I have decided to offer a free class on aromatherapy.
Topics will include things such as:
- What is Aromatherapy?
- Synthetic fragrance oils Vs Essential oils
- What are Essential oils?
- Chemistry concepts
- How smell effects the body
- How aromatherapy works when used for inhalation
- How dermal applications effect the body
- Blending basics
…and so much more
Before I get started I would first like to introduce myself a little bit and give some background on my experience with aromatherapy.
I first became interested in herbal therapies at a very young age. My grandparents raised me on a small three acre plot off the intracoastal waterway. We lived in a little, two bedroom cinderblock shack, we had a large garden, my grandfather fished and my grandmother made fishing nets and cared for our home. I was surrounded by nature and the wisdom of an older generation. The area we lived was primarily populated by people over the age of 50, give or take. As most of the residents in the area where retired and had grown children, I spent my days playing in the trees and along the water. I made friends with the elderly because there where rarely any children to play with. I also very much enjoyed listening to there stories of times gone by. The result was a deep love and respect for the land and the old ways of life.
During my early years in school the one topic that grabbed my interest most closely was that of mythology. I was fascinated by the far away lands and mysterious tales. I also had a keen interest in horses and read much about Arabian culture because of it’s relationship with then. I had been raised in a Christian home but around the age of ten or so I started having an interest in learning about other spiritual beliefs.
During the early 1990’s a social fascination with the topic of witchcraft came into play. Although it never overtook my spiritual beliefs about God, per say, it did impart a broader scope of cultural understanding to my life. Pagan cultures, especially, have continued to keep detailed records of herbalist lore and I took to the study of that very strongly.
By the age of twelve I was now more a part of the boarder world. While wandering downtown one day, exploring, I came across this little shop and was enormously enthralled by the strange products it held. It was filled with an intoxicating smell and the little brown bottles and herbalist books immediately drew me to adore every corner.
The shop owner, who I have now been acquainted with for well over fifteen year, was beautiful and wonderful. She had a mysterious air and a head full of long curly red hair. I asked her questions about her shop and she recommended to me my first book on aromatherapy, “The Aromatherapy Book” by Jeanne Rose. I still own that book to this day and it is still an irreplaceable asset in my ever broadening collection.
My first experiment was a concoction of a plain base cream mixed with rosemary oil. I was suffering with excessively oily hair due to the onset of puberty and made a hair mask with these basic ingredients. I slathered it on and soaked my hair in it for probably an hour. Once washed, my hair was beautiful and my oil problem greatly reduced like magic. I was hooked.
Over the years I continued to study and love essential oils, yet my formal education did not happen until many years later.
At the age of 25 I found myself a single mother in the process of a divorce. I was working for just better than minimum wage and made the decision to take a risk and enroll myself in college.
The subject that drew closeset to my heart was massage therapy. Over the course of my life not only had I continued to love essential oils and herbalist lore but I had also developed a healthy interest in medical science and alternative therapies. Massage seemed the way to go.
The coursework for the program was two years and in addition to the massage technique we also had intensive study in anatomy and physiology, kinesiology, pathology and of course spa and aromatherapy. My aromatherapy class with the highlight of my studies there and in retrospect, where aromatherapy degrees available in the US, I might have gone that route rather than massage.
I graduated and am still a licensed massage and bodywork therapist but my real passion resides in aromatherapy.
So how did I get from there to here? Well a couple years ago I got the idea to utilize my interest in cosmetics and chemistry to make products for my friends and family for Christmas. Being a family with three children money gets tight, especially during the holidays.
I began an extensive study into making balms and salves. I also did a fair deal of research on the FDA and it’s requirements for the distribution of home made cosmetics.
I made lip balms, body butters and candles for Christmas and afterwards I decided to open an online store to share some of my best creations.
The store did well but I was unprepared for the demand and after 6 months closed shop to get myself in better order and to prepare better for the demand. I actually have plans to reopen in January of 2012.
In the meanwhile I also though I might start work on a book of my own. An encyclopedia of sorts for aroma therapists. However, after many extensive hours of research and work the book was lost via a massive virus that got onto my computer. The result of this virus being that my entire operating system has to be wiped and reinstalled. I lost everything.
A close friend of mine has since commented over and over, “When are you going to get back to your book?” I told her recently that I would begin re writing it in January. It so happened that I had started this blog a few months back to just randomly vent and write about what interested me. If your already a reader of my blog then you’re aware that over the last month my obsessions have been the topic of soap and aromatherapy. It was a no brainier. Why not use this medium to write a class on aromatherapy? So here I am.
I have already begun the writing process and will begin posting my lessons soon. However, I also understand that we‘re all focused on the holiday season right now so I have decided to wait until after Christmas to officially begin.
Feel free to leave comments and Please subscribe if this interests you so you wont miss the upcoming topics.
Thanks for readings and Happy Holidays!
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