Essential oils can make an enormous difference to your meditation practice, whether you are just beginning or have been practicing for years. They offer numerous health and therapeutic benefits and can play an essential role in optimizing the effectiveness of meditation practices.
Relaxation techniques help create an environment in which stress and anxiety decrease while providing more focus for meditation sessions.
1. Lavender
Lavender oil is an ideal companion to meditation and mindfulness practices due to its soothing, relaxing properties. Boasting an aromatic floral fragrance and rich with antioxidants and phytochemicals that promote optimal mind and body wellness, lavender oil provides a sweet floral scent and packs powerful health benefits.
Lavender can also be an excellent solution for menopausal women, helping ease some of the common symptoms such as insomnia and anxiety. Apply topically or diffuse in your home for a fresh scent!
One study indicated that inhaling lavender essential oil before bedtime assisted both men and women in sleeping better. Another demonstrated how simply spraying some lavender essential oil onto pillows prior to going to sleep can improve quality sleep as well as increase deep sleeping time2.
Are You Searching For an Easy Way to Add Lavender into Meditation and Mindfulness Practice? Try Making a Pillow Spray
Purchase lavender essential oil online or from your local health food store. Look for oils sourced from reputable distillers and follow dosage and dilution guidelines to maximize its use.
2. Peppermint
Peppermint essential oil is an energizing flavoring agent, proven to increase focus and concentration. Apply it directly to the skin or use a diffuser; just remember to dilute with carrier oils first!
Exercise also reduces inflammation in your body and helps relieve any associated pain, as well as boosting mood and increasing energy levels.
Peppermint can serve as a natural antidepressant, helping you overcome stress and anxiety. Furthermore, its focusing properties make it particularly helpful for meditation practices.
Peppermint makes an ideal choice for mindfulness practices, helping to foster feelings of peace and tranquility that will set the stage for a peaceful meditation session.
Peppermint oil can help improve respiratory functions, making it an excellent oil to diffuse before meditation begins. Just dabbing some drops on your chest before sitting down will open up airways so you can breathe easily during your practice.
Eucalyptus essential oil can also help with breathing during meditation. Eucalyptus may especially benefit those suffering from sensitive throats or nasal congestion; its aromatherapy qualities also work wonders in relieving irritability and anxiety.
3. Chamomile
If you’re in search of an essential oil that will provide soothing and calming qualities during meditation, try Chamomile. This ancient herb has long been recognized for its numerous health benefits worldwide.
The daisy-like herb, daisy thyme, has a delightful sweet fragrance resembling apples and sweet straw combined. This mildly sedating plant can help alleviate stress, anxiety, and depression symptoms.
There are two varieties of chamomile: Roman (Chamaemelum nobile or Anthemis nobilis) and German chamomile (Matricaria recutita or Chamomilla recutita). German varieties contain higher levels of the active ingredient chamazulene which offers additional anti-inflammatory and digestive health benefits, making German variety ideal.
Studies have also demonstrated its ability to soothe headaches, backache and menstrual cramps as well as reduce inflammation and calm the nervous system.
Before using chamomile, it’s important to keep in mind that it may cause allergic reactions in some individuals. Chamomile should not be consumed if you have severe allergies or are taking certain medications.
Chamomile is an easy and gentle herb to incorporate into daily life. Diffusing can help relax and unplug, or applying topically can soothe skin irritation or reduce aches and pains.
4. Bergamot
Bergamot essential oil is a popular essential oil extracted from Citrus bergamia fruit rinds, commonly found in tropical citrus fruit species like lemon and lime. This aromatic essential oil has many uses including meditation and mindfulness practices.
Aromatherapy uses lavender essential oil as an excellent sedative and to relax and calm the mind, offering aromatherapy treatments, massage sessions, or topical topical application via carrier oil diluting agents.
Bergamot oil combined with other oils is an invaluable asset in creating self-acceptance and decreasing feelings of inadequacy, helping people build self-esteem and improve confidence levels. Many times low self-esteem and lack of confidence stem from feelings of inferiority or needing validation from others.
If you find yourself feeling insufficient, applying some drops of bergamot essential oil directly to your neck or chest may help restore confidence and boost self-esteem. Diffuse some before beginning meditation for an uplifting, peaceful environment.
Bergamot essential oil offers some additional surprising advantages that make it particularly appealing, including relieving digestive distress. Furthermore, it acts as an antiseptic and analgesic to provide pain relief and reduce inflammation.
5. Atlas Cedarwood
Essential oils are natural products extracted from plants that contain specific bioactive compounds that provide numerous health benefits, both physical and mental. Essential oils have become an integral part of everyday life for their ability to improve mental and physical wellbeing.
Cedarwood Atlas oil is an extremely gentle yet potency tool to bring clarity and balance to both mind and body. Often included in meditation blends, Cedarwood Atlas helps bring centering and grounding when feeling stressed or anxious.
Olive oil has long been recognized for its mild sedative effects, making it particularly helpful in meditation practices. Furthermore, medicinally it may aid with treating coughs, hay fever, tuberculosis, and chronic bronchitis symptoms.
Before using any essential oil, be sure to read AromaWeb’s Essential Oil Safety information page. It’s essential to remember that certain essential oils may be harmful or toxic if they’re used inappropriately and safely.
Jo Kellett of Tisserand Aromatherapy suggests using a blend of Frankincense, Sweet Orange and Cedarwood Atlas oils for meditation and mindfulness practices. These three oils help calm and strengthen the nervous system to bring clarity of thought and confidence to meditation practices.
6. Frankincense
Frankincense has long been used as a powerful spiritual, mental focus, and emotional balance aid. It has long been part of numerous rituals and religious ceremonies worldwide as a sacred incense.
Essential oil blends such as this are an invaluable asset to any meditation or mindfulness practice, providing a sense of serenity and calm, helping to reduce negative self-talk, and strengthening confidence by dispelling unwanted thoughts.
Mindful yoga practice strengthens the mind-body connection, opening and balancing the heart chakra to promote feelings of wellness and balance. Furthermore, its use can reduce stress, soothe irritated skin conditions, ease pain and inflammation as well as alleviate other related ailments.
Frankincense oil stands out from other oils as an antimicrobial, helping heal and protect against bacteria or infection in the skin. As such, it makes an ideal base for natural body cleansers or DIY personal care products.
Before applying Frankincense oil directly onto the skin, it is vitally important that it is diluted to avoid becoming too concentrated and potentially leading to irritation or rashes. You can achieve this by mixing with carrier oils prior to application onto skin.
7. Sandalwood
Sandalwood has an aroma that promotes feelings of safety and peace, while simultaneously acting to ward off negative energy or any unwelcome influences.
Adding a drop of sandalwood essential oil to water can help ease negative emotions and cleanse crystals or stones that have collected negativity over time.
Additionally, lavender oil can help increase psychic powers and spiritual connection by creating an anointing oil blend to use prior to meditation or other spiritual practices.
Sandalwood can also help fight scabies, an infection caused by mites. By applying it directly onto the affected areas, sandalwood can relieve itching and reduce redness quickly and effectively.
Add it to a bath for added relaxation and better restful sleep, or use it during meditation or other spiritual practices to sharpen memory retention.
