George Cox, one of the 2010 New Moon Expo’s special guests, owns and operates Natural Options Aromatherapy, which provides an array of high-quality aromatherapy products ranging from a Chai calming roll-on blend to Dragon’s Blood, which can be used to treat Psoriasis, Eczema, and many skin rashes. Whether you want to sleep more soundly, relax your nerves, ease a painful headache or simply want to raise your energetic vibration, George is your man.
I recently had the pleasure of asking George some questions to learn more about him.
1. George, you’ve had some incredible success integrating aromatherapy with more traditional western medicine. Why do you think aromatherapy is so important when it comes to mind-body-spirit well-being?
Aromatherapy — the use of pure, natural essential oils — works very well with traditional medicine. I just read that 65% of all of the new pharmaceuticals in the last 5 years were based on plants from the rainforest. So that helps to understand what these oils are capable of doing on their own. Essential oils are composed of naturally forming chemicals that have amazing healing properties. Traditional medicine is beginning, with a lot of prodding, to test these in a clinical setting and finding the same results that we have been talking about for a long time. As an example, I’m working with a clinical psychologist setting up a double blind placebo study to show that certain essential oils help with ADD/ADHD. We are in the process of interviewing participants now, with the study to begin after the first of the year.
2. What three types of scents stand out for you, personally, when it comes to your own well-being?
A common misconception about aromatherapy is that we are using a “scent.” We’re using the essential oils for their physio-chemical properties. In many, if not most, instances we use essential oils topically in order to penetrate the skin. As an example, the three items we use most around our house are all used topically. I use Lavender oil a lot. Our house is in the woods and the mosquitoes are unbelievable. I like going outside to shoot baskets or cutting wood for our furnace. Before I start, I put a few drops of Lavender on the inside of my forearms and rub them together. I can work outside for 4-5 hours and not be bitten once. Lavender is a wonderful mosquito repellent.
My wife uses our formula for sleep quite often. When we met she was sleeping in two hour increments and had been for two and a half years. By using this blend on the soles of her feet, she usually sleeps 7-8 hours. The other blend she uses is for Restless Leg Syndrome. We’ll be watching TV in the evening and her legs just start twitching. In kind of a sick way, it’s pretty funny to watch! But she’ll put on a cream with essential oils for Restless Leg and it stops in a minute or two.
3. I’ve heard that you create custom scents for people. Can you tell me more about how you do that and the specific process?
When I create a custom blend for people, it first depends on what they need, what they’re are trying to accomplish. Is it a physical issue or a mental one? Two quick examples: When Barbara Konish and I first met, she told me about her work and her readings. As a complete aside, she is amazing at what she does. She talked about the mindset she tries to get to, both with herself and with her client. She had a couple of oils in mind to start with, but wanted a fuller blend. I knew which oils I wanted to add so it was just a matter of fine-tuning the ratio of oils.
A totally different example is a client who called a few weeks ago. She told me that she is going on a cross-country trip and will be staying in hotels for 28 days. She was very concerned about potential bed bugs. She wanted to know if I had anything. When I started doing the research in my 30+ aromatherapy books, I found that three essential oils kill bed bugs. After confirming this on a medical site, I put together a blend in a spray bottle for her and we call it Traveler’s Friend.
George, thank you so much for your time, and thank you for being part of this year’s Expo. In browsing your web site, I already know I should come prepared with a large bag to hold all of my aromatherapy “loot” in!
To learn more about George Cox and the work he does with Natural Options Aromatherapy, please visit his web site by clicking here.