We can find many beneficial uses for natural herbs and their essential oils in our lives. The essential oils contain the concentrated part of the herb. Using the herb in its purest oil form can allow us to store it for longer periods of time. We can use less of it this way due to the concentration in the oils. A little goes a long way. One common theme that you might hear again and again has to do with energy and the effect it has on healing. It actually affects all areas of our lives. Since we exist in a world of energy and we inhabit both a physical body and an energy body (sometimes called an aura), we can begin to understand how certain energies or frequencies can cause beneficial shifts in our environment and in our bodies. Herbs and oils are embodied with these frequencies or vibrations. Each herb carries its own energy. Since herbs tend to be fragrant, we can often induce change through smelling or breathing in the herb. That is how the use of incense, perfumes, teas and spices can affect us. Aromatherapy is also based on this premise. When you light a lovely scented candle and allow it to fill your home with its aroma, you may begin to feel uplifted, peaceful, invigorated, dreamy, soothed, intuitive, loving, etc., depending on the vibration of the fragrance and, of course, the quality of the candle and the herbs used in making it. When you have prepared a wonderful homemade soup that you have seasoned just right with herbs, someone coming home can smell it immediately upon entering, and it can generally produce a change in their demeanor rather quickly. Just as baking cookies made with cinnamon or some other fragrant herb readily brings a smile to the face of anyone who enters your home. The medicines that we use today can be traced back to their roots in the herbal remedies that the wise folk used in days long ago. And many of those very same remedies will work just as well today as they did then to bring relief from physical ailments. Many people actually prefer to use an herbal remedy rather than using a processed medicine made in a laboratory. In many cases the herbal remedies are extremely effective, and obviously cost much less than their laboratory produced counter-parts. Always listen to your own body. Never discount your own power to observe any changes in your physical condition, and to respond to those changes appropriately. Discussing your options with your doctor as well as becoming informed by researching and reading are the suggested path. Copyright 2005 Sherry Sims |
