Essential Aromatica
By Amy Anthony
Join certified aromatherapist and educator Amy Anthony to question and explore the world of aromatic plants and their preciously concentrated essences. Aromatherapy is much more than "essential oils." It may connect us with nature and remind us of our whole nature: mind, body, spirit.
Essential AromaticaMar 03, 2022
Luna Aroma: Flower Moontime & German Chamomile
Flowers are blooming, frogs are croaking, and it is time to engage your sense of PLAY! This episode celebrates Flower moontime and all that comes with it, including when "all plants display their spirit sides for all the world to see." More on that in the episode!
How can we be serious when there are baby animals frolicking about, insects buzzing around and plants to interact with? This episode celebrates Flower moontime: by shedding seriousness and supporting what it takes to be ourselves and connecting with the world around us through aromatic plants. Go ahead, set some time aside to bask in the springtime playfulness of German Chamomile; a plant that I feel allows us to open up, let go and partake in a sense of play that may be hiding within us. How so? Connecting with the solar plexus through German Chamomile just might do the trick. With so much fecundity abounding during this moontime, e.e. cumming's poem "you said" seemed fitting and is featured towards the end of this Luna Aroma Episode. "The air of spring smelling of never and forever," is one of the lines. There's a lightness to spring, with it's yellow-green hues, that can make one almost giddy, do you agree?
Read more about German Chamomile & it's essential oil and join me in the garden for Plant Talk video sessions on NYCAROMATICA.com @ Plant Talk Video Series - NYC Aromatica or on my new YouTube Channel: NYC Aromatica - YouTube.
Ciao for now!
Spotlight: Cathy Skipper on Alchemical Transformation
Welcome to Amy Anthony's Spotlight on Aromatherapy series featuring Cathy Skipper whose insights on embracing your unconscious to become your true self are thought provoking, exciting and empowering.
Find yourself a quiet space for Cathy to guide you through the realms of alchemy, working with the unconscious and recognizing and reclaiming the feminine. When does a woman step into her true power? Why do we need initiation rites? Tune in to learn more.
Following are only some of the insights Cathy shares during our conversation:
Importance of liminality and transitions; navigating the edges. Perimenopause is a time, a developmental stage of a woman's life, a shamanic initiation. "To know yourself is without danger." How can one fully heal if one doesn't support the psyche and acknowledge the human isn't just a physical body? What does it take to know a plant...by realizing it is a soul-to-soul connection. "The analytical mind has a role as servant, not as master." "If we don't befriend the unconscious, it controls us."Cathy is an international teacher, plant person and healer who brings 30 years of teaching, healing, and plant experience, her highly-attuned intuition, and her mastery at ‘seeing the person within’ to all her work. "All my work is based on my own journey as a wounded healer. I coach and teach from a place of experience. I am totally familiar with navigating the unconscious realms, the ancestral realms, the plant and animal realms. I am a menopause midwife, helping women rebirth themselves as they go through the initiation of menopause into their wise-eldership."
Sign up here to join her free Guided Journey on June 1, 2023.
Learn more about Cathy and her work at aromagnosis.com and cathysattars.com. Watch videos on the AromaGnosis YouTube channel. Get social on Instagram by following @cathy.skipper & @the_alchemy_of_menopause. Get a copy of her book on the Alchemy of Menopause.
Luna Aroma: Grass Moontime with Lemongrass and Palmarosa
Happy Mid-Spring! A time of new beginnings, new growth and cleansing the mind and body of what is no longer needed. You may notice how this episode is slightly longer than other Luna Aroma musings. Why? I bookended the guided aromatic encounter with poems! The first is "Grass" by Joyce Sidman, the second is "Last Rites" by Rosa Alcalá.
This is a moontime to talk with GRASS! Grass is growing, it is a resilient plant family that is often the "first"...such as the some of the first plants to emerge as the temperatures increase, the first to show up on disturbed sites...in and of itself the family is emblematic of first, newness and renewal.
So how are grass and cleansing connected? This is where Lemongrass and Palmarosa come in. Go ahead and make a cup of Lemongrass tea, get out your essential oils of Lemongrass and Palmarosa and settle in with me for a spell to talk with the grasses. As with all Luna Aroma episodes, look forward to seasonal-moontime musings, poetry and a guided aromatic encounter.
I hope you find each Luna Aroma episode an inspiring, engaging and a different way to experience essential oils. Learn more about Aromatherapy and Essential Oils such as Palmarosa at NYC Aromatica.
Spotlight: Hana Tisserand on Interpretation and Essential Oils
Welcome to another Spotlight on Aromatherapy featuring Hana Tisserand!
Hana is the Chief of Operations and Communications at the renowned Tisserand Institute where she is also an educator, course moderator and key content creator. Hailing from Prague, Hana and brings a strong background in French and English translation and interpretation as a professional interpreter working with politicians, authors, and educators.
