of Aromatherapy”

     Robert B Tisserand has done more for Aromatherapy in America then any other author on the subject. He translated Jean Valnet’s book "The Practice of Aromatherapy" and wrote "The Art of Aromatherapy" and several other books about Aromatherapy. Every since his book "The Art of Aromatherapy" in 1977 there has been renewed interest in the forgotten art of using plant essences or Essential Oils for sicknesses.

     I like the way Robert B Tisserand thinks about things and what he writes in "The Art of Aromatherapy";

     ‘We have arrived at a point where money, power, and scientitic fact have become ends in themselves, instead of being means to bring about a more comfortable, peaceful, and happy life. Our minds have run away with us, and as we have become obsessive, so we have become more neurotic.’

That statement is so true in our present society. Maybe things are getting ready to change.

     I think he explains Aromatherapy pretty nicely later on in the same  book;

     What therefore is aromatherapy? Is it no more than a branch of herbal medicine? In the sense that it is an attempt to heal through medicines of botanical origin, this statement is true, but there the comparison ends. In fact the use of essential oils is not taught by the National Institute of Medical Herbalists, neither are essences used by the majority of herbalists. Also, herbal medicine is bases on the organic principle of using the whole herb, or its extract and essential oils hardly fit into this category.

Aromatherapy is not herbal medicine in the strict sense of the word.

     What is Aromatherapy then? Robert B Tisserand explains it this way in his book "The Art of Aromatherapy";

     ‘Essences are like the blood of a person. They are not the whole plant, but are whole organic substances in themselves. Like blood they will die (lose their life force) if they are not properly preserved. Like blood they incorporate the characteristics of the body (plant) from which they come from. They are like the personality, or spirit of the plant. The essence is the most ethereal and subtle part of the plant, and its therapeutic action takes place on a higher, more subtle level than that of the whole plant…having in general a much more pronounced effect on the mind and emotions then herbal medicine.’

While both herbal medicine and Essential Oils have many of the same characteristics there is the line where they differ. Aromatherapy is very much like herbal medicine but works in general with a more pronouced effect on the mind and emotions.

Robert B Tisserand’s book has sections about essential oils, from ancient times, basic principles, odours, the body, mind, aromatic baths, massage,skin care, practical hints and recipes, the essential oils and more interesting information in it.

I personally would like to thank Robert B Tisserand for all he has done for Aromatherapy and me.

Diet and Aromatherapy

      Diet and Aromatherapy goes hand in hand in holistic health. Robert B Tisserand in his book "The Art of Aromatherapy" often mentions the fact that to be healthly one needs to practice a healthy diet as the foundation of their health. I have worked part time in a Organic food store for over ten years and have seen people with weight problems come in time after time and start eating organics in their attempt to lose weight. Guess what? I have seen people lose over 100 pounds and regain their pride and health on numerous occasions. The ones that I work on with Aromatherapy essential oils seem to like their Aromatherapy oils and tend to stick to the diets better.

The great Edgar Cayce talked about taking "care" of oneself often. CARE means that you should balance out this four things in life. Circulatory, we need enough physical activity to keep all the different circulatory systems in our bodies in top shape. Assimilation, we need to eat a healthy diet that supples what our bodies need to function. Relaxation, we need enough proper rest so our bodies can recharge and make new cells and Elimination, we need to eliminate the wastes our bodies make in powering us. Take CARE of yourselfs and you will be fine. Mess up anyone of the four and it will affect the other three.

I have read that in studys about rats that two groups were tested. One group got to eat anything they wanted and the other just got the bare minimums to exist. After so many weeks the ones that got to eat everything started passing away and to the surprise of the people that was running the study the ones that got the bare minimums out lived the other group up to two times longer. You body can only use so much of the food that we eat. If we eat too much the body has to store it as fat or eliminate it. Either way it makes the body work harder and stresses us. The key here is we have to eat the right types of food to supple the bare minimum we need. Plant foods are easier for us to digest and use then meats.

Take CARE of yourselves and live a full and happy life.

Jean Valnet’s Anthrax connection?

What  connection does a leading Aromatherapist have with Anthrax? None but In Jean Valnet’s book "The Practice of Aromatherapy’ he writes about his childhood and about his neighbor who had been gored by a bull and how he had learned from lore to put spider webs and walnut leaf on the wound to battle a possible anthrax infection from the bull;

     ‘I had never heard that the walnut leaf contains an active antibiotic element which is effective against anthrax:’ neither had he - but he was aware of the curative power and that was good enough for him’‘

He goes on to describe other antiseptic properties of plants and essences in the same chapter.

