Cancer

Q - Top of the day to you ... may this email find you in good health and spirits. I am Melissa M from green bay WI USA HI! Love your magazine! I have several questions some you can prob answer, others you will probably need to redirect me...

I am a Licensed Massage Therapist. I am Licensed in Swedish massage and massage for people with cancer...... My question to you, Julie, have you discovered/ heard / used/ a synergy while working with people who have cancer?

Julies answer: A synergy is the technical term for a blend of essential oils. The key point is that the synergy i.e. the blend is believed to have an energy of its own & an effectiveness that surpasses the effects of the oils if they were to be used individually.

There is a spiritual element to the use of synergies which for believers can have a profoundly positive effect. Whether you support the spiritual theories or whether you prefer a clinical approach (like myself) is to some extent irrelevant. The point is that a blend will almost always work better than an individual oil.

A well known synergy for instance is lavender & mint for headaches. Lavender on its own is a great painkiller but it has a sedative effect which may mot be welcome when for instance you are driving or working. If however a synergy is made by using Lavender & Peppermint the blend is much more effective because the stimulating action of the mint negates the sedative effect of the lavender whilst improving focus & clearing the senses.

Another good synergy which I often use to treat individuals who have cancer is Frankincense, Geranium & Green Mandarin. Frankincense slows down the breathing, counteracts panic attacks & induces a calm meditive state. Geranium balances the emotions & adds a delightfully relaxing floral scent whilst Green Mandarin adds a gentle uplifting edge to beat the overwhelming fatigue that often accompanies illness.

There are many other synergies some well established & some that you literally arrive unexpectedly at when you are really in tune with your client & treating them as a whole. By this I mean listening to & understanding the client. For instance cancer is unlikely to be their only problem.

I treated a client recently who had cancer but he was also troubled by his mothers death 10 years ago. His own illness had facilitated the resurfacing of all the unacknowledged grief. He also had lower back pain & athletes foot. The synergy that I created for him included Chamomile, Bergamot, Sandalwood with a touch of May Chang & of course some Tea–Tree. The Tea-Tree not only treated his athletes foot but it strengthened his immune system which was compromised by chemo & the disease itself.