Above: The photos showing how i have a `relationship` with lavender through my association of it with the products used at home that contain it and dried lavender filled eye pillows that are an object frequently used by me as a therapist at the spa i work at, where i put it over the eyes of my client when they lie facing up on the massage bed during treatment.
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The mental association that i have with lavender through those products therefore is refreshment, comfort, pleasant ambiance, zoning out, switching out from stress.
`Those who smelled their `pleasant` odor reported their pain as less uncomfortable than those who smelled their`unpleasant` odor`
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`Simply being told that a given fragrance was relaxing or stimulating produced changes in heart rate consistent with being relaxed or stimulated, regardless of what the fragrance was or even if a fragrance was actually present. Students who were told that lavender scent was `stimulating` experienced a rise in heart rate `
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Way to prolong the effect of smelling a scent before adaptation kicks in is to dispense an odor intermittently
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The context in which we typically encounter the fragrances common to aromatherapy helps support their therapeutic effects. Lavender is often found in bath oils and soaps, and since people frequently take baths to relax, lavender is easily construed as relaxing
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Lavender is uplifting, soothing and helpful for reducing stress, anxiety, depression and insomnia
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Aromas work their therapeutic magic by evoking a `learned` association in the `smeller`. This learned association can have real emotional and physical consequences, which in turn will influence moods, thoughts, behaviors, and general well-being.
We have `learned` that the emotional association with lavender is relaxation in the same way that we have learned that rose smells good and skunk smells bad
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