She keeps a bottle of diluted oil in her office, spraying it around the room before stressful appointments. This scent-savvy lawyer isn't alone. Aromatherapy has long been recognized as an ancient healing art. The natural therapeutic effects are derived from essential oils that originate from aromatic plants and flowers. When these plants and flowers are blended into oils, they promote everything from calmness to emotional and hormonal balance.
Aromatherapy is a scent and touch-based therapy that works in two ways.
The most common method is inhaling the fragrance, an act that sends a message to the brain through the olfactory nerves. Once the scent is detected, it travels through the endocrine and hormonal system, eventually relaxing the body's muscles. Either instead of or in addition to, you can opt to massage the soothing scented oils and lotions directly onto your skin. But not all aromatherapy scents are created equally. Pleasurable aromatic smells like peppermint and lavender often compete with the equally effective eucalyptus when customers are choosing herbal remedies.