10 Essential Oils for Stress Relief: Ease Anxiety & Overwhelm

Millions of people are discovering that using aromatherapy oils is the quickest way to drop anxiety levels. If you want to get started, these ten essential oils for stress stand out amongst the rest!

How do you create a calming atmosphere at the end of the day? A good book, your feet kicked up, a nice bath? In real life, though, most of us don’t have time for luxuries that improve the quality of life this way – that’s why we’re stressed! There are many ways you can use natural remedies and stress relievers and you may be surprised at how simple and inexpensive they can be.

The Impact of Stress Levels on Health

Before diving into my Top 10 Essential Oils for Stress Relief, we need to call out the elephant in the room real quick. What is causing the increase of anxiety symptoms today and what can we do about it?

Allowing stress to take over our lives could be the biggest mistake of the 21^st century. Since chronic stress is a prominent cause of inflammatory disease, moving toward a stress-free life is a core recommendation for the prevention of most diseases.

High blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, and respiratory disease all seem to be increasing in prevalence as generalized anxiety disorders rise. Reduce stress and you will reduce the risk of illness. (1)

Our sources of stress may vary – what sends me over the edge might not be a problem for you. Identifying trigger points and structuring our lives to be abundant and stress-free should be an ongoing goal.

A group of nurses, working with and evaluated by Vanderbilt Medical University, took this to heart in their ER environment. Speaking of their aromatherapy diffuser usage, they said that they “recognized an opportunity to positively impact our coworkers,” and that they did!

When the oils for anxiety were used in the ER, staff reported an almost complete elimination of feelings of stress and overwhelm, while energy and feelings of empowerment shot through the roof! (2)

Essential oils for stress are too easy to use to miss out on their calming properties. Before stress drags you down another day, use the tools available to reduce stress and pursue the Abundant Life!

Top 10 Essential Oils for Stress Relief

1. Orange

In a clinical study on the effects of both orange and rose oil, simply smelling the oils triggered the brain for relaxation. (3) As a bright and uplifting oil, it stands alone nicely and blends well with other oils. If you had to choose just one stress-relieving oil, sweet orange is the most effective and versatile choice. Learn more about orange essential oil in our profile report.

2. Lemon

Lemon essential oil is an excellent choice for stress relief. In a 2014 evaluation of the oils cancer patients used to relieve stress, lemon oil was one of the most frequently chosen. (4) So many citrus fruits give us therapeutic benefits in their essential oils.

3. Bergamot

Citrus oils are definitely go-to oils for many things, stress relief included so it’s no surprise to see another on the list. Bergamot essential oil has a range of effects for stress relief:

“…improving mood and mild symptoms of stress-induced disorders and facilitating sleep induction. Aromatherapy massage has been shown to relieve symptoms of anxiety in patients with cancer.” (5)

To make a massage oil for stress, use a carrier oil such as coconut oil, olive oil, avocado oil or Mama Z’s Oil Base. See our essential oil dilution guide for percentage tips on the ratio of oils to essential oils to use.

4. Neroli

Staying within the citrus varieties but moving toward florals, neroli essential oil is derived from the blossom of orange trees and is just as powerful for stress relief. While it specifically thrives in cases where hormones trigger stress and anxiety, neroli is generally calming and relaxing, as well. (6) Add it to essential oil blends where hormones may be a factor.

5. Rose

Noted earlier for its ability to affect the brain directly, rose essential oil appears time and again in studies demonstrating the ability that essential oils for stress have to trigger relaxation and relieve anxiety. (7) If rose is too pricy for you right now, try clary sage instead since it is also popular for women’s health.

6. Ylang Ylang

Ylang ylang has demonstrated sedative and stress-relieving effects that have peripheral benefits. One study carried these effects out to a reduction of high blood pressure. (8) Traditional use employs ylang ylang as an aphrodisiac. The direct connection between stress and these conditions is no coincidence. Remember: reduce stress, reduce illness!

7. Geranium

When better to test stress and anxiety reduction than in one of the most stressful times in life – early labor! The effects of aromatherapy were measured after simple diffusion and inhalation techniques anyone can employ. “The mean anxiety score decreased significantly after inhalation of the aroma of geranium essential oil.” (9) Include geranium essential oil in stress relief blends to take the edge off of stressful anxiety.

8. Lavender

Sleep issues can rob our bodies of the ability to heal and shed the stress of the day. Both the herb and lavender oil have long been used for sleep improvement. Again testing during childbirth as a measurably stressful time, researchers in 2015 evaluated lavender essential oil for its ability to improve sleep quality during the sleepless, stressful, restless postpartum period. After 8 weeks of aromatherapy oils use, sleep quality and restfulness were improved, taking one major component out of the stress equation. (10)

9. Chamomile

If you’ve ever used chamomile plants for a calming herbal tea, you’ve utilized the effects of aromatherapy on stress. (11) Using chamomile essential oil directly is just another way to make the most of the anxiolytic properties and take advantage of the tools for health God gives us in nature.

10. Spikenard

Less common than some of the other oils on the list, spikenard is probably more familiar to you from its mentions in the Bible. Today, we refer to spikenard as a strongly scented essential oil derived from a plant in the Valerian family – valerian, of course, is known as an herbal sedative. Spikenard essential oil is also used as a relaxing oil, with good results on murine tests on its sedative effects. (12)

Use Essential Oil Diffusers for Calm

Diffusion and inhalation are excellent ways to maximize the healing properties and health benefits of these oils. As a Yale Scientific article noted, “Indeed, the olfactory system is the only sensory system that involves the amygdala and the limbic system in its primary processing pathway.” (13) The limbic system is part of the brain that has some control of mood, memory, and emotions.

The direct connection between scent and the limbic system is likely why scent triggers memory, as well as why certain scents have such powerful effects.

Experiment with any of these 10 stress-relieving oils. Here are a few you can begin with if you aren’t sure where to start. The bright scent of citrus and soft tones of floral combine to ease stress, calm the mind, and energize you for that next task!

Essential Oils for Stress Relief Blend

 

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Author: Mama Z

Ingredients

• 2 drops of bergamot essential oil
• 2 drops of lemon essential oil
• 1 drop of geranium essential oil

Instructions

1. Add to an ultrasonic diffuser or personal inhaler and enjoy!

Notes

Additional Calm Blend Ideas: Try any of these oils for anxiety or mix and match to see which you prefer.

Geranium, Sweet Marjoram, Patchouli, Sweet Orange
Lavender & Vanilla Absolute
Lavender, Clary Sage, Ylang Ylang, Vanilla
Patchouli, Bitter Orange, Cedarwood
Roman Chamomile, Rose, Palmarosa
Vetiver & Roman Chamomile
Ylang Ylang, Bergamot, Lavender, Sweet Marjoram, Roman Chamomile, Valerian

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