If you’ve followed me for some time, you’ll know I am truly obsessed with aromatherapy and the healing powers of essential oils. They’re generally inexpensive and highly accessible with few side effects – and they are also a pleasure to use with many versatile benefits for all aspects of health on a physical and emotional level. I incorporate essential oil within many of my integrative and holistic therapies, to further enhance results and help patients to feel calmer and more relaxed during and after treatment.
If you’re new here, I’m so pleased you found this blog as today I’m going to share a wonderful tool with you which you can use whenever needed for rapid relief from emotional stress.
Why are holistic self-care strategies for emotional stress important?
We can all benefit from easy to use, gentle and accessible techniques which can help us to deal with unexpected or ongoing stress throughout the day. Although getting to the root of emotional stress is important, having tools and strategies we can use to support us on an everyday basis can help us to feel calmer overall and more in control of any challenging emotions or mental health concerns we are facing.
What is an emotional stress kit?
An emotional stress kit is a personalised essential oil blend you can carry with you and use in times of anxiety. The wonderful thing about it is you choose the oils and the format to suit your needs and preferences – whether it’s a rollerball for acupressure points or EFT tapping, a spray for your immediate space or a diffuser blend.
How to create an emotional stress kit
This was admittedly tough to write – because there are so many wonderful oils with stress-relieving benefits I could include! Below you’ll find an overview of my favourites with some brief information on each to help you choose.
Of course part of the magic of essential oils is the scent – when something smells good, it reacts with chemical receptors in the brain. For this reason, I advise choosing scents you really like for maximum benefit – if citrus isn’t your thing, skip mandarin and go for something floral, woody or herbal. You can find lots of resources online about essential oil properties, pairing and blending if you want to create a signature scent.
I’ve broken down the process into three handy steps to help you create your blend, with some tips included on how to store and use it.
Step one:
Choose a container. I recommend something you can take with you or keep in a discreet place at home or at work – or even in the car. I tend to find spray bottles or rollerballs work best – you can find reasonably priced empty containers on Etsy, Amazon and eBay. Tinted glass is best to preserve the qualities of the oils within.
Wash out your container with hot mildly soapy water and leave to dry thoroughly before decanting your oil once it has been blended. For extra support, you might like to add some crystal chips such as rose quartz or clear quartz.
Step two:
Choose a carrier oil or liquid.
If you’re creating your own oil for a rollerball or spray, opt for a mild non-irritating oil such as sweet almond or grapeseed. Go for the highest quality possible – organic and pure cosmetic grade is recommended.
If you’re making a spray or diffuser blend a hydrolat such as rose or witchazel hydrolat work really well.
Step 3:
Now it’s time to choose your essential oils! I recommend the following oils based on personal experience and my professional practice:
Bergamot (a wonderfully calming citrus oil, shown to be beneficial for anxiety, depression and stress related conditions having a refreshing and uplifting quality)
Lavender (well-known for its calming, soothing and stress-relieving properties which can also support sounder sleep)
Geranium (particularly beneficial for hormonal or menopausal mood disorders)
Clary sage (shown to have an anti-depressant affect through boosting serotonin levels in the brain)
Roman chamomile (another popular calming and soothing oil)
Ylang Ylang (one of my favourite oils for stress and anxiety and nervous tension, ylang ylang helps regulate your respiratory and heart rate, both of which tend to increase in times of stress)
Sandalwood (earthy and grounding – very good for anxiety relief)
Petitgrain (particularly beneficial for insomnia, nervous exhaustion and stress related conditions)
Mandarin (a wonderful sweet citrus oil to balance the nervous system and restlessness)
Orange (citrus scents are naturally uplifting and mood-boosting)
Frankincense (an oil that I use a lot within cancer care, frankincense has many healing properties among which the ability to slow down and deepen the breath for relaxation)
Vetiver (an earthy oil that is deeply relaxing and so valuable for anyone experiencing stress or anxiety)
Add a few drops of each building up slowly – you can always add more, but once added you can’t remove the oil! Less is more when it comes to aromatherapy. A blend that is too strong could be unpleasant or cause irritation.
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