Shirley Price Aromatherapy Workbook

The Aromatherapy workbook is an inexhaustible store. You can sympathise with GPs who say I have only time to keep pace with allopathic treatments. However to dismiss as unscientific complementary therapies because GPs lack the interest or time gives scientifically wrong information to the public. There is no limit to scientific curiosity but there is limited time! For classic western medicine to work the doctor has to be in command of all the information and the patient can be in ignorance needing only to supply their symptoms to receive the appropriate treatment. The system works well for western lifestyles and is adapted to the limited time a doctor has and the limited time a patient has. In fact the doctor only needs to spend sufficient time with their patients to gather information on the symptoms. The doctor then prescribes the chemical information which the patient needs or surgery is used to clear a physical blockage. The eastern idea that important information is within the patient and not the doctor is rather scary to some! Most doctors have always been fascinated at their own good health despite a lifetime of treating peoples illness.We now know the mind is not limited to the skull and the mind and body are intimately connected chemically and energetically so mental attitudes and experiences good and bad can have a physical effect. Knowledge of individual bioenergy and what can affect or augment it is increasing all the time.So we find the mind, body and spirit too are one and certain spiritual practices can improve our health and happiness and longevity. Certainly the practice of aromatherapy is the best antidote to any lack of curiosity. Dr Valnet had a phrase 'there is nothing less scientific than to deny the evidence of our own eyes!'.Your practice is giving you that evidence.

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Peripheral neuropathy

• Hi Ian - Thanx for responding as quickly as you have :). I have already enrolled in the SPICA distance learning course, and received a kit that is slightly different to the link in your reply above. Still good. In relation to which oils for my husband I also wrote a further note to you. Shall I ask Sarah this question? Cheers and Ta 

  15 minutes ago · 
• 

   I'll ask here and respond on that by message. A lot of active men in their fifties for the first time encounter distressing health conditions which require daily pills from the doctor and medical management almost for the first time. On the mental aspects confidence is often knocked and concentration can suffer as men are concerned not only for themselves but for their dependents. The oils can help with this to complement the medical management but as medicine may be prescribed for diabetes and heart best check with the doctor his views of essential oils in massage. However essential oils by inhalation for the mental aspects for example in a natural cologne should be fine. This is a helpful link for the diagnosed condition http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.go​v/pubmedhealth/PMH0001619/Does your husband use chemicals in your business? Diabetes is another likely cause of nerve damage. Any man in their fifties with blood pressure and cholesterol symptoms should have a serious treadmill test which really pushes the heart to check for early signs of coronary heart disease eg a blocked artery or subbranch of an artery. This may be contributing and be the real root of the problem. Medical imaging is now excellent and he wont regret investigating this.

  

  Peripheral neuropathy - PubMed Health

  www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

  PubMed Health offers up-to-date information on diseases, conditions, drugs, treatment options, and healthy living, with a special focus on comparative effectiveness research from institutions around the world. PubMed Health is produced by the National Center for Biotechnology Information, a division

Essentially oils - a thankyou

Essentially Oils of Chipping Norton Oxfordshire ceased trading in June 2011 following the illness of its Director Charles Wells.  Besides wishing Charles Wells a speedy personal recovery I would just like to say a thankyou for fifteen years of excellent service to aromatherapy.  Essentially Oils was the firm I turned to whenever a customer sought an oil, carrier or hydrolat which was not on the Shirley Price product list and for advice on product testing.  Charles wrote many articles on essential oils and a valuable newsletter.  I am sorry to see these articles are not available online now as I enjoyed dipping into these.  Charles enthusiasm and experience and that of his family was much appreciated at Shirley Price Aromatherapy and will be much missed.

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Lavender oil in pregnancy

The Complete German Commission E Monograph for lavender lists L. angustifolia, both flowers and essential oil, as officially “approved” and with no side effects and no contraindications. This includes internal use of 1-4 drops (20-80 mg) of the essential oil as a daily dose (Blumenthal et al 1998). The Commission E Monographs are generally regarded as the most authoritative source on the safety of herbal medicines.

http://roberttisserand.com/2011/07/lavender-oil-and-pregnancy/


This article by Robert Tisserand throws light on both the use of Lavender in pregnancy and use of the term 'Lavender'.  Care must be taken to avoid confusing Spike Lavender with Lavender Angustifolia when discussing the safety of use of Lavender in pregnancy. 

