Olfactotherapy or olfactory aromatherapy opens the way to a new way of accompanying depressive disorders. Coupled with psychotherapy and/or medication, this natural technique can, in many cases, relieve people going through a depressive episode. Olfactotherapy to get out of depression : explanation...
La dépression, une maladie qui peut toucher n'importe qui
According to the 2017 Health Barometer:
1 in 5 people have suffered or will suffer from depression in their lifetime.
1 in 10 people aged 18 to 75 reported experiencing a depressive episode in the past 12 months.
Adults, children, teenagers, elderly people, all ages of life are concerned and develop specific signs: school phobia, slippage syndrome in the elderly, risky behaviors, withdrawal, de-socialization...
Dépression et trouble de l'olfaction
It has been noted that during severe depression, the sense of smell was impaired. The sick subjects did not perceive pleasant odors as the healthy ones did. Moreover, the reverse is also true: people withsense of smell disorders may in the medium to long term develop depression.
Lien entre olfaction et dépression
INSERM explains it as follows: "Olfaction and its determinants are an interesting avenue: physiologically, the olfactory system is a site of neurogenesis that interacts directly with the hippocampus, a brain region that plays a critical role in neurogenesis. Moreover, brain imaging shows a very strong link between the activation of brain structures involved in the perception of emotions such as the amygdala and those related to olfaction. "
Le pouvoir des huiles essentielles dans la dépression
The aromatic and biochemical compounds of essential oils stimulate different areas of the brain.
At the moment of olfaction, the chemical signal of the odor is converted into a nervous message which will then be transmitted to the limbic brain recognized as being the seat of the memory and the emotions. Depending on the history of the person, scents and odors will trigger the reminiscence of certain memories that can be extremely specific.
From there, in order to awaken the most joyful memories, it is possible to select essential oils whose scent awakens this olfactory memory.
L'olfactothérapie, une porte vers l'inconscient
The body has a memory, it is well known. However, it is not always conscious. Through the power of smells, buried memories can resurface in the form ofe somatization. To be accompanied and followed by an experienced therapist is important to move forward safely. Indeed, violent memories can come back to the consciousness and it is necessary to be able to welcome them...
Perfumes lift the veils of the unconscious, even without your knowledge. In some dentists' offices, products are diffused in the air to relax anxious people...
L'olfactothérapie pour programmer le cerveau
Since smells can reactivate memories, it is possible to use this principle to create positive conditioning. Indeed, odorant molecules act directly on the central nervous and endocrine systems which has the effect of modulating behavior. The brain will associate the smell with an emotion. Here, in the case of depression, it is interesting to reprogram the brain by associating a particular essential oil with a feeling of relaxation, serenity and well-being.
To do this, after a meditation session, a walk in nature, a bath, a session of cardiac coherence or any other pleasant experience, practice a few inhalations in consciousness to conceal the present moment in the aromatic molecule...
Thus, after several programs, as soon as the first signs of a negative emotion appear, it is enough to calmly breathe in the essential oil in question.
L'olfactothérapie pour soulager la dépression
To conclude, olfactotherapy is an interesting avenue to accompany depressive disorders. When combined with psychotherapy or even medical treatment, it offers the possibility of'reaching the unconscious, awakening dormant memories and reprogramming the brain.
Olfactotherapy is a natural technique with immense potential when we know how much the perception of smell can be disturbed when we suffer from depression.