Evidence-based Essential Oil Approach to Chronic Venous Insufficiency
Before jumping into this, please be advised that at no time do I recommend trying 'this at home'. In other words, the information I'm about to share with you is not a generalized suggestion for ways to avoid seeing your medical doctor nor is it meant for amateur aromatherapists to attempt without supervision.
This field, Aromatherapy, has lost any and all credibility due to the careless 'one-size-fits-all' recommendations being promoted through countless books, websites, and direct marketing companies. Without question, I am highly disturbed with the way this component to healthcare is devalued and even frowned upon when it comes to anything beyond palliative care; therefore, it is my intention to breathe new life into it as well as introduce it as a viable protocol that integrates with all modalities when thoughtfully and scientifically applied.
On that note, the following is my way of presenting a very serious case .... I will not provide all the personal details in order to maintain privacy. At the same time, this gentleman has given me permission to share the treatment details.
Very briefly: a man in his mid-late 50's came to me several years ago for assistance with some varicose veins in his lower left leg and foot. He presented with a history (several decades) of heavy weightlifting (up to 600-pound squats for many years). He also has a family history of nitric oxide synthase adaptations between his mother and father. What I mean by this is there is a history of COPD, stroke, indigestion, and even high cholesterol. As it was, this client was not facing any of those concerns; although, there is a history of chemical exposure while working in water treatment which indicates a number of potential genetic alterations that would add to this issue.
Long story short, he was not very compliant with the formulas produced; using them sparingly and only when he remembered at home. The interesting thing here is how easy it is for us to remember to pop a few pills or for that matter, carry them with us, but .......... Fast forward to about 8 months ago when he developed an ulcer on the outside of his left foot. I immediately thought of Charcot foot and set out to change our approach a bit.
With a history of varicosity, now there's pain and an open wound; so, I set out to help the body move the blood and lymph, eliminate necrotic tissue and repair itself with healthy tissue, improve the Kreb's cycle, stabilize mast cells as well as the hormonal and overall immune systems. I won't deny that I was mildly concerned about infection setting in, so I made sure to include something that would either fight infection or prevent it. Well, as it is, we were successful. The wound closed up over a period of a couple months. While this may sound like a long time, this gentleman currently works as a neuromuscular therapist and happens to be on his feet 8 to 10 hours a day, 6 days a week which prolonged his recovery YET, it closed. Instead of keeping up with his blends, he stopped once it closed. By now, you've probably guessed that the ulcer came back. Well, it did; only on the other side of his foot and this time, there were two.
As I said in the beginning, I am not going to disclose everything about this guy except to say that for a number of months, he continued to work as he was, did not use a compression sock like I encouraged because in spite of the ulcers, his calf and ankle were consistently swollen and the oils can only do so much which is why I say they integrate well, plus he started taking some 'natural' supplements for something he thought was unrelated which ended up interacting with the oils and slowing the progress even further. However, after all of that, we are officially on the road to recovery and these are the oils I'm using or have used and why:
- helichrysum ~ tissue repair, immune function & histamine stabilization, relieving nitric oxide synthase adaptations & reducing oxidative stress, analgesic, blood thinner
- galbanum ~ predominantly cannabinoids; although, different from helichrysum, influencing endocannabinoid activity, relieving inflammation & nerve pain, supporting circulation and stabilizing immune reactions for optimal healing
- vetiver ~ circulation, hormonal & immune stabilization, antiseptic & tissue repair
- cypress ~ circulatory & liver health, inflammation & edema, hemostatic
- laurel leaf ~ antimicrobial, nitric oxide synthase & lymph support, blood thinner
- yarrow white ~hormonal regulation, tissue repair, analgesic
- copaiba ~ predominantly cannabinoids; different from galbanum, slowing the release of endothelial cells & stabilizing histamine, hormonal regulation & improving the production of nitric oxide
- bergamot ~ KREBs cycle, improving assimilation of sugars, fats & proteins
- black pepper ~ anti-bacterial, anti-viral, digestion, immune support, circulation, nerve pain
- german chamomile ~ immune stabilization, tissue repair, inflammation, analgesic, liver, gallbladder, blood thinner, arterial health
- benzoin ~ mast cell stabilization, tissue repair
- neem ~ anti-bacterial, antiviral, anti-fungal
- calophyllum ~ tissue repair
- balsam peru ~ wound healing, anti-bacterial
- cistus labdanum ~ immune stabilization, histamine reduction
- ginger root ~ digestion, cholesterol, analgesic, circulation
- lemongrass ~ nitric oxide synthase support, digestion, circulation, lymph, wound healing, venous health, detoxification, ant-bacterial
- grapefruit ~ lymph, liver
- cinnamon leaf ~ blood pressure, lymph movement, circulation, inflammation
- petitgrain ~ blood pressure, cholesterol, vitamin D production, calcium assimilation
- ylang ylang ~ inflammation, circulation, blood pressure
Please keep in mind, at no time were all of these oils used at the same time. They were combined to produce either a salve or blend, depending on what was needed at the time because the body is in a constant state of change. It's for this reason that I adapt the treatment accordingly. Without question, everything we do influences epigenetic reactions which means paying close attention to the day to day results is essential.
That said, once we got him off his feet and in compression hose, the ulcers began closing. With everything we were doing, oil wise, there wasn't any reason why his body wouldn't respond in a positive way; however, without adequate vascular support, the fluids continued to pool which did nothing but aggravate his situation even further.
On that note, feel free to ask questions. Because I am so familiar with the oils and their mechanisms of action, I could have left something out and happy to clarify as much as possible.