I reached out to Hana soon after watching a webinar she gave for the Alliance of International Aromatherapists titled "How to Talk to People About Safety - Without Controversy." We all have many beliefs and different understanding of the universe, including how we can responsibly work with essential oils. Her background as a professional interpreter provides great insight into how we can navigate the world at-large and when relating to the vast topic of essential oils: "Context is Everything!"
Episode highlights:
Appreciating interpretation when communicating with others (e.g., "how can I help you hear me?") Embracing the "frustrating beauty of language". Considering emotions when engaging with the world around us (e.g., are emotions serving you and getting your message across?). Contemplating the natural but artificially concentrated nature of essential oils. Contemplating Brands and Essential oils! Being comfortable in our skin and tending to our body (and more!) Relating research on single components to the complex nature of essential oils. Embracing how the evolution of language and knowledge impact our offerings as educators and practitioners.And much more in-between! Which are Hana and Amy's favorite essential oils? Join us for the answer!
Learn more about the Tisserand Institute on the web and on Instagram as @tisserandinstitute. Find Hana on Instagram as @tisserandhana.
Ciao for now!
Luna Aroma: Worm Moontime & Ylang ylang
Happy spring equinox~Spring is “champing at the bit”! Water, associated with intuition, is rising and running, sap is flowing in the Maple trees. Birds are coming home, and the soil slowly awakens. There may even be some eagerness in the air that goes along with “Spring Awakening”. What better way to honor Spring’s burgeoning energy than muse about sensuality and living through the senses? Get out your bottle of Ylang ylang essential oil, make a cup of Jasmine tea and spend a few minutes with me for seasonal ponderings and a guided aromatic experience: "Trust your intuition, you have the answers you seek."
Each Luna Aroma episode is released the day before each new moon. Thank you for taking time out of your day to connect! I hope you find these episodes inspiring, engaging and a great excuse to experience essential oils!
Spotlight: Olfactory Sounds by Yuliana Kireyeva
What does Jasmine sound like? What about Frankincense or Vetiver? Get your essential oils, and brew up some Vetiver tea, Jasmine tea and prepare some Frankincense water and sit for a spell to discover the sounds of these aromatics with Yuliana Kireyeva, an accomplished choir conductor, classical vocalist and certified aromatherapist. Yuliana translates scents to music notes, what she calls Olfactory-Auditory Congruence. I cannot fully articulate how moved I have been by these pieces and encourage you to find a quiet place to join us for a listen.
When I came across what Yuliana is doing, listening to essential oils and translating them to sound, I was floored and excited. I hope you are too after you listen to her compositions. Essential oils in conjunction with olfactory aromatherapy can be incredibly nuanced and, I feel, dismissed by many people who often speak of "placebo effect." The chemical messages are often dismissed and it's the aromatherapist's role (one role, that is) to highlight the nuance and PERSONALITY of each essential oil. Yuliana takes this expression of each personality to another level through music.
Yuliana is a graduate of the State Academy of Music in Belarus where she studied choir conducting and classical vocalism. Her professional career includes choir conducting for 8 years, performing as a leading Soprano for 7 years, including performing classical, spiritual, folk and jazz music around the world. She currently resides and works in the UAE as a vocal and a piano teacher and composer-translator of olfctory sounds.
Aromatherapy-wise? Tune it to find out about Yuliana's journey and expansion into the world of Olfactory-Auditory Congruence.
Find Yuliana on Instagram as @olfactorysounds and look forward to experiencing further olfactory-auditory congruence!
Luna Aroma: Hunger Moontime & Juniper
Greetings on New Moon time! Welcome back to Luna Aroma, an invitation to explore moontime through observations, guided aromatic encounters and poetry.
This is still a quiet time of year in the Nothern hemisphere, when the days are getting longer but cold and barrenness still blanket the Earth. We're in the realm of Hunger moontime as the sun ever so slowly awakens the soil and stirs hibernating animals we may seek more activity, more sun and fester impatience. Yet we must slow down and continue planning as during Wolf moontime. Here we turn to nature for lessons of fortitude and inspiration to persevere through patience, purpose and perception. I feel Juniper and its berries embody these lessons.
Find yourself a quiet space, 15 minutes and join me for Juniper wisdom, flying and talking with ravens (you'll see!) and sitting with the poetry of Cassandra Coxen.
Learn more about Juniper berry essentials oil at NYCAromatica.com.
Poetry, Pharmacoenergetics & Aromatherapy with Gabriel Mojay
A rose, is a rose, is a rose, is a…rose. Mused the legendary Gertrude Stein. How does one go about knowing a rose or any other aromatic plant for that matter? Through the poetry of Gabriel Mojay! Join us during this poetry-inspired hour to immerse yourself in Rose’s history and therapeutics through verse.
