Therapeutic Grade Essential Oils and Mental Health

By Michelle Seminoff

Improving Mental Health with Therapeutic essential oils

When we look at health it is impossible to separate the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual from one another. Essential oils help us on every one of these levels.

One of my favorite blends is Trauma Life, which was originally created for people volunteering in hospital trauma centres. It supports both humans and animals who have experienced trauma, abandonment, PTSD, abuse or neglect. It also helps with depression and anxiety.  When you break down all the oils in this blend and what they do, it becomes clear why it is so helpful.

The following oils make up this blend:

• Valerian: used for calming, relaxing, grounding and emotionally balancing influences. It has been clinically researched for its tranquilizing properties. German health authorities have declared Valerian to be an effective treatment for restlessness and for sleep disturbances resulting from nervous conditions.
•  Lavender: Has sedative and calming properties that can help overcome insomnia, headaches, stress and nervous tension.
• Frankincense: Elevates the mind and helps overcome stress and despair. It contains sesquiterpenes, which stimulate the limbic region of the brain, the center of emotions.
•  Sandalwood: Is high in sesquesterpenes, which have been researched for their ability to stimulate the pineal gland and the limbic region of the brain; the center of emotions. The pineal gland is responsible for releasing melatonin, a hormone that enhances deep sleep. Frankincense and sandalwood also support nerves and circulation.
•  Rose: Possesses the highest frequency of the oils. It creates a sense of balance, harmony and well-being and elevates the mind.
•  Helichrysum: Has been researched in Europe for regenerating tissue and nerves and improving circulation.
•  Spruce: Helps to open and release emotional blocks, bringing about a feeling of balance and grounding. It is anti -infectious, antiseptic and anti-inflammatory.
•  Geranium: Stimulates nerves and assists in balancing hormones. Its aromatic influence helps release negative memories, thereby opening and elevating the mind.
•  Davana: Is high in sesquiterpenes which are supporting of the immune system. It works to reduce painful scarring and helps to overcome anxiety.
• Citrus hystrix: Is anti-infectious, anti-septic, a neurotonic and liver decongestant. With its hormone-like properties, it helps under-active sexual glands. The constituents of aldehydes, esters and coumarins make it calming and sedative.

When looking at the components of essential oils and the impact they have on the pineal gland, limbic system along with the anti-inflammatory effects, nerve support, immune system support, it is easy to understand the positive effect essential oils have on mental health. No matter the root cause of mental health challenges, the oils support the system in combating disorders of any sort. By minimizing chronic pain for example, a person is less likely to experience depression brought on by an inability to complete activities of daily living. The grounding effects of oils assist with manic phases and schizophrenia. By supporting the circulatory system essential oils improve brain function.   

For help with focus and concentration, diffusing Rosemary essential oil is amazing. If your child is struggling with ADHD or ADD, diffusing Vetiver can help them settle and focus. Both oils may also be applied topically.

Essential oils may be inhaled or diffused, applied topically or ingested. They are equally effective no matter the application type. The importance of using therapeutic grade essential oils cannot be stressed enough! Therapeutic grade essential oils are safe for everyone in your family, from your youngest child to your four legged and feathered family members. When applying oils topically on young children and pets it is important to dilute with a carrier oil such as V-6 vegetable oil, fractionated coconut oil or grapeseed oil as quality essential oils are powerful and there may be skin sensitivities.  

I use Young Living Essential Oils on all my clients, both 2 and 4 legged, as I have tried many others and found these to be the most consistently pure and effective. When purchasing an essential oil, it is important to do your research as the essential oil industry is not regulated. What is on the label is not necessarily in the bottle.  Companies use fillers and chemicals so if purchasing cheaper oil, there are risks of doing actual harm. If you’re purchasing an oil to help with a health issue and end up using something with a harmful chemical additive on an already compromised system, the situation will only become worse. I always encourage people to do their homework. When I talk to people about oils, I hear far too many stories of harm done by people purchasing contaminated or synthetic oils. One of the worst is from a bodyworker who became extremely ill from using ‘certified organic’ essential oils daily in her massage practice. She lived a very clean lifestyle, so the oils were sent to a lab and found to contain unbelievable amounts of toxic chemicals that apparently had been used in the distillation process and as filler for the oils. I have used my Young Living oils on a daily basis for many years with all my clients with great success and confidence in their Seed to Seal guarantee.

About Michelle Seminoff

Michelle began her journey to becoming an Integrated Modality Practitioner after a significant illness in 2009. She realized western medicine was only speeding up the deterioration of her health so decided it was time to explore other options. Through the support of her Chinese Medicine Practitioner/Reiki teacher, she began to heal. Now a practicing Integrated Modality Practitioner and Equine Assisted Therapy Facilitator, she enjoys assisting both humans and animals in attaining and maintaining optimum health through a variety of modalities including Reiki and Essential Oils. Essential oil training was with a western medicine MD. The oils augment the other modalities used for treatment beautifully, enabling her 2 and 4 legged clients to enjoy prolonged good health.

You can reach Michelle at mseminoff@gmail.com