Aromatherapy for the Dancer
Dancers will ignore aches and pains or treat them superficially and then push on. Eventually, through this inattention, the small aches worsen and can develop into sidelining injuries.
It's time to learn a few simple things you can do to affect your well-being, and aromatherapy might be just the ticket. It has been around for centuries and used effectively by cultures all over the globe. It's reemerging as more natural than synthetic medicines and as harboring fewer side effects. But don't take my word for it - or anyone else's for that matter. Do your own research and determine if it might be right for you.
And don't believe everything you read, either; even research can be questionable. For instance, one online source starts off its history of aromatherapy with an anecdote about how lavender purportedly had no scent until Mary laid baby Jesus' clothes on a bush to dry and when she removed them - voilà - the lavender had acquired its scent. Call me crazy, but I don't think so.
There survives, however, documented evidence of the use of essential oils, and it begins with Egyptian hieroglyphic records. Oils of cedarwood, clove, cinnamon, nutmeg and myrrh were used to embalm the dead and residual traces of myrrh and frankincense, dating back to 1350 BC, were identified in King Tutankhamen's tomb when it was opened in 1922.
The process for extracting the oils was quite tedious. Plant materials were steeped in oil or wine, wrapped tightly inside linen cloth and twisted tighter and tighter until every last drop was extracted. These oils, in addition to being used ceremoniously, had everyday appli-cations. Cleopatra supposedly drenched the sails of her royal barge in intoxicating fragrances.
Even the locals got into the act. Oils were combined with animal fat, shaped into cones and allowed to dry. Placed on the head, they grad-ually melted in the sun. The result was sweet smelling, well-conditioned hair and, I imagine, an even more interesting aromatic blend by the time it trickled onto sweating backs or shoulders. But hey, they tried.
The Greeks and Romans took things one step farther, documenting the properties of about 500 plants in their experiments. Hippocrates, known as the "father of medicine," prescribed essential oils, and a Greek perfumer named Megallus used myrrh as an anti-inflammatory on irritated skin and to heal wounds.
Moving on to the 12th century, we come to Hildegard, a German Abbess, who grew and distilled lavender and then used it medicinally. Documents from the 14th century, chronicling the Black Death plague that killed millions, suggest that perfumers who had regular contact with aromatics seemed to have a better survival rate.
And at the beginning of the 20th century, a French chemist named Maurice Gattefossé, analyzing the individual properties of essential oils, was severely burned while working in his laboratory. He plunged his arm in a nearby vat of lavender and, although reports range from a lack of blistering to an accelerated healing process, he became convinced that essential oils had healing properties. He went on to experiment on World War I soldiers with the oils of lavender, thyme, lemon and clove, applying them to facial ulcers, gangrene and even black widow spider bites.
So how does aromatherapy work? The sense of smell in humans is refined enough to distinguish between 10,000 different smells. I'll bet many of those prompt instant memories for you - for instance roses, peppermint or even lemon. Think that's an accident? The essential oil scent enters the nasal passages and is shunted through the olfactory lobes directly to the limbic system, bypassing the "reasoning" part of the brain entirely. The limbic system controls such functions as aggression and fear, heart rate and blood pressure, the formation of long-term memories, regulation of the autonomic nervous system, formation of spatial memory and regulation of the sleep/wake cycle.
Aromatherapy is especially potent when absorbed by the body. Aromatherapy texts describe the molecular structure of essential oils as minute and able to easily penetrate the layers of the skin. The chemical component of the oil can render it anti-inflammatory, stimulating, warming, calming, antiseptic, or anti-viral. Numerous examples come to mind: peppermint in toothpaste, eucalyptus in pain products and willow in aspirin.
Today, lavender is known to be one of the most versatile essential oils, used in everything from perfume to bath products and from creams to shampoos. It is used for skin, respiratory, muscular, cardiovascular, digestive and emotional problems (among others), and exhibits a soft and floral, yet fresh scent that is pleasant and relaxing.
The next article on aromatherapy will deal specifically with lavender and the many ways dancers can use it to ease physical discomfort and to affect emotional well-being.