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http://www.amazon.com/Dirty-medicine-Science-business-assault/dp/0951964607

This book by Martin Walker is well worth a read by all those involved in the front line of health and wellness.  The mobilisation of professional PR skills by large pharma companies can certainly have unintended consequences and there will be many who read this book including pharmaceutical executives and policy makers who say well I did not mean that to happen!  Certainly there are many who are only too aware of the value of primary care for it is only when those frontline defences are breached that the unquestionably toxic effect of many pharmaceuticals can be justified.  No one wishes disability or cancer on their patients.

What is encouraging is that someone of Martin Walkers undoubted ability is able to devote his life to these researches.  There will be millions who benefit as a result and policy will be better balanced by a recognition of the power of professional PR something of which we are all increasingly aware.

At the same time any treatment however non toxic must be justified.  The fact that professional PR is mobilised against the Complementary therapy industry is an opportunity to justify both the record and effectiveness of these treatments provided policy makers are aware of the disparity of resources involved and not taken in by a well resourced PR hoax to the detriment of patient care.  As Walker tellingly observes Homeopathy costs the NHS £150,000 in materials compared to its billions in drug bills.  Indeed I observe how much higher would those drug bills be but for homeopathy.

One day we will understand how these substances charge the water in which they are diluted with their healing but in the meantime how many more can reap the benefits of the fact they and their practicioners do?

The extraordinary rise in healthcare standards in the west has not only been the result of expenditure but the fearless exposure of malpractice of any kind.  Complementary medicines record is virtually unblemished in this regard and any serious blemish should be as much the subject of debate as in allopathic medicine.

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Natural news

http://www.naturalnews.tv/v.asp?v=F5B32D25BDC2E1977584DF9A1DF9CC0D

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Cinnamon

New research shows cinnamon delays Alzheimers

http://nocamels.com/2011/06/research-shows-cinnamon-helps-delay-alzheimers/

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Aqueous products - Shirley Price Chamomile Eyecare

 

 What I admire about Shirley Price the founder of Shirley Price Aromatherapy was her determination.  She did not let scepticism about her ideas put her off expressing them.  She had great faith in the use of essential oils as home remedies and even, in medical or trained hands, in obtaining clinical results. 

Many of her remedies she formulated while dealing with personal health problems, those of her family, friends and neighbours in Hinckley.  Gradually sceptical local doctors, nurses, midwives and healthcare managers came around.  The result was a movement which saw her firm Shirley Price Aromatherapy train thousands of nurses and midwives in aromatherapy in the UK and Switzerland 1990s.  Her tutors Sara gelzer and Jan Benham still train the college students in aromatherapy today.  A particularly effective innovation in the 1970s was the Shirley Price formula for highly diluted chamomile eyedrops as a first line treatment for eye problems.  Shirley Price developed this formula when one of her own eyes developed an ulcer which she successfully treated.

The need for such a first line treatment arises from the toxicity of antibiotic eyedrops. I recently saw an article which stated that the use of such antibiotic eyedrops was justified as a first line treatment because they would only kill one of the GP practices 4500 patients about every 100 years. Of course if this thinking were applied to all 4500 treatments available from that practice then the Practice would kill all of its patients every 100 years!

The great virtue of essential oils and waters distilled from plant materials is their effectiveness in relation to their low or negligible toxicity to the tissues to which they are applied. Because of their antibacterial properties essential oils are their own preservatives. There was record of traditional use of witch hazel and eyebright in eye compresses. However the need for 15% ethanol or equivalent as a preservative for such extracts is a concern. Besides essential oils the tannins in used teabags applied to the eyes of horses have always been swift working and harmless as a compress for infected equine eyes.

Today Shirley Price Chamomile eyecare is used in 40 countries worldwide and are particularly effective in hot climates where the slightest infection can lead rapidly to eye problems. The eyecare is only made in England at the factory in Hinckley. The eyedrops are irradiated to ensure their sterility.  A pallet of 7200 Shirley Price eyedrops or Shirley Price essential oils in their 10ml bottles can be sent economically worldwide for some £400 by airfreight from Leicester.

 

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Complementary medicine - where does it fit in? - diagnosis

Complementary medicine - talking about diagnosis

Probably the greatest perceived weakness among practicioners and patients in our western health systems is diagnosis.

All to often diagnosis is left to patients who then present their 'symptoms' to their GP.  One person may present themselves at the slightest sniffle, another will wait until a tumour is growing out of their neck before 'bothering their doctor'. Fortunately with increased discussion of health both such extremes are rarer.  The fact is most of us can enjoy good health for all but the last two weeks of our lives with sensible diet and exercise to keep the body machine working.