This hour starts off with Gabriel’s insights on the pharmaco-energetics of diffusion aromatherapy! Pharmaco-what? Pharma-co YES! Get out your pencil and notepad as he shares wisdom about the power essential oils and diffusion aromatherapy have on a cellular level through hermetic dosing. This is even before we get into poetry!
Then it’s time to get your bottle of rose essential oil or rose hydrosol and listen to his aromatic sonnet on Rose. This poem captures how poetry is an amazing way to share in-depth information in a mesmerizingly memorable way. Next up, I share a prose-poem about Myrrh, seeking to convey the energetics and application of Myrrh resin and its extracts.
Myrrh musings lead us to one of Gabriel’s favorite poems, “Dark Friend” by Mirabai. This poem inspires further thoughts on practicing the cultivation of knowledge, devotion, service and mystic ways of connecting. And how there’s a deep connection with secondary plant metabolites between matter, energetics and information.
As Gabriel shares at the end of the episode: "Each plant is a beautiful, special teacher."
Spotlight on Aromatherapy with Melissa Holman of Lemon Balm Coaching
Healing for Unemotional wrecks. Who can help us understand what an unemotional wreck is and how to transform such a state into fulfillment?
Introducing: Melissa Holman! The founder of Lemon Balm Coaching and Master Transformational Coach who helps people rediscover emotions that have been stuffed away for so long that emotions and pain are foreign to them. That's right, rediscover. Sometimes it seems easier to shove everything away and plow ahead. Until something shifts in life that forces you to pay attention.
What does it take to realize it's time to change? Most often something breaks, and we're forced to stop and ask for help. What could that be? Tune-in to hear Melissa's guidance.
As a registered aromatherapist who was ranked 30th among the 50 Most Influential People in Aromatherapy in 2022 and the Alliance of International Aromatherapists Representative’s Mentor, Melissa is serious about the power and safe application of essential oils. Her approach is holistic, often including Aromatic Solutions into care plans; yet her main goal is holistically identifying the cause of a client's stifled emotions and facilitating transformation through expertise beyond aromatics. What can that transformation look like? Someone realizing and acknowledging their unique gifts and sharing them with the world.
Get in-touch with Melissa at Lemon Balm Coaching and follow her on Instagram, as lemonbalmcoaching, for wisdom and inspiration.
Luna Aroma: Wolf Moontime and Evergreen Aromatics
Welcome to Luna Aroma. A lunar-inspired way to work with and learn about aromatic plants and their essential oils. We get out of the books and turn to direct experience. It is here that we enter moontime, learning by observing nature's rhythms as demarcated by new and full moons.
Experience, Notice, Observe, let me be your guide. Each episode is created and shared near each new moon, which provides a reference point and rhythmic structure to the ebb and flow of this aromatic journey. Why the new moon? New moons represent beginnings, starts and transitions to the next rise of energy that culminates at the full moon.
This foundational episode celebrates and observes wolf moontime. A time in the northern hemisphere when the Earth isn't adorned with her green jewelry and flowers. Now is the time to appreciate Earth's outlines, silhouettes, bare soil and rocks. To appreciate Earth's architecture and our personal architecture. This is a time we can honor conifer trees such as Balsam fir and Scots Pine, that keep their leaves in the winter. Find out more: join me for wolf time lessons, a guided aromatic encounter and a short poem.
Learn more about conifer essentials oils like Scots Pine on NYCAromatica.com.
Spotlight on Aromatherapy with Gabrielle "The Tea Lady" Jammal
Tea. What comes to mind when you read that word? Family farms? A gorgeous experience? Quality ingredients? This episode highlights one of the first trained tea sommeliers in the United States: Gabrielle Jammal, also known as "the Tea Lady". Once you spend time with Gabrielle you may never look at bagged tea the same way as she removes the "veil on the tea world"!
Gabrielle is a tea sommelier who took tea tasting and experiences to new heights by creating a tea program at the esteemed Baccarat Hotel in NYC. This includes sourcing quality ingredients and selecting teas to entice and elevate client experiences. What does a high-quality Earl Gray taste like? Stick with Gabrielle to find out. You'll learn a LOT from her during this episode: from tea regions, the plant Camellia sinensis, what makes a quality tea and what makes white tea so special.
A core theme during our conversation is experience. How every day is special and taking time to appreciate what we have, like a beautiful cup of tea served in a glass pot and cup, can be enriching. Yes, please use that nice glassware and don't keep it stuffed away in a cabinet! Be curious and make mistakes (experiment!) to learn what you like and how you like it prepared.
