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How to Choose Essential Oils

Make the Right Choice for Your Essential Oil Remedy or Blend

Choosing the best essential oil remedy should not be such a daunting process. To the essential oil beginner, selecting the right oil for a desired treatment can seem difficult. This too, at times, is true for the seasoned aromatherapist. It’s common to choose essential oils through recommendations taken from a book, an online blog or from another user. That seems simple enough. No, nix that, it can be confusing. It’s not unusual to get conflicting, perplexing or limited information from internet sources, books and the company you buy oils from.

EASY CHOICES WITH COMMON REMEDIES
The beginner will likely find what they’re looking for by opening an essential oil book or through a social media source. For instance, a search “what essential oil is best for headache?” will put the “top 5,” or whatever, on the first page of Google. The most common suggestions are lavender, peppermint, rosemary and chamomile (Roman chamomile is generally what this oil is). Doesn’t seem to be confusing, and it’s consistent among the top pages that come up. So, these must be the right choices. Right?

It’s common to choose essential oils through recommendations taken from a book, an online blog or from another user.

What you find online for headache, stress, colds and flu can be consistent, making your selection fairly easy. Of course, it’s necessary to have the oils that are being suggested. The issues that arise when reviewing available information are the contradictions that become apparent the more literature you go through. What makes one recommendation, that may be very different from others, the correct choice?

THE CORRECT INFORMATION

The beauty of essential oils, or challenge, depending on how you process it, is that they don’t seem to abide by absolute rules. There are some basic guidelines, like oregano will irritate the skin and all essential oils will irritate the eyes. But, when it comes to remedies, essential oils behave in a more flexible, less predictable and less absolute way. Peppermint, lavender or rosemary may not relieve a headache, or may only be effective sometimes. What this becomes, and where it does require some essential oil education, is a situation where the choice of the oil has to match the person and the potential cause of the symptoms. The correct information regarding a this-oil-for-that-symptom remedy is the information that works when you use it. That wasn’t very helpful, was it?

THE CONTRADICTIONS ARE ACTUALLY VARIATIONS

There are many contradictions found in essential oil information. One may say grapefruit is stimulating, another may say it’s calming. They can’t both be true. Yes, they can, and it’s dependent on how it’s used. Contradictions are due to many reasons. Essential oils, in aromatherapy, can be very subjective. A user may have an experience with the oil for a specific condition and share this through their writings or teaching. This information will be repeated and shared on a larger scale, eventually becoming part of a “common knowledge.” It won’t matter whether there is any science or study to back up the use. This scenario is repeated in many ways.

An essential oil use based on science, company marketing, or “expert” advice, may all come to different conclusions, which is shared, written about or taught, and becomes a soup of information, misinformation and so-called facts. So, who’s right? As stated already, the choice that is right is the one that works. Though one recipe may contradict an alternate, it doesn’t make one right and the other wrong. This shows the variations in the way essential oils are used. Don’t confuse this with improper use of essential oils. Some suppliers and lay people can make suggestions that may have safety concerns or contraindications. Be sure to research this area.

STILL SEEMS DIFFICULT

Selecting essential oils IS a daunting task - or not. Let’s examine the way essential oils are used and, instead of letting it become frustrating and difficult, just go with a creative approach in the selection and use of essential oils. The following is a lesson in developing a method to select essential oils. It becomes a practice, and is geared to the person interested in a longer term use of the oils. If not interested in this procedure, the quick answer to choosing the right essential oil(s) is to buy from experts who have finished remedies for your specific condition.

SETTING A THERAPEUTIC GOAL

First step is to be clear on why the essential oil or blend is being used. This is your therapeutic focus. Without a purpose, there is no destination. Set your therapeutic GPS. The goal is your guide. It directs your choices. A goal may have many sub-goals, holistic purpose or potential causes, to a health or emotional condition.

Using headache as the example, the potential causes could be stress, muscle tension, digestive issues, or environment. Each would require a different choice of essential oils. Stress related headache would suggest lavender along with Roman chamomile, sandalwood and other oils related to relieving stress. Peppermint works with muscle tension headaches, as well as lavender and helichrysum. Digestive remedies would use peppermint, fennel and ginger. Boosting immunity with clove, frankincense and rosemary would be suggested for environmental caused headache.

PROPERTIES OF ESSENTIAL OILS

The desired properties are derived from your goal and holistic analysis. This is where it’s beneficial to have some knowledge about the essential oils. If the remedy calls for pain relief, look for oils with analgesic properties; anxiety warrants anxiolytic properties; and flu or colds require anti-viral and immune support. The more you know the easier it will be to choose. How’s that for a basic and obvious statement? Most likely you’ve already had to look up essential oils needed for specific properties and simply went to the internet or a book. That works - with considerations and healthy skepticism of the source - keep doing this, but we can try to make it more interesting.

SELECTING THE CHEMICAL COMPOUNDS

Essential oil chemistry is a foundation for choosing essential oils. And yes, the chemistry of essential oils does make the choice journey more interesting. You do need a reference for chemical information and basic essential oil chemistry education is, of course, helpful. Accessing the power of essential oil chemistry is found using the Structure-Effect Diagram. The diagram, based on Functional Group Theory, has recently been blasted by industry experts for being inaccurate. For over 20 years I have been using the diagram and functional theory as a teaching tool to learn and use the chemistry of essential oils. It works with acknowledgement of the inaccuracies, which is emphasized in the teaching.

