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Aromatherapy for Headaches
Quick Links to Topics Within This
Article:
• Essential Oils Commonly Associated With
Alleviating Headaches
• How to Use Essential Oils to Alleviate Headaches
• Topical Application and Gentle Massage
for Headaches
• Aromatherapy Room Mists for Headaches
• Diffuser Blends for Headaches
• Cottonball or Tissue Diffusion for
Headaches
• Beware: Ylang Ylang Can Cause Headaches
When Used In Excess
• Seek Medical Advice
• For More Info
 The
onset of a headache can begin when you least expect it, and can
turn even the easiest of tasks into seemingly more difficult and
painful endeavors. Essential oils may help relieve minor headaches,
improve your mood and may play a part in helping to reduce the need
to ingest pain medication.
It goes beyond the scope of this
article to describe the details for each type of headache. A headache
or migraine can be a symptom of something quite serious. This article
is intended to give you tips and ideas that you might wish to try
if you have infrequent, minor headaches. The tips mentioned here
will not remedy or "cure" any underlying medical issues.
If you experience headaches or migraines, discuss your situation
with your doctor and ask for his/her guidance on treatment and pain
relief.
Essential Oils Commonly Associated With Alleviating Headaches
Eucalyptus
Essential Oil
Eucalyptus globulus
and Eucalyptus
radiata Essential Oils contain a significant quantity of the
oxide 1,8-Cineole. 1,8-Cineole is said to act as both an anti-inflammatory
as well as an expectorant. Eucalyptus Essential Oil is said to help
ease headaches, most especially those associated with sinus headaches.
Helichrysum
Essential Oil
Helichrysum Essential Oil is considered by many in the aromatherapy
community to be an especially powerful anti-inflammatory.
Lavender
Essential Oil
Lavender Essential Oil has a high percentage of esters (linalyl
acetate), and therefore, offers anti-inflammatory and sedative properties.
Lavender Oil is a good oil to use if you are trying to alleviate
a headache during the evening/nighttime hours.
Roman
Chamomile Essential Oil
Like Lavender, Roman Chamomile Essential Oil has a high percentage
of esters (isobutyl angelate), and therefore, offers anti-inflammatory
and sedative properties. Roman Chamomile Essential Oil is also a
good oil to use if you are trying to alleviate a headache during
the evening/nighttime hours.
Peppermint
Essential Oil
Peppermint Essential Oil contains a significant amount of menthol.
Amongst its many uses, menthol is known to help relax and ease tension
headaches and muscular aches and pains. Peppermint Oil is quite
stimulating and may interfere with sleeping.
Spearmint
Essential Oil
Although Peppermint Oil is typically the most recommended of the
mints to use with headaches and contains significantly more menthol,
I personally prefer the aroma Spearmint Oil. I often substitute
Spearmint Essential Oil for some or all Peppermint Essential Oil
in a blend.
How to Use Essential Oils to Alleviate Headaches
The following sections describe several ways that
you can use the above essential oils to help ease your headache
pain. I have personally found topical application to help me the
most, but I have experienced relief using all the methods described
below.
Topical Application and Gentle Massage for
Headaches
When I have a headache, I have found that gently
massaging several drops of the below recipe onto my forehead, back
of my neck and/or temples (depending on the location of my particular
headache) is especially soothing. Use the below recipe to create
a topical headache blend.
Basic Aromatherapy Headache Massage Recipe:
- 1 oz. Carrier Oil
(example: Jojoba or
Sweet Almond Oil)
- 10-12 drops of your chosen essential oils from the above list
of essential oils
(If using Eucalyptus, Peppermint or Spearmint Essential Oil, use
only 6-8 drops)
- 1 oz. amber or cobalt glass bottle with orifice reducer insert
Directions: Combine the your chosen carrier
oil and essential oils into the bottle, and gently roll the bottle
between your hands to mix the essential oils into the carrier oil.
To Use: Drop 1-4 drops onto your fingers
and massage onto your forehead, back of your neck and/or temples.
Avoid getting the oils near your eyes.
Suggested Essential Oils and Blends for Use
in the Recipe:
- Blend #1: 8 Drops Lavender Oil, 4 Drops Roman Chamomile, 1 oz.
Carrier Oil
- Blend #2: 4 Drops Spearmint Essential Oil, 4 Drops Eucalyptus
Essential Oil, 1 oz. Carrier Oil
- Blend #3: 4 Drops Helichrysum Essential Oil, 8 Drops Roman Chamomile,
1 oz. Carrier Oil
- Blend #4: 4 Drops Spearmint Essential Oil, 8 Drops Lavender
Essential Oil, 1 oz. Carrier Oil
Headaches can feel powerfully strong. It might
feel that you need to use a lot of essential oil to remedy your
painful headache. With essential oils, using less is safer
and can often be more effective than using more. Even for headaches,
remember to always dilute essential oils in a carrier oil before
applying them to your skin or scalp.
Read the Guide
to Diluting Essential Oils to learn how to properly and easily
dilute essential oils.
Aromatherapy Room Mists
for Headaches
Use AromaWeb's Air
Freshener Recipe and one or more of the above essential oils
as a basis for creating a room mist that you can spray when you
have a headache.
Diffuser Blends for
Headaches
Select one or more of the above listed essential
oils and add several drops to your diffuser by following the manufacturer’s
instructions. Be sure to use Peppermint Essential Oil sparingly
as its aroma is incredibly strong. Spearmint Essential Oil is also
rather strong, but it's typically not as tenacious as Peppermint
Essential Oil. For more information on the different ways that essential
oils can be diffused, read All About
Aromatherapy Diffusers.
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Typical Causes for Headaches:
- Stress
- Fatigue
- Hunger
- Allergies
- Loud Surroundings
- Consuming Alcohol
- Drug Interactions
- Dental Problems/Temporomandibular Joint Disorder (TMJ)
- Injury to the Head
- Neurological Disorders
Common Types of Headaches:
- Tension
- Migraine
- Cluster
- Sinus
- Hormonal
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Cottonball or Tissue
Diffusion for Headaches
Place 1-3 drops of your chosen essential oil(s)
on a cottonball or tissue. Place the cottonball or tissue near your
nose and inhale. When trying an oil for the first time, use only
one drop to ensure that you do not have a sensitivity or reaction
to the oil, especially while you have a headache.
Beware: Ylang Ylang Can Cause Headaches When Used In Excess
Ylang Ylang is commonly known to cause headaches
when used in excess. I personally get headaches if I use too much
Ylang Ylang Essential Oil in a formulation or if diffuse it for
too long.
Seek Medical Advice
Important Note: It goes beyond the scope
of this article to describe the details for each type of headache.
A headache or migraine can be a symptom of something quite serious.
This article is intended to give you tips and ideas that you might
wish to try if you have infrequent, minor headaches. The tips mentioned
here will not remedy or "cure" any underlying medical
issues. If you experience headaches or migraines, discuss your situation
with your doctor and ask for his/her guidance on treatment and pain
relief.
For More Info
For more information, read Aromatherapy
for Natural Head Ache Relief, a detailed and especially helpful
blog post from Marge Clark of Nature's Gift. (Marge has been a supporter
of AromaWeb since its beginnings. She was a source of encouragement
to me when I originally launched AromaWeb in 1997. Her passion and
love of this fields shines through all that she writes on the subject.)
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