Also, don't be afraid to step away from the supermarket and try new teas! Gabrielle encourages us to recognize that we have a lot of pull with our purchasing decisions. There are many businesses specializing in tea that can help you navigate the seemingly intimidating world of tea--seek out these suppliers for guidance or contact a professional tea sommelier like Gabrielle, The Tea Lady, to help you navigate the world of tea.
Learn more about Gabrielle at GabriellleJammal.com and be inspired by her tea-centric posts Instagram as @the.tea.lady.
Spotlight on Aromatherapy with Nikki Fraser Co-Founder of the Essentria Aromatherapy School
This episode features the wonderful Nikki Fraser, Co-Founder of the Essentria Aromatherapy School. Join us as we have a blast delving into topics like aromatherapy schools, "aromatic lifestyle," and learning from mistakes. (Pssst: listen to the episode for a special discount on certification classes at Essentria Aromatherapy School!)
Nikki is a Certified Clinical Aromatherapist, Certified Aromatherapist Health Practitioner, co-founder of the Essentria Aromatherapy School and past education director with the Canadian Federation of Aromatherapists (CFA). She has been recognized as a top aromatherapist in her region for 3 years in a row and recognized as one of the most influential people in aromatherapy for 2022.
Topics covered during our conversation cover embarking on the aromatic path, starting a school (wow!!), the concept of an aromatic lifestyle and what that really is, the application of essential oils, aromatherapy awareness (e.g., what is an essential oil and what do you do with them?!) and resurrecting older books that are still relevant and have amazing information such as Turkey Red Oil (wha?!)...
Learn more about Nikki and her private practice at Fraser Holistic Health. Check out the Essentria Aromatherapy School online and on Instagram...and the podcast! Listen to episodes of Vetiver Vibes on your preferred podcast venue like Apple or Spotify or through the school's website.
Spotlight on Aromatherapy with Lopa Visaveliya of Purandhri Hypnotherapy
Greetings friends! Welcome to the divine alchemy of Lopa Visaveliya, a subconscious seamstress and multidimensional healer whose breadth and depth of practice help open doors to subconscious and conscious healing. Do I have your attention? Yes, let's open the doors to perception and healing...
With a master’s degree in early childhood education and over 10 years of teaching experience Lopa decided the Earth is her classroom and she may continue helping others thrive outside a classroom through her evolving practice of Hypnosis Alchemy. Certified by the International Board of Hypnotherapy, Lopa brings intuitive and psychic gifts to her practice as a clinical hypnotherapist. She supports her guided hypnosis alchemy work with layers of nature-based imagery, subtle body work, Aura Soma bottles, aromatherapy, NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming) and breathwork.
Join our conversation to learn how Lopa may help assist you in your healing journey and remind you that: "Your presence is enough. Your unique soul frequency is a profound gift to this planet.”
Learn more about Lopa's practice at awakenpurandhri.com and on Instagram as @awaken.purandhri, sign up for her newsletter here.
Spotlight on Aromatherapy with Liz Hill of Karma Ripon and Spiritually Speaking with Liz
Greetings friends of Essential Aromatica! I'm pleased to introduce Liz Hill, the host of the Spiritually Speaking with Liz podcast and proprietor of Karma Ripon, a store that draws you in and makes you feel like you belong because you intuitively know something is there for you.
Join us for banter about the number 22, paying attention (!) and getting into the intricacies of Aromatherapy. Liz shares her journey of how she came into the practice and studied with the esteemed Shirley Price. We get into the nitty gritty of the safety, quality and responsible, educated application of essential oils. This episode highlights how the incredibly concentrated nature of essential oils sets the foundation for the practice of aromatherapy. What happens when essential oils are in the hands of the untrained? Join us to ponder such questions.
Liz is a certified yoga and meditation teacher who is also certified and practices several “-ologys” including reflexology, iridology, kinesiology and remedial massage and manipulative therapy; these influence her life-practice, shop and podcast! She is a clinical aromatherapist who wrote the NVQ 3 (National Vocational Qualification, level 3) in Aromatherapy and taught Aromatherapy on a Higher National Diploma. She was course tutor and on the steering committee of a complementary therapy degree at Bradford University as well as an Aromatherapy principal tutor and examiner for the International Federation of Professional Aromatherapists (the IFPA), which is a prestigious Aromatherapy organization.
Check out her beautiful shop at www.karmaripon.co.uk | Listen to her podcast | Find her on social media: Instagram: @spiritually_speaking_222 & Facebook: spirituallyspeaking222
Connection, Nature and Aromatherapy
One of my goals as an aromatherapist is demystifying aromatherapy and making it accessible. Years ago, upon moving to NYC, I felt incredibly disconnected and literally ungrounded. This episode is inspired by an upcoming community class I am giving at P&T Knitwear in NYC's Lower East Side. The class, and therefore this episode, is inspired by my journey, professional experience and bolstered by 3 books purchased from P&T Knitwear (listen to the episode to learn which books!).
