The word aromatherapy may at first bring to mind the feeling of being overwhelmed with sickeningly sweet
perfumes while walking through a department store or a candle shop. But aromatherapy is quite the opposite.
Using the organic, essential oils from flowers like lavender and chamomile, aromatherapy stimulates and sedates
the sensory organs without overwhelming them. It works very well as a complement to acupuncture treatments.
Herbalists can combine essential oils into jojoba oil to make a synergy massage oil for each patient. For example,
I combine peppermint, lemon, frankincense, and eucalyptus to treat asthma; sandalwood, high-altitude lavender,
rose, and bergamot to treat stress; roman chamomile, neroli, rosewood, and geranium to treat menopause; and
arnica, clary sage, and patchouli to treat muscular pain. Patients can also perform the aromatherapy at home,
between acupuncture treatments. When one patient came to see me with severe vertigo, I made a vertigo-relief
essential oil for her, stored it in miniature cobalt blue glass bottles with rollers, and asked her to apply it to her
wrists whenever she felt an attack coming on. Her symptoms improved quickly. For another patient, who was
nervous about her upcoming CPA board exam, I made the “mental clarifying, focusing blend” synergy. She used it
and said that she was able to concentrate better than she could before using the synergy. For asthma patients, I
provide the asthma-relief synergy mixed with water in spray bottles and ask them to spray the synergy in the room
when they are feeling short of breath. For patients with insomnia, I suggest that they spray the insomnia-relief
synergy blend in their bedrooms before they go to bed. These synergies work very well and offer an effective way
to treat symptoms naturally.
I also use arnica and emu oil. Arnica is a homeopathic anti-inflammatory that I use to treat traumatic injury,
strained joints, muscles, ligaments, tendons, and lower back pain. Emu oil (from Thunder Ridge) has healing, anti-
inflammatory properties. It increases the circulation to the applied area and works quickly to heal burns, wounds,
eczema, psoriasis, and insect bites. I use Emu oil after treating psoriasis patients with acupuncture, and their skin
shows a dramatic improvement.
During constitutional acupuncture treatments, I also apply a warm face mask on top of a paper face mask (with a
hint of nourishing powdered Chinese herbs and/or a few drops of lavender essential oil) for 5 to 10 minutes. The
face has many important acupuncture points and is very close to the brain; the sense of warmth from the mask
sends signals to the sensory cortex to relax quickly, which enables the patient to benefit even more from the
acupuncture. This treatment helps patients who have anxiety or insomnia fall immediately into a deep sleep.
