Aroma Therapy Massage Beats Baby Blues

Anyone who has ever lived through the baby blues knows it can be dangerous to the family unit. Managing the side effects of prescription drugs as you are trying to nurse a newborn and rebuild your relationship with your husband may seem a monumental task.

If you are normally a healthy person, why not try an alternative to the vicious prescription-drug cycle?

In an article in a 2006 issue of Journal of Midwifery and Women's Health research done on the psychological effects of aromatherapy massage in healthy postpartum mothers, showed that aromatherapy massage decreased the incidence of post-partum blues and increased the mothers' vigor and vitality.

The study, involved two groups of healthy, first-time mothers with vaginal delivery of a full-term, healthy infant. The first group received a 30-minute aromatherapy massage just two days after delivery. The second received only standard post-partum care. The aromatherapy massage group not only avoided the baby blues and anxiety, but were significantly more attached to their babies.

Aromatherapy massage is a combination of Swedish massage therapy using concentrated essential plant oils. Each essential oil has different healing properties.

Aromatherapy massage works through two points of entry: the nose and the skin.

Through the skin the oils are absorbed while the massage therapy is taking place. And while you are breathing throughout the massage, you inhale essential oil molecules, that transmit messages to the part of the brain called the limbic system. This will beneficially affect heart rate, stress level, blood pressure, breathing, memory, digestion, and the immune system.

The two most popular groups of oils for stress reduction are chamomile, lavender and geranium. The groups used typically for energy and vitality are ylang ylang, clary sage, rose, and neroli.