One other Anthrax reference of importance stands out in Jean Valnet’s ‘The Practice of Aromatherapy’;

     ‘It is known that the essence of thyme destroys the Anthrax bacillus, Eberth’s bacillus (the typhoid agent) the glanders bacillus, staphylococcus, Loffler’s bacillus (diphtheria), meningicoccus, and Koch’s  bacillus (responsible for tuberculous legions).‘

(If Jean Valnet was not a real M D in France I would be real leary of the above but I am only reviewing the reports not writing them) The French have been studying Aromatherapy a lot more then Americans and Americans should be ashamed it themselves for ignoring what is already out there in nature that can be studied and used for our health concerns.

I am always fascinated by stories about how people existed back before modern medicine and the methods they used that were passed down to them from their elders. They were not concerned so much about what was in the plants but were concerned if the plant uses worked. Spider webs on wounds? One of strongest substances known to man?

When life threatening events happen what is one to do? Are we not in tune with nature?

Aromatherapy and Massage Therapy makes sense

Massage Therapists can use Aromatherapy to enhance their business

Every since the "Laying of Hands" and "Anoints" surfaced a very long time ago human beings have enjoyed and used them in healing rituals all over the world in all types of religions. The "Onoints" have varied depending on what is native to the area and the massage techniques differ somewhat but the laying of hands and onoints are ingrained into the fabric of minds and souls. The task was assigned priests to begin with because they were trusted to do the right thing. As time passed doctors and nurses were allowed to perform the task. As we travel to the present and modern massage we have the same responsibility. The safe use essential oil blends with the intent to help and not harm the person. Wild experimental blends have no place in this process for Massage and Aromatherapists.

As a masage therapist and aromatherapist I have experienced the benefits of using oils and essential oils in my practice. I have made some blends that people really love and I have also found out people have their own likes and dislike. If you let your ego down and listen to your clents you will find a blend that they really like and I always use their blend while working on them. A lot of time when they call me for a appointment they tell me that they have been thinking of me and the blend they love. If you listen to your clients and give them a choice to recieve their blend with your massages you will increase your number of steady clients during these hard economic times.

Be advised to use essential oils that you know are safe and do not have the potential of irritating or causing problems with sensitive skin types. Another possible problem is I have had people coming to me with severe pain in their left shoulders. If this happens to you refer them to a quick care or doctor right away because they may be getting close to a heart attack and the right thing to do is stop working on them and guiding them to someone that can.

Don’t be afraid of essential oils but learn how to safely use them to build your business. It works…

Aromatherapy with oils and Essential oils is a art

Aromatherapy with oils and Essential oils is a art

A Certified Aromatherapist starts out by studying all the different books about oils and essential oils and a general understanding of their uses. They then enroll in a class that will lead them towards Certification. Along the path they are required to make up intake information sheets which is required from everyone that details their medical history and what drugs they are taking and a statement about the condition of their health. Not everyone is suited for Aromatherapy so it is up to the Aromatherapist to decide if they are and what a safe approach would be if they are able to use essential oils safely.

The Aromatherapist looks for the causes that needs to be addressed and starts with them first. The person may be overweight or congested so much that they are encouraged to start eating right and excercising along with the essential oils treatments. Marguerite Maury relates in her book "Guide to Aromatherapy, The Secret life and Youth" that in one of her case studies the person responded to her Aromatherapy up to a point then stopped improving. She writes that the person went a supervised fast and detox and then continued the Aromatherapy and then fully recovered.

Robert B Tisserand, Aromatherapists and doctors seem to all agree that people need to take CARE of themselves. The Famous Edgar Cayce coined the phrase CARE. CARE means keeping your Circulatory system performing. That means exercise if you are not getting enough physical stimulation. A stands for Assimilation which is eating a diet that fits your body needs. R for proper Relaxation, if you don’t get enough sleep it will affect you health negatively and Elimination, which means that your body must eliminate the wastes that it produces on a regular basis. Take proper CARE (Circulatory, Assimilation, Relaxation and Elimination) of yourself for a healthly life!

The Aromatherapist then makes a blend of oils that suites the individual based upon their past experience with working with oils and knowledge gained from the feedback that they receive from individuals that use their blends. The Aromatherapists uses inhalations, baths and massage oils to help the individual.

After feedback from the individuals the Aromatherapist builds a basic foundation of knowledge that can utilized the next time around until it becomes an art.

Essential oils and oils can help certain health conditions and can help healthy person stay healthy by helping the body and mind when they are out of tune and along with taking CARE of ones self lead to a more "fruitful" life.

Practice Care in all your endeavors and life will reward you greatly and you will be proud of your life’s accomplishments.

 If you are experiencing some serious health problems do not hesitate to go the your regular doctor or quick care because there are limitations on Aromatherapy like a lot of arts and is not suited for real serious problems like heart attacks, strokes and life threatening conditions where you may need immediate attention. Take care…