Here's the crux: We know we need access to nature and its healing powers because we are of this Earth...but sometimes we don't have direct access to nature and need help. This is where our herbal allies and especially aromatherapy can come in to bridge the gap.
Aromatherapy goes beyond scent recognition & perceived pleasantness of an aroma. It touches a sense of place & memory association. it helps us connect with nature. essential oil chemistry interacts with receptors throughout our mind-body-spirit. it takes us beyond ourselves, not judging us, giving us space and, just possibly, lightening the heaviness of being human.
Spotlight on Aromatherapy with Makeba Lloyd of Butter by Keba
How can odors, aromas and scents transform and empower us? Join Makeba Lloyd, founder and formulator of her NYC Harlem-based company of Butter by Keba to find out! Her journey from the NYC real estate market to founding her own company is one of transformation and intention that started in 2005 during a trip to Egypt. Never looking back, this trip reinforced a longing for her to empower and “bring people together through fragrance”. This goal goes beyond the notion of perfume and into helping others through the Harlem-based organization “Hands That Make a Difference.”
As a certified aromatherapist and trained perfumer, Makeba creates uniquely aromatic personal care products and moisturizing fragrances that exemplify affordable luxury. She is passionate about the pursuit of learning, sharing, experimenting and creating gorgeous products that are sustainable, elegant and Earth-centered--which all come through when you hear our conversation and look at her products and consulting services.
Learn more about Makeba's thoughtfully crafted products and other services at Butter by Keba and get social on Instagram, Pinterest, TikTok (and other platforms!) by following @butterbykeba.
Saffron on the Lower East Side
What do Saffron, "Sunset Cocktails", Saint George's Common Table and P&T Knitwear have in common and anything to do with aromatherapy? A lot! This episode highlights community connection with threads of the ephemeral & aromatic Saffron weaving things together. Saffron, one of the worlds priciest aromatic spices is incredibly water soluble and not a common botanical hanging out in an aromatherapists bag of tricks...or so one might think.
Join me during this episode recorded at P&T Knitwear's community podcast studio for inspiration sourced from community, abundance and sharing...and to learn more about Saffron! I didn't know what this episode was going to be about until yesterday, when this ephemerally aromatic botanical helped me knit (Pun intended!) experiences over the past few weeks together.
Thank you for listening to Essential Aromatica; wishing you abundance and many joys punctuated by therapeutic aromatic experiences. Ciao for now!
Spotlight on Aromatherapy with Clare Licher of PhiBee Aromatics
Join Clare Licher of PhiBee Aromatics to revel in the passion, practice, expertise and distillation-know-how of native plants of the Southwestern United States. This episode is a deep reminder of the time, patience and great care it takes to wild harvest and distill plants, and how this expansive practice is a continual reminder how "plants make the world bigger than us", much bigger.
Look forward to hearing Clare expound upon the following topics during this episode:
The implications and responsibility of legally wildcrafting plant material. Appreciating a plant and its oil for who and what it is Going beyond "liking" and disliking a plant based on its inherent aromas (listen to Clare's experiences with Arizona Juniper!!!! Wow!) The dedication to time, and practice it takes, to get to know a plant and the distillation process. The power of sharing distillation techniques across borders, highlighting Clare's work in Iceland and continued work with organizations in Haiti/ Teaching and supporting people helps improve quality of life and humble us knowing that working with plant medicine show how the world is so much bigger than an individual/us. Honing your skills: The importance of taking distillation notes and aging essential oilsWe hope you walk away from this episode feeling elevated, revived, elucidated, and dare I suggest, humbled. The plants are indeed our teachers, and we are forever students.
Find more about PhiBee Aromatics at phibeearomatics.com and find them on Facebook as @phibeearomatics.
Spotlight on Aromatherapy with Krishana Chaitanya of Nisarga Farms
How does an Aroma-technologist and Hatha yoga meditator and practitioner approach the business and practice of farming and distilling? This episode explores such questions (and more!) with Krishana Chaitanya of Nisarga Farms. This episode celebrates the work and philosophy of Nisarga farms, which includes attention to soil, plants, farmers, harvesters, distillers and beyond.
We contemplate:
The meanings of "holism" and "organic" on a high level and related to essential oils up to the integrity of the business owner How Small is Big How we survive because of plants Trying to understand and know plants, to pay attention Awareness of violence in everyday life, from harvesting a plant to commodification of plants to aggressive marketing and business practices How the pandemic has shifted practices around plant harvesting Laziness and participating in other peoples (other beings!) happiness And much more...We hope you walk away from this episode feeling refreshed and eager to immerse yourself amongst the plants of the world, taking the time to indeed "stop and smell the roses". Deeply. And to share the joy of Nisarga, which I learned is much more than a simple business name. It is a way of life.