I dont mean diagnosis once symptoms of a serious blockage for example in the coronary artery have manifested themselves.  Our technology and practicioners are excellent at interpreting symptoms and finding and correcting such blockages. Sometimes of course such blockages are the result of genetic factors despite every attention to diet and exercise for example coronary heart disease running in families.

Probably the greatest perceived strength in traditional chinese medicine and complementary therapies like aromatherapy and reflexology with its use of acupressure and massage in the 'hands on' treatment of common ailments is that sometimes early diagnosis is possible which is under the radar of western health systems.  For example early diagnosis of cancer in western systems is of concern.  Regular massage checkups allow competant practicioners particularly those also medically trained to detect subtle changes which can alert the client and their medical practioners to early signs of cancer with proper training and this is an area well worthy of further research and effort.

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Revise conditions - eczema

 

Lavender Oil is so important to us.

Therapists use Lavender Oil 1% as the
first line of treatment for eczema.
Lavender water too is important in
eczema treatment particularly if a
patch test reveals skin sensitivity to the
oil. Then the distilled water or hydrolat
can be used.

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Nutmeg Oil production - separating the mace from the nutmeg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e0-WSOmAZiE

harvesting Cananga flowers

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S5XnARvVTCI&NR=1

still design

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oCt6hBZLfQ8&NR=1

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Holiday First aid - be prepared!

Being too Hot:


When we become hot we sweat - leading to loss of water and salt.

Heat exhaustion can be caused by hot humid conditions, fever. Groups particularly

susceptible to the heat include the elderly, the very young,

and people with chronic or long-term medical conditions.

Signs and Symptoms:

Gradual onset.

Cold, pale skin with sweating.

Headache and confusion.

 Loss of appetite, or feeling or being sick.

Cramps in the limbs and abdomen.

Feeling dizzy or fainting.

Treatment:

 Place the casualty in a cool place or shade.

Sponge the skin with tepid water.

 Fan the casualty.

 Give the casualty plenty of cool water to drink.

If there is no improvement contact the doctor

or local emegency service.

Look out for the casualty stopping sweating. When we get too hot the body’s ‘thermostat’

(hypothalamus) fails, and we stop sweating. This indicates heat stroke, and is a medical emergency

needing urgent medical assistance.
 
Panic Attack


Unlike most airway and breathing problems, hyperventilation is where

someone is taking too much air.

One of the most common causes for hyperventilation is a panic attack. The symptoms

of the hyperventilation often make the casualty panic more,

which creates a cycle. If the cycle is not broken, and the casualty

carries on overbreathing they will faint (this will return the

breathing to normal). Panic attacks are likely to be very

distressing for the casualty, and the onset may be very quick.

Possible Signs, Symptoms and Clues:

Overwhelming panic and anxiety.

Excessive gasping breathing.

Feeling dizzy or faint.

Chest pains, or feeling that the heart is beating irregularly

(this may lead to the casualty thinking they are having a heart

attack).

Shivering or trembling.

Sweating or hot flushes.

Pins and needles.

 'Out of body' feeling.

Treatment:

 Encourage the casualty to relax. Stay calm yourself. Explain what is happening.

 Get the casualty to take continuous small sips of water to help control breathing.

 
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Whats happening - AIA Conference

AIA International Aromatherapy  Conference & Wellness Expo The Future of Aromatics  in Integrative Healthcare

September 29 - October 3, 2011

Minneapolis Marriott Southwest
Minnetonka, MN

http://www.alliance-aromatherapists.org/2011_conference_about.htm

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revise- aromatherapy conditions - depression

Sp Lavender being harvested today by Lorella

Thats what a happy Lavender Angustifolia grown at altitude looks like.  It helps that the hill has natural springs,

Lavender links

Tina Bohm
http://aromapraxis31552.blogspot.com/2010_07_01_archive.html

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Revise Business - Safe Cosmetics Act 2011

You are the boss of your business.  Even if you are working for someone else you are your own boss.  Its necessary for any boss to be aware of the legal framework in which business operates.  This is not to say you should be an amateur lawyer.  We are obedient to the law simple as that.  However legislation is always evolving in the light of actual experience and issues of debate arise which you should be aware of.  In an ideal world commonsense, proper training and good intentions is enough to get you through.  Legal frameworks though have specific requirements and you need to be aware of these.

http://roberttisserand.com/2011/07/ten-reasons-why-you-should-not-support-sca-2011/ and http://anyasgarden.blogspot.com/2011/07/july-42011-usa-governmeeent-releases.html

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Reflexology research

http://www.hivqigong.com/

can reflexology help aids victims to improved quality of life?

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