Beat stress the way plants do--use essential oils.

Relaxed plants don’t make much essential oil. They have little need to do so as their stress management is built in.

You see, plants produce essential oils as a way of coping with environmental stress. Some plants respond to wind, cold, disease and drought by manufacturing essential oils that act as antifreeze, antibiotics, or a water-retention mechanism in the plant. The bitter taste of essential oils, along with their strong aromas, deter insects and animals from eating the plant. Aromatic resins close wounds in trees and prevent infection. Sweet, seductive aromas convey the critical information that the time for pollination is NOW. Use the right essential oils and anxiety can be a thing of the past.

Plop an aromatic plant in a patch of perfectly-prepared, rich soil. Shelter it and water it well. It will have a scent about as exciting as iceberg lettuce. However, let it thrash out an existence on a rocky, wind-scoured hillside with foraging goats, and it will produce a perfume of rare vintage. Even commercial production of aromatic plants does not use much artificial irrigation or pesticides. Moderate stress makes for more and better essential oils.

We humans can distill these specialized stress-busting essences to help us manage the stress in our lives.

While a little stress can be a good thing for us, providing motivation and challenge, too much stress can be a killer. Here’s what happens.

1. Environmental toxins (including the ones we choose to ingest), cultural/relationship stresses and poor personal choices create an excess stress load in our bodies and minds. We simply load ourselves up with more than we can handle.

2. The brain produces stress hormones in response to a steady dose of anxiety. These add to the physical and emotional toxins that accumulate in our bodies. This load impacts not only our enjoyment of life, but also the proper functioning of all the systems of the body.

3. Day to day stresses tax adrenal glands that were designed to respond to true “fight or flight” situations, not a grinding daily commute to an understaffed workplace. Adrenal exhaustion trashes the immune system.

4. With our defenses down and all body systems strained by stress, we get sick in our souls, minds, hearts, guts, veins, joints and skin. The entire organism reflects stress overload.

Essential oils can intervene at all levels of the “stress to sickness” decline, and are most effectively used before physical illness manifests itself. However, we cannot expect essential oils (or any other substance or therapy) to do the whole job. Truly effective stress management demands that we make good choices in our diets, rest, exercise habits, finances, and especially in our attitudes. With this in mind, let us look at ways essential oils can support our own smart choices. Using essential oils and aromatherapy for stress relief is a healthy choice.

RELAXING FLOWER OILS: These sweet, voluptuous aromas act directly on the central nervous system as we inhale them. They are a fast way to take the edge off the day. Our olfactory receptors are hard-wired to the limbic area of the brain. Clinical tests have shown that simple inhalation of genuine lavender oil (synthetics don’t work like natural oils) triggers the brain to release seratonin, promoting relaxation during the day and restful sleep at night. Ylang-ylang is used clinically to lower high blood pressure, and neroli is an excellent anti-panic oil. Rose is a superb oil for difficult emotions such as anger, resentment, jealousy, etc. Rose and jasmine are respectively tonic to the female and male reproductive systems. Not surprisingly, these natural botanical sexual attractants help to balance our own sexual hormones and can enhance sexual response, a great stress-reducer in its own right.

Relaxing Oils: Lavender, rose, jasmine, neroli (orange blossom), ylang-ylang, linden, camomile, clary sage, geranium.

PROTECTIVE LEAF AND NEEDLE OILS: These are the immune system of the plant. They have a direct beneficial effect on human immunity, especially in supporting adrenal function and promoting increased production of specialized immune cells. They can help counteract the ravages of excess stress. These oils also help keep circulation and digestion running smoothly so toxins don’t accumulate. They are also generally energizing and a great “pick me up”. Drop a few drops on the shower floor (close the drain) and enjoy the fragrant cloud as you start your day.

Protective Oils: Pine, spruce, tea tree, rosemary, peppermint, bay laurel, eucalyptus

RESTORATIVE ROOT AND RESIN OILS: Feeling totally tapped? Reach for the root oils and associated heartwood and resin oils. Deep meditative oils like sandalwood and spikenard impact receptors in the brain and promote an inner calm. Simple methods work best. Inhale from the bottle, diffuse in the room, or put 2-4 drops in your bath.

Restorative Oils: Sandalwood, frankincense, myrrh, patchouli, cedarwood, spikenard, rosewood.

CHEERING CITRUS OILS: As happy as liquid sunshine, these oils act on the phyche like a perfect day. Grapefruit oil is used clinically to treat Seasonal Affective Disorder, “Winter Blues”. Citrus oils also tone the lymphatic system to keep those nasty stress toxins from building up. They are too skin-irritating to use in the bath, but use in diffusers or in the shower works very well. Organic citrus oils are best, as sprayed fruit may hold a high level of agri-chemicals in the essential oils, which are pressed from the peels.

Cheering Oils: Grapefruit, orange, lemon, lime, tangerine, mandarin, bergamot.

WARRIOR SPICE OILS: Has stress compromised your immune system to the point that colds, flu and infections are a part of your life? Look to the heavy artillery of aromatherapy-- the hot, germicidal spice oils. These oils can take on germs that are resistant to antibiotics at the same time they help boost your immune system. Inhalation and diffusion are the applications here. These oils are too hot to use on your skin.

Warrior Oils: Thyme, oregano, cinnamon, clove.

It’s easy to use essential oils. A drop or two is all you need. Resist the urge to use too much; one drop of essential oil is the rough chemical equivalent of 30 cups of herbal tea. More is NOT better and may cause skin irritation, nausea or headache. There is rarely any reason to take essential oils internally, and any such use should be supervised by a medical professional specifically trained in the use of essential oils. Keep it simple and safe. Sniff from the bottle or a tissue, splash a few drops on the shower floor or soak in an aromatic bath. Add a few drops of essential oil to your massage oil. If commuter frustration is stressing you, put a few drops of oil on a tissue and tuck the tissue into your pocket or one of the air vents of your car. It is advisable to learn a bit about essential oils before you use them. Good books and good beginner instruction are both available to you.

It is very helpful when using essential oils to assess your personal choices and adjust accordingly. Essential oils can also be very useful tools in changing habits that do not serve you and may be adding to your stress.

It is my personal feeling that blowing up the TV and limiting your media exposure is a good first step. One guy I know programmed his TV remote to skip any channel which might broadcast gloomy financial information and spoil his relaxation time watching TV. I just stopped subscribing to cable TV, allow myself one public radio newscast per day, and rely on my friends to tell me local news of importance. You may not want to go THAT far, but you may want to assess the toxicity of the information you are allowing into your life. This is especially true if you can’t do a darned thing about it anyway. Anyone can use aromatherapy with quality essential oils and anxiety can be relieved.

A hard look at your diet, exercise, rest, relationships, work, finances and the demands you are making on yourself can help you design your own stress management program. While the mere thought of all this personal assessment is stressful, the investment you make in your own choices can save you many days and years of future stress. Don’t take it all on at once. Start with the area you consider most important.

And remember the wisdom of the plants. When the wind blows too hard, bend.