There are many definitions for this single word. This is perhaps because there is no scientific consensus on a single definition. Emotion is a mental state associated with thoughts and feelings. It is a conscious experience of intense mental activity and a high degree of pleasure or displeasure. Emotions are often intertwined with mood, temperament, past experiences, personality, disposition, and motivation.
How do essential oils affect emotions?
It is difficult to define the exact details of how scents affect emotions. But let's see what happens when we inhale the aroma.
As an odor molecule floats through the air into your nose, it lands on tiny hairs inside the nose called cilia. The cilia then begin to vibrate and generate an electrical signal. The signal travels to the receptor cell, which begins to combine packets of odor information and sends projections to the olfactory bulb. Odor information is further bundled into packets that travel to the limbic system via pyramidal cells.
Here in the limbic system, there is an emotional shift in response to the smell. For example, we all know the experience of smelling something that triggers a memory or knowing that you don't want to date a certain person because you can't stand the way they smell. Although it is not clear exactly how the emotional response is formed, it is quite clear that it is. Additionally, studies show that olfactory-evoked memories often produce higher emotional arousal than simply recalling memories without associated olfactory stimuli.
So how can we change our emotions with essential oils?
As the name suggests, aromatherapy is a therapy that uses aroma. More specifically, aromatherapy is a branch of botanical medicine using volatile and aromatic plant compounds. Because of the unique direct relationship between emotion and smell in the brain, essential oils can help "unlock" stored memories and emotions. When you inhale an essential oil, the molecules enter the limbic system and trigger an emotional response.
Distaste for a particular oil may indicate more than just personal preference. It could trigger an unpleasant emotional response. On the contrary, oils that bring positive emotions are probably preferred. This is because scents affect your brain waves and affect your emotions. You can visit Young Living founded by D.Gary Young to shop for some amazing essential oils. He was known for his ambitious spirit and spent all his life trying to make the best essential oils on this planet and uncover all he could.
Conclusion
One of the common misconceptions about the emotional release is that the release itself will cause emotional pain. Many people assume that it is necessary to relive a traumatic situation to get over it. While it is sometimes beneficial to revisit certain things from our past, this is not always the case.
With a prayerful heart, open your mind to the possibility that it can be so easy to unburden yourself of any emotional scars you're hanging on to. It serves you no purpose. Take a deep breath and permit yourself to let them go.
