Thanks for joining me on my journey to learn about essential oils. I would like to state, right up front, that one of the reasons I want to create this blog is to help me study. I've never been good at it, and I'm much better at reporting. If I report to you what I'm learning, then essentially I'll be studying, right? Also, I will be adding comments based on my personal experience as well as information I am learning from the course. As I stated before, this is a "test" course being created by a highly knowledgable teacher and not available to the public yet, although it may be next year. I will keep you posted on that.
We are studying pure essential oils; some call them "therapeutic quality" or "therapeutic grade". I suggest you do your own research on these terms because there is a lot of conflict in the aromatherapy world about the definition of these terms. Basically, there are different qualities of essential oils (EO's from here on out). There are food grade EO's and perfume grade EO's and then there are the EO's that you can use medicinally and some you can ingest. There's a lot of controversy about that as well. Actually, there seems to be a lot of controversy, in general, in the aromatherapy field. There are many companies who state that their oils are pure. You will need to do your own research and judge for yourself.
For the record, I prefer to use Young Living Essential Oils, but that is all I will say on the matter. I want this to be an educational blog and not a plug for any particular oil company. I have purchased and used oils from other companies and I like them as well.
There are hundreds (maybe thousands) of EO's which come from a variety of plants, trees, shrubs, roots, flowers, leaves, resins, rinds, etc. We couldn't possibly learn about them all in depth in this course. As I study, I will be sharing with you some of the characteristics of each of the oils I learn about and their usages.
We are studying pure essential oils; some call them "therapeutic quality" or "therapeutic grade". I suggest you do your own research on these terms because there is a lot of conflict in the aromatherapy world about the definition of these terms. Basically, there are different qualities of essential oils (EO's from here on out). There are food grade EO's and perfume grade EO's and then there are the EO's that you can use medicinally and some you can ingest. There's a lot of controversy about that as well. Actually, there seems to be a lot of controversy, in general, in the aromatherapy field. There are many companies who state that their oils are pure. You will need to do your own research and judge for yourself.
For the record, I prefer to use Young Living Essential Oils, but that is all I will say on the matter. I want this to be an educational blog and not a plug for any particular oil company. I have purchased and used oils from other companies and I like them as well.
There are hundreds (maybe thousands) of EO's which come from a variety of plants, trees, shrubs, roots, flowers, leaves, resins, rinds, etc. We couldn't possibly learn about them all in depth in this course. As I study, I will be sharing with you some of the characteristics of each of the oils I learn about and their usages.
Moving on; our first class was third week in March 2010.
We learned a brief history of EO usage. Many people think the first EO's were used in Egypt, but there is evidence that they show up even before that in China, about 5,000 years ago! The Egyptians coined the term "perfume" in 4500 B.C. It meant "through the smoke". Many of the oils have been found in tombs. Frankincense was discovered (good as new, I might add) in alabaster jars. (Ohhhh....dream on....can you imagine 4000 yr. old Frankincense? Mmmmm!) They also found clove, cinnamon and nutmeg in the bandages on the mummies.
We learned a brief history of EO usage. Many people think the first EO's were used in Egypt, but there is evidence that they show up even before that in China, about 5,000 years ago! The Egyptians coined the term "perfume" in 4500 B.C. It meant "through the smoke". Many of the oils have been found in tombs. Frankincense was discovered (good as new, I might add) in alabaster jars. (Ohhhh....dream on....can you imagine 4000 yr. old Frankincense? Mmmmm!) They also found clove, cinnamon and nutmeg in the bandages on the mummies.
There is an entire chapter on EO's in the Canon of Medicine, written by Avicenna, around 1000 AD. If you want to learn more about him and the Canon, here's a link: http://www.trincoll.edu/depts/phil/philo/phils/muslim/sina.html.
Avicenna
Around 1100 AD, Hildegard of Bingen wrote about EO's. Here's a link to info about her: http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/med/hildegarde.html.
Hildegard of Bingen
In the 1600's perfumery became popular in Europe. I guess people smelled pretty bad and the women, especially, wore lots of scents to cover up the odors. There was usage of EO's, but due to The Inquisition and supposed "witchcraft", there wasn't a lot written about EO's in these times. People were using herbs and EO's for healing, but were afraid to document it. That's why they call it "The Dark Ages" folks.
Rene Maurice Gattefosse researched the dermatological aspects of EO's and wrote a book called "Aromatherapy", first published in1937. Here's a link to learn more about him: http://www.gattefosse.fr/internet/gatt-wk3.nsf/TECHDOCPARCLEF/00000481?OpenDocument.
Rene Maurice Gattefosse
Over the last 100 years, there has grown to be varying "schools" of EO information and usage. You may want to educate yourself about these varying schools of thought. I stole this explanation from this article:
Essential Oils with Dr Daniel Penoel
By: Noel Cunnington
http://www.natural-skin-care-info.com/Dr-Daniel-Penoel.html
(Dr. Daniel Penoel is a modern day researcher who reports on medical uses of EO's and modern French Aromatherapy.)
"In the world of aromatherapy, there are 3 schools of thought. The first is the British school, which teaches the dilution of essential oils, and its application -often through massage - for relaxation and balancing. The majority of Australian aromatherapists are trained in the British system. Secondly there is the German school, which relies on the aroma of the oils, rather than direct application. And thirdly, there is the French school, which treats essential oils as a valid form of medicine, to be used as in any other medical protocol - internally, by injection, topically (undiluted), rectally, and vaginally. As Dr Penoel said, "In my country, we've given millions and millions of clinical treatments with essential oils." It is from this medical application of essential oils that the term "Aromatic Medicine" was derived." I encourage you to visit websites to research all the different applications of EO's.
Shirley Price http://www.shirleyprice.net/ and Robert Tisserand http://roberttisserand.com/about
are two more modern day EO gurus. Robert Tisserand wrote a book called "The Art of Aromatherapy" which is very popular around the world. He is one of the founders of the National Association for Holistic Aromatherapists here in the U.S. http://www.naha.org/history.htm, which is an organization you should know about. It is the organization which gives the test to become a Registered Aromatherapist. More on that later.
There are other modern day EO gurus you can research. Here is a brief list:
Dr. Kurt Schnaubelt, Pacific Institute of Aromatherapy http://www.pacificinstituteofaromatherapy.com/
Dr. Gary Young, Young Living Essential Oils, http://www.dgaryyoung.com/
Barry Kapp, Wisdom of the Earth, http://www.wisdomoftheearth.com/about-us.htm
David Crow, Floracopeia, http://www.floracopeia.com/crow.php
There are many more "experts". These are just a few that I have personal experience of. I have heard from aromatherapists that if there is only one source for a particular essential oil, many of the best companies will get that oil from the same source, especially if they want quality. Be aware of sourcing, growing, harvesting, distillation processes, storage, etc. Do your research before you buy. More on that later.
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