Aromas, emotions and arousal
These aromas will lift your mood and clear brain fog.
Hi!
Here is a confession — give me a whiff of freshly ground coffee and everything seems right with the world!
Aromas are powerful. They quickly impact our mood.
Long before Chanel branded them as winter smells, sharp aromas of clove, star anise and grapefruit have been used to shake off heaviness and brain fog.
In winter, less sunlight leads to lower levels of serotonin in our body. Serotonin is a chemical that regulates mood, emotions, appetite and sleep. Low levels of serotonin is what makes it harder to get out of bed, leaves us feeling a little foggy or even low.
Aromas take a direct route to the limbic system - the part of our brain that controls emotion and arousal.
Some aromas will work to soothe stress and help you relax — rose and lavendar for example. Some aromas will give you a pick me up and make you want to put on your dancing shoes!
What you are looking for this week are sharp aromas of clove, star anise, grapefruit, lime and sandalwood. I invite you to try these for yourself.
Some ways ways in which you may bring these into your routine:
In the form of essential oils. Dab some on your wrists and under your ears first thing in the morning. Thats my preferred way. Makes waking up so much easier!
Look for these aromas when buying candles or incense.
Look for these aromas when buying body lotions or shaving creams.
Sunlight, temperature, humidity…have an impact on our body and mind in more ways than we might be aware of.
You know what I’m talking about if in winter you have trouble getting out of bed, crave sweets, feel low or foggy headed. This is precisely what modern medicine calls Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) - winter blues as we might know it.
Healthy Hedonism is a series of tips to help you battle the winter blues. 1 voice note and a written transcript by email every week for 7 weeks.
Until next week,
Love
Gayatri