Blue oil, a cooling color, soothes inflammation, a red condition.

As an overview, you’ll find the essential oils that are known to be hot, skin irritants, contain compounds from the chemical groups phenols and phenylpropanoids. These include cinnamon bark, thyme (thymol type) and oregano. The chemistry guides us to use caution with these oils - and lets us know these compounds, and the oils that contain them, are the most powerful anti-bacterial and antiviral oils. These oils also “feel” hot when smelling, a focus we’ll discuss next. Essential oils that have a blue color, like German chamomile and tanacetum, have a compound from the sesquiterpene hydrocarbon group, the chemical group that, in general, has strong anti-inflammatory properties. Blue oil, a cooling color, soothes inflammation, a red condition.

Chemistry is fun, relatively, and provides an excellent guide for selecting oils. Chemistry and the structure diagram are worth the educational input and inspires effective therapeutic focus and creative choices for essential oils. The necessary information can be found in the books Easy Essential Oil Chemistry and Aromatherapy: Therapeutic Use of Essential Oils for Skin and Health.

ISOLATED COMPOUNDS AND ESSENTIAL OIL CHEMICAL SYNERGY

The properties and effects of the chemical compounds can be an extremely tedious search. Oils contain a complex of chemical compounds. This complex gives the essential oil its individual properties and personality; fragrance therapeutic and energetic. The chemical structure gives prudence to really understanding the individual oil as a whole. Research and experience is your best path to knowing the individual oils.

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The isolated compound 1,8-cineole in eucalyptus, tea tree and rosemary, gives these oils the expectorant and anti-viral properties. High amounts of the anti-inflammatory, β-caryophyllene, are in copaiba oil and also found in black pepper. Conducting a search in Google scholar or through other more scientifically focused search engines will bring you a lot of information related to isolated chemical compounds and, hopefully, will also direct to the oils that contain these compounds. Keep in mind, though there may be an understanding of the action of individual compounds, it is the complex mixture of the essential oil, the synergy, that provides the overall properties and holistic result.

CREATE A RELATIONSHIP WITH THE OILS

Experience your essential oils and take notes. Smell the oil, no judging. Ignore that part of your mind that tells you “I like” and “I don’t like.” These are primarily memory and emotion signals that are, mostly, unnecessary. Sniff and feel. What does the oil feel like? Where do you feel it? What color, shape, sound is it? Feel. This is your guide.

PAYING ATTENTION TO SCENT RELATED MEMORY AND EMOTION (FEELINGS)

If the oil doesn't smell good to you, analyze this. Is it because it feels uncomfortable or triggers odd sensations in the head, belly or eyeballs? This is where your judgement of like or dislike of the scent is relevant. Like or dislike could mean feels good or bad, relating to positive emotion or negative emotion and memory. This is unique to you and not necessarily shared by others. Pay attention to the feel of the essential oil. If you are choosing the oil for another person, your feelings still offer guidance.

The essential oils will touch, surround and resonate within you.

HEAR THEIR SONG, LISTEN TO THEIR VOICE

Begin a relationship with your essential oils. Let them speak, sing and whisper to you. Listen to the quality of their voice, tone and expression. The essential oils will touch, surround and resonate within you. A practitioner versed in the feel of the body and surroundings, such as energetic healing, kinesiology (muscle testing), frequency healers, Chinese practitioners and others, can or will use this procedure as a primary selection method.

CONNECT THE FEEL TO A RESULT

Feel the oil. Is it cool and sharp? This would be an oil for a hot, sluggish and/or dull condition. Does the essential oil open the lungs and trigger a deep breath? This could direct your choice of this oil for lung congestion or anxiety with shallow breathing. The oil is felt to be brown or green, resonating with the earth and an oil chosen for someone who needs to get their feet back on the ground or reconnect with nature. An essential oil may feel powerful or strong, and may be appropriate for a weak condition or someone who needs to gain their own power or strength. No rules here. This method is open to interpretation and your creative influence.

THE SCENT PROFILE

The scent may be your guide. Is it floral and soft, or racy and sensual? Is the fragrance uplifting, or does it demand your attention and focus? These are all factors for choosing essential oils. The scent relationship and your translation become your own individualized method for selection in a therapeutic situation. The scent profile may also guide the essential oils when selecting for an identified personality, a female, male, a little girl, an elderly person, an outdoorsy woman, a high tech male and so on.

WHERE THE ESSENTIAL OILS COME FROM

When possible, get to know the plant from which the essential oil is derived. What is its environment like? Does it live in a hot or cold climate? What is the elevation of where the plant grows and is harvested? What animals and insects does the plant interact with? These all provide the essential oil with a therapeutic function as well as a personality.

The desert plant frankincense needs to harmonize with the heat and UVR from the blazing sun. Frankincense essential oil is known to be protective from sun damage and is anti-inflammatory, reducing heat. Cedarwood is a strong sturdy tree. A tree may be representative of emotionally grounding, stabilizing and strengthening.

THE UNLIMITED POTENTIAL

The depth of creative, intuitive and artistic essential oil selection is unlimited. It’s also very personal. You own the essential oils. They are yours and what you do with them is correct use, with safety considerations of course. Step outside of what you are told to do with essential oils and feel their therapeutic potential. The more you know the more creative, artistic and intuitive you can be.