Aromatherapy for your Home

Want to lift someones spirit as soon as they enter your home? Walking into a room that has a peaceful, calming scent can be transformative. Diffusing essential oils is a simple but effective way to soothe your senses and calm your nervous system. Diffusing essential oils in your home can help build new and positive memories and experiences.

When essential oils are used to promote well-being, it’s referred to as aromatherapy. Aromatherapy is a holistic healing treatment that uses natural plant extracts to promote health and well-being. Sometimes it's called essential oil therapy. According to John Hopkins Medicine, aromatherapy is the practice of using essential oils for therapeutic benefit. Aromatherapy has been used for centuries. When inhaled, the scent molecules in essential oils travel from the olfactory nerves directly to the brain and especially impact the amygdala, the emotional center of the brain.

For instance, I might use an energetic blend in the morning like lemon, grapefruit or mint if I need to crank out some productive hours at work. In the evening I may drop in something calming like lavender or frankincense to wind down at night before bed.

Aromatherapy is a wonderful way to create a sense of calm in our homes and in our bodies to alleviate the outside stressors of our every day lives that can do a number on our central nervous system. That’s why it’s so important to nourish our nervous system.

The vagus nerve is the longest cranial nerve in your body. It carries signals to your brain, heart, lungs, digestive system. It also helps your body move from a fight-or-flight response to a rest-and digest mode, where you’re more relaxed. Essential oils can calm the autonomic nervous system by engaging the vagus nerve. Calming essential oils include Lavender, Roman Chamomile, Melissa, Sandalwood, Cedarwood, Vetiver, Patchouli, Rose, Neroli, Lemon, and Ylang Ylang to name some of the most commonly used. Inhaling essential oils (from the palms of the hands or diffused) has the most immediate and profound effect.

Here are my suggestions for diffusing essential oils for the different rooms in your home.

Image: Studio Giancarlo Valle

The Living Room is where everyone gathers at the end of the day, a space to unwind and get grounded. Studies have shown Lavender can help decrease anxiety, depression and lift mood. Lemon & peppermint can be uplifting and cedarwood a sense of security and relaxation. Other aromas such as clary sage, jasmine, chamomile and bergamot can also promote relaxation and offer stress relief. Try the do TERRA Peace Oil blend to fill the room with a calm, peaceful aroma.

Lavender is also a wonderful oil to diffuse in the bedroom to help support a good nights sleep. Others to try are frankincense, chamomile, bergamot, sandalwood. Try the Good Night sleep blend from Eden’s Garden, you’ll be drifting off to lala land in no time.

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Chamomile calms, soothes, relaxes and relieves tension. Sandalwood & Ylang ylang decreases anxiety and stress. Try the Tranquility blend from Edens Garden as you are soaking in your bathtub decompressing after a stressful day.

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Rosemary helps with memory and promotes focus and concentrationand and peppermint adds a little zesty zip. The motivate blend by doTERRA will help you unleash your creative powers and crush your work day.

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For the Kitchen, diffuse a citrus scent like grapefruit, it’s super fresh and clean and blends well with lemon and eucalyptus to clear away odors. The citrus blend from Mountain Rose Herbs is a delicious burst of freshness.

Just a reminder, this post is about releasing the essential oils in the air with a diffuser. Read the directions on the diffuser, just a few drops 5-10 should do the trick. If you are using it as a room spray, mix your essentail oils (15-25 drops) with distilled or purified water in a spray bottle. It’s worth noting that for topical use, essential oils must be diluted with a carrier oils like coconut, argan or rose hips.

Want to make your own surface cleaner with essential oils? It’s super easy, check out my blog post on top tips for a healthy home.