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Charlotte Amalie
Friday, March 29, 2024
HomeNewsArchivesEssential Oils Rock!

Essential Oils Rock!

Over the years in my quest for an easy and effective path to peak health, I had run across and dabbled in essential oils with paltry results.

I never loved the smell of the ever-popular lavender oil and found few results using grapefruit oil to lift my mood. I did get some help for the few colds I got over the years using eucalyptus oil. But in general, I would try an oil here or there and abandon it simply through lack of noticeable results.

So, old half-used bottles of these oils purchased at various health food stores lingered in my medicine cabinet years later when I discovered therapeutic-grade medicinal essential oils. The real deal.

The occasion for my discovery was a grueling nine-hour dental chair experience at Columbia Dental School in January. The school does not offer the use of general anesthetics, so I was a bit nervous about the long invasive, procedure I was facing.

My friend, yoga teacher and body worker Loren Mahaffey, offered to FedEx a few oils to my New York address to help me through the impending ordeal. I agreed, as only the sick and dying will do. Anything that might help – yes, yes, yes.

She instructed me where to put the oils and how to use them.

The oils arrived at the apartment and I did exactly as instructed. I used the oils in meditation the night before the appointment and also early that morning. As the three oils Loren sent were in roll-on containers, I was able to stick them in my jeans pocket and slog through New York’s grey winter streets to my dental destiny.

The oils Loren sent were from Young Living and included three blends: Stress Away, Valor and Breathe Again.

I had slathered the Valor over my shoulders and neck before leaving the apartment and had used the Breathe Again on my lungs. The Stress Away went on my wrists, forehead, temples and neck. That blend had the most appealing aroma, and stress is the worst offender in a dental situation anyway.

So, armed with my oils, mala beads and my Nano, there I sat for nine hours, mouth open and exposed to what seemed like hundreds of plastic wrapped fingers — blissful.

You heard me, it was blissful.

The poor young interns could not believe what was going on. Dr. Hwang said more than once, “you are the best patient we have ever had.”

I am sure I was.

Believe me, bliss was nowhere in the lexicon of my expectations for this long-put-off dental experience.

Noticing the occasional anxiety of these lovely young doctors who also spent those nine hours by that chair, I would roll the Stress Away on my palms, cup them over my nose, inhale for a minute and then offer the aroma therapy to Dr. Hwang and Dr. Andranto.

“Smell my hands,” I would say raising my arms to their masked faces.

Some days later upon my return to St. Thomas, I went to see Loren.

“Okay, tell me more about these oils,” I said.

She did, and I became a believer.

I have since used the oils, not only to clear nagging emotional and physical conditions for myself, but diffusing them in my house and using them for our pets has brought empirically measurable changes to my life and the lives of those around me. I also use other of the Young Living products for everything from cleaning my house to smoothing my wrinkles.

That’s what I can say for now from my short experience.

But in June a woman who has worked with the oils for more than 20 years will be brining her decades of experience to St. Thomas.

Anna-Maya Powell is a Swiss native who studied biochemistry in Switzerland in 1970 which started her lifelong pursuit of understanding better health. In Germany she was licensed in medical and Kneipp hydrotherapy.

After coming to the U.S., she became licensed in the Heartmath System and trained in aromatherapy, reflexology and bio-kinesiology techniques.

Powell will conduct several workshops that will be open to the public. They include:

Introduction to Essential Oils
Thursday June 16; 6–8 p.m.
5elements Studio
Anyone interested in learning about essential oils and Raindrop Technique is welcome to attend this free workshop, but you must contact Shaun Pennington at 777-8144 or via email to sign up to attend.

Essential Oils for Children
Monday, June 20; 9:30–11:30 a.m.
Antilles School Lower School Auditorium
Physical, emotional, mental and spiritual wellness is extremely important for growing children. Essential oils have been proven by research (and mothers) to be a fast and easy natural way to keep children happy, healthy and in balance. This workshop is free but you must contact Shaun Pennington at 777-8144 or via email to sign up to attend.

Essential Oils and Animals
Monday, June 20; 5:30–7:30 p.m.
Antilles School Lower School Auditorium
If you are looking for natural, simple and effective ways to keep your animals healthy, please join us as Anna-Maya Powell shares her knowledge in caring for animals. This workshop is free but you must contact Shaun Pennington at 777-8144 or via email to sign up to attend.

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