Find more about Nisarga at www.nisargafarmsorganic.com and find them on Instagram as @essentialoildistiller and Facebook as @essentialoildistillerie.
Finding Alchemical Gold
What lessons do Alchemy and other Arts offer us for working with the Divine? Is the Divine within and without us? The DIVINE, you say?! Indeed. We mere mortals have been pursuing the mastery of several arts for centuries to attempt working with the Divine, often failing to "see the forest for the trees". Failing to see how the Divine is everywhere, including within us and how that Divine may be touched & illuminated (!) through mind-set and physical pursuits while acknowledging we mortals don't own any of this along the way. This episode explores such weighty topics of finding spiritual gold through the intersection of humbleness and practices such as alchemy and distillation.
Find the essay on NYC Aromatica.com.
Chögyam Trungpa's book: "Work, Sex, Money: Real Life on the Path of Mindfulness" is referenced in the episode.
Attunement, Attention and Black Bean Soup "Better Than I'd Get in Cuba"!
As a saying goes: "You only have one attention." Indeed! This episode focuses on the practice of Attunement in herbalism and aromatherapy. Quite frankly, the practice may be applied to anything when you think about it. Tune-in (pun intended!) and muse about "PIGGS" (as related to Attunement: P="Perceive", I="Imperceive"....) and Saint George's soup featuring Oregano, Bay laurel and Cumin.
I find it fun how a lot can come from soup making, cooking with herbs and more. Are life's lessons learned over a soup pot? Maybe!
Spotlight on Aromatherapy in Practice with Carolyn Jones of The Healing Project
Can the power of plants transform everyday experiences? Does healing and transformation emerge from listening and bringing joy? Join Carolyn Jones to find out during this "Spotlight" Episode. Carolyn is a Chaplin, Grief Counselor, Author, Aromatherapist, Herbalist and Dream Therapist who is a firm believer in the healing power of self-care. Self-care includes a lot of things, which are shared during this podcast episode and highlighted in her Webinar Series called the Healing Project. This monthly, ongoing series "is an interactive workshop designed to educate participants about various healing modalities that will effectively strengthen the immune systm and detoxify the body for improved health and well-being."
Is it possible to laugh a lot AND talk about matters such as death, grief and soul loss? Get yourself a cup of herbal tea (Agrimony and Mugwort perhaps!) and listen in to find out. Our conversation spans: the "law of appropriate therapeutic inactivity," learning how to heal by listening & observing, helping others with grief and bereavement, the healing power of laughter and affirmations ("state what you want!") and supporting the soul by attending to dreams. Of course, the herbs Agrimony and Mugwort bookend our conversation... I can't wait for you to join us.
Learn more about Carolyn and her work at https://www.behealed.info/ and follow her on Instagram at @thp_the_healing_project.
Spotlight on Aromatherapy in Practice with Aaron Theno of Bioesse Technologies and Breatherapy
Imagine your sense smell impacting your entire sense of being. It happens every day. Something magical happens when the chemical sense of smell mixes with our own chemistry. That power of olfaction married with vibrant essential oils is harnessed by Bioesse Technologies and Breatherapy Tabs. This episode highlights Aaron Theno, a professional vocalist and the Vice president and Chief Aromatherapist of Bioesse Technologies and Breatherapy Tabs. Aaron's diverse background in arts and business stirs our conversation through a melody mixed with art, science, clinical settings and business.
Join us for a conversation about the power of olfaction-based aromatherapy in hospitals, the business AND gentle art of aromatherapy, and other hot topics such as sustainability of the essential oil industry, elevating all facets of creating and working with essential oils and looking locally for plants. It may be no surprise that the conversation turns to "less is more" and how essential oils fundamentally connect us to nature; all through the power of our chemical sense of smell.
Learn more at Bioessetech.com and Breatherapytabs.com. Get social with Breatherapytabs on Instagram and other platforms under the same name.
Finding Awe in Liminality and Root Medicine
Autumn is the time of falling leaves, cooler and shorter nights and the final time to harvest. We've planned and worked hard all year. Now the time is upon us to rest and contemplate the cyclicality of nature, including life itself. This episode looks at the intersection of liminal spaces, root medicine such as Vetiver and the death-life cycle. This is a magical time of year, but dancing with that magic takes gravity, like roots, which may support us while navigating "gaps" in life. Get your bottle of Vetiver and join me for a spell to stir up a sense of awe and appreciation for life itself.
Heady topics but the stuff life is made of nonetheless. Interested in more about transitions? Read this article on Hecate.
Spotlight on Aromatherapy in Practice with Judith Guerra: Embracing Vitality and Curiosity
Does it only take one drop of oil to experience sudden change? Can Rose essential oil support a grieving heart? Join certified aromatherapist, Judith Guerra, and me as we delve into the vapors of working with and experiencing the impact of essential oils on the mind-body. Our conversation highlights topics ranging from mindful application of essential oils, staying curious, taking a time out, pain management and much more.
A born seeker, Judith was intrigued by what she saw and experienced during her first nebulous encounters with essential oils. Her natural curiosity and questions about safely working with essential oils led her to seek aromatherapy knowledge, education and certification. As a life-long health and wellness advocate, she has been blogging about such topics since 2012 and continues to look for ways to encourage vitality at any age.
Find more about Judith at JudithGuerra.com, check out her podcast, Judith Guerra Wellness Connections and follow her on Instagram as @autocreate740.
Aromatherapy in Practice with Jirbie Go: From Aroma "Novice" to Country Representative
Span the globe with certified aromatherapist, Jirbie Go based in Manila, Philippines. Also known as "Couch Wasabi", you'll find out that there is nothing "couch potato" about Jirbie's passion for aromatherapy education and plants. Her intense involvement in educating and integrating the aromatherapy community, including plant farmers and distillers, shines through: she is the country representative for the Alliance of International Aromatherapists (AIA) and founder of the Alliance of the Philippine Aromatherapists (APA), which focuses on supporting local producers to Filipino essential oil users.
Join us during this episode to learn more about her path, essential oil safety, subtle aromatherapy, teaching styles and much more.
Find more about Jirbie on her website, YouTube channel and Instagram. Also check out her podcast on Spotify!
Aromatherapy in Practice with Elizabeth Ruth: What Makes a Book Worthy of Your Bookshelf?
This episode highlights Elizabeth Ruth of Herbology East and West's: Lotus, Lady and Verse. Join us as we get "into the stacks" and talk about plants, books and more books. What DOES it take to be a book worthy of reading? Of purchasing and putting on your shelf? Of going back to over and over again?* When I step back and think about our conversation a few words shine through: credibility and standards.
Elizabeth's extensive background as a Landscape designer and Librarian informs her current practice of reading and reviewing plant-themed books, related to (but not limited to) Herbalism and Aromatherapy. Her life-long love of herbs and plants in general has also lead her to pursuing certifications in Herbalism from the East West School of Planetary Herbology and Aromatherapy from Aromatic Studies (Level 1 & 2).
Get in-touch with Elizabeth and read her reviews at Herbology East and West's Lotus, Lady and Verse. Also find her on Instagram.
*Note: Check out worldcat.com to really get into the stacks. A great resource Elizabeth shared with me after our recorded conversation.
Falling In Love, Again, with Lavender
As Lavender season comes to an end I found it's time to reflect upon the virtues of the many "Lavenders" out there. This episode is inspired by my recent class "The Lavenders", which celebrates the virtues of several of "The Lavenders": Lavandula angustifolia, Lavandula latifolia, Lavandula x intermedia with a shout out to Lavandula stoechas. One Lavender is not better than another, they all just are. Plants are beings expressing themselves, existing and adapting in the climate and location their roots are in.
Prepare a cup of cold infused lavender tea! I look forward to your joining the Lavenders and me.
Spotlight on Aromatherapy in Practice with BotanicAromatica
This episode highlights Yvette Ramos-Volz, founder of BotanicAromatica and The Glass Room. Yvette, a driver and facilitator of change, is the creator of the trademarked, arts-based coaching model called Living Life, in the Meantime. This intensive model is a driver of her vision for integrating botanicals (including Aromatherapy) and the creative process of working with stained glass.
Our conversation begins with plants: inspiration from the garden captured in infusions! She shares how aromatherapy came into her life to assist in navigating changes and stress. Underlying themes of the discussion are the importance of Aromatherapy as a supporting modality, synergy, integration, intuition and "coming into your own." We reflect on how aromatherapy is everywhere: when we cook, walk up to a pine tree and more.
Yevette's weaving of change, process, glass (i.e., the similar fragility of glass to the mind) and botanicals left me refreshed and inspired, as I hope you are too after listening to this episode!
Get in-touch with Yvette and find out more about her at The Glass Room and BotanicAromatica and on Instagram at @theglassroomnj and @botanicaromatica.
Spotlight on Aromatherapy in Practice with Jackie Kaplan of Nuda Botanica
This episode highlights Jackie Kaplan of Nuda Botanica. She is a tea blender, aromatherapist, Master in Food Culture & Communications, a meditation teacher-in-training...and much more! Topics include being curious, knowing ingredients (What are you eating? What are you putting on your body?), "objectification of essential oils," blending (!) and trusting yourself. For me, our conversation reinforced how paying attention & stepping back gives us space to notice nuance, learn, receive and grow.
We get personal and share stories: sometimes all you need is your breath, awareness and a little Vetiver (Jackie) or Ginger (Amy) oil for grounding when you're feeling unsettled.
Get in-touch with Jackie and find out more about Nuda Botanica on the web and Instagram.
Luna Aroma: Showing Spirit with Play, Confidence & Chamomile
May is the month of the "Flower Moon," when "all plants display their spirit sides for all the world to see." This episode explores how spirit is bolstered by confidence and playfulness. German chamomile is a plant emblematic of this! Join me as I wax away and slip into the realms of an e.e.cummings poem: "I am too busy with my flowers to believe, the rain answered." Go ahead, make yourself a cup of chamomile tea and set a spell...
Spotlight on Aromatherapy in Practice with Candice Forness
Spend time with Candice Forness, a holistic healer from a lineage of healers, and Amy Anthony as they discuss the life-changing potential and depth of essential oils and aromatherapy. Candice’s versatile practice focuses on holding space, lifting people up and fortifying the mind-body connection through a multitude of healing arts. As she puts it, we can be Cerebral AND Organic at the same time. She shares how we can get on our own “Beauty Cloud” to meet ourselves again and be deeply inside ourselves. Things get deeper (!) when she shares how “the integrity of the molecule” reinforces HOW we treat ourselves, the Earth and others profoundly impacts…everything.
Get in-touch with Candice and find out more about her at CANDICEFORNESS.COM
Luna Aroma: Cleansing & Lemongrass
The month of April sings songs of cleansing and growth; songs incorporating the wisdom of Grasses. This episode features the sunny & incredibly cleansing Lemongrass! Look forward to Grass-inspired thoughts about growth and cleansing with discernment.
Of course I get into Saint George's soup! I forgot to mention the fresh, minced Ginger! OH MY! I wish you were there to smell the Lemongrass infusion AND the heaping tablespoons of fresh Ginger as it was being sautéed to bring out the aromatic components!!!!
Here are resources for making your own sugar scrub & fizzing bath bombs! Check out the monthly New Moon Aroma Salon for access to lunar inspiration.
No, There's Not "An Oil for That."
Happy April Fools! But there is no fooling around about the touchy subject of "there's and oil for that"! Join me as I scratch the surface of pondering the limitations of essential oils, where they do in fact shine and how essential oils and "consumption" don't go together very well. Tied into the aforementioned topic is soup making and the heart-breaking essential oil of the Neroli flower.
Therapeutic Aromas and Oils that are Essential?!
Have you ever wondered why Aromatherapy is called, “Aromatherapy?” Is it curious to consider how an essential oil may not be “essential” to a plant and that it isn’t oily feeling? Is it possible essential oils have a lot more to communicate than odor alone? Join me during this episode to ponder the aforementioned topics and geek out over aromatics.
Pssst!!! Access the Guided Mediation and Free Intro Class mentioned in the episode!
Note: Photo by @liam_dom
Luna Aroma: Sensuality & Spring
March is upon us and Spring is “champing at the bit.” Water, associated with intuition, is rising and running, the sap is flowing in the Maple trees. Birds are coming home and the soil slowly awakens. There may even be some eagerness in the air that goes along with “Spring Awakening”. Revel with me in Spring’s burgeoning flow by musing over March's lunar themes of sensuality, the languidness of Ylang ylang and tapping into those qualities by “living through the senses.”
Are you looking for more lunar inspiration? Read more about the New Moon Aroma Salon.
Accessible Aromatherapy
We encounter essential oils every day, from a cup of Coffee to Pine trees in your neighborhood to spices in soups! Possibilities abound for immersing yourself in ad-hoc, on-the-fly aromatherapy-like sessions such as making a soup with Bay Laurel, simmering Cardamom, Cinnamon and Star Anise in a pot or crushing Juniper berries with your fingers. Oh, and was Black Pepper really worth more than gold? Grab your Pepper grinder and join me for a spell...
Welcome to Essential Aromatica
Greetings and welcome to Essential Aromatica, a podcast with Amy Anthony of NYC Aromatica about aromatherapy, essential oils and more. This introduction welcomes you to what is in-store: episodes on aromatic plants & their essential oils to the vast and sometimes controversial topics in and around aromatherapy.
Aromatic Root Chakra Rituals
Have you ever felt “out of sorts,” like you’re “living in your head,” ungrounded or tightly clenching to concepts, ideas or possessions? It may be a sign to start tending to the roots of your private garden, your root chakra. Aromatherapy and simple rituals may help support your base-energy, the root chakra. Tune in for inspiration and access the associated blog post for suggested rituals and essential oil blending ideas.