Generally, aromatherapy is said to act through the pathway of "aroma (smell) → brain → physical body." However, as I continued to use essential oils, I realized that they do not only act from the aroma to the brain, but that an action of "skin → cells → memory" also occurs.
Something interesting happened when I first started using essential oils. At the time, I was using Young Living oils. I was told that because they were high-grade oils, it was perfectly safe to apply them directly to the skin, so without a second thought, I applied them to any areas of my body that felt concerning. On the days I used a generous amount, my sleep became deep and long—and I started having so many dreams. Most of them were rooted in past events. Memories of people I had long forgotten and events I thought were buried surfaced one after another. It felt as though fragments of memory were surfacing—as if my own past were being drawn out and exposed. These were things my everyday self had utterly forgotten.
This was how I opened the door to the potential of emotional release through essential oils.
The emotions that emerged were those I had locked away, those I believed I had long forgotten, and the unwanted parts of myself I had kept hidden under a lid because I didn't want to see them. Some of these surfaced emotions drifted away while I slept, but others lingered heavily even after I woke, making me re-experience the pain of the past. It felt as though the old memories and emotions locked inside my cells were being flushed out and brought to the surface by the oils.
However, this process of exposure was truly painful. In my case, there were times this state continued for over three months. With those negative emotions pulled to the surface, I had to live my daily life alongside this self I disliked. How to escape that state became a big challenge.
After some time, I began giving essential oil treatments to others. As I performed sessions on many different people, I started sensing information—various emotions and past memories—simply by touching their bodies. At first, I was half-doubting myself, so I would tentatively ask the clients about the information I had sensed. It turned out they held, or had held, that kind of thinking. I could read this information from their feet, their backs, and various other parts of their bodies. Every single trial and experience resides within the physical body; it felt as though the information was accumulated directly within their cells. Sometimes, I even sensed that emotions and thought patterns inherited from ancestors were being passed down within those cells.
Emotions are very complex. I realized that our current emotions and thought patterns do not just happen out of nowhere. There is a mechanism—a "why" and a "how" behind them—and deeply ingrained patterns built by the accumulation of past experiences.
For example, why do people blame themselves?
Perhaps that person was blamed whenever something happened, since they were a child. For a child, their parents and family are their only world. If they were not acknowledged, not listened to, and told "it's your fault" within that world, they might blame themselves whenever things don't go well. When you carry this pattern, it is difficult to accept yourself, and you might instantly make excuses as a reflex for self-defense.
Furthermore, if parents are strict, refuse to listen, or are busy, there are cases where children lose the ability to express their words and feelings. I realized that many people no longer even know what they are actually feeling. The foundation of our "values" is cultivated—or rather, programmed—by our parents and our home environment.
We also acquire "common sense" and "values" within the frameworks of school and adult society. But those versions of "common sense" and "values" are things constructed within those limited societies.
I learned that so many people are suppressed within these frameworks of values and common sense—or are suppressing themselves—suffering within them, and losing sight of how to live as their true selves. These "suppressed emotions" become a rejection of oneself and a barrier to taking new actions. In many cases, they act as a shackle, throwing the person into confusion (conflict) in their life.
I came to believe that for these painful emotions, in many cases the trigger that birthed them lies in the past, and those emotions are locked within our cells and our brain.
Here are some citations from aromatherapy literature explaining how essential oils reach the cells and how they function:
Essential oils have the unique property of diffusing through cell membranes and spreading throughout the blood and entire tissues. Their lipophilic structure is highly similar to that of human cell membranes, and their molecules are relatively small, making it easy for them to penetrate cells.
Because of their chemical structure, they can rapidly penetrate cell tissues, distributing themselves quickly in the blood and tissues to enhance cellular function. In my experience with many patients, it has become clear that essential oils contain a powerful, concentrated life force, with an amazing ability to improve communication and interaction between the cells of the human body.
Furthermore, they stimulate the regeneration of body tissues and activate nerves. They can also transport nutrients and deliver oxygen to cells.
Additionally, because their chemical structure resembles that of human cells and tissues, they harmonize with the proteins that make up the human body and are easily absorbed.
Since they are fat-soluble (lipophilic), they can penetrate cell tissues even when membranes have hardened due to oxygen deficiency. According to research by Dr. Jean Valnet, essential oils act on all body cells within 20 minutes and are then metabolized just like other nutrients.
Essential oils purify cells and blood.
"Essential Oils Integrative Medical Guide" by Gary Young
Essential oils are physiologically active and are composed of chemical substances that reach cells due to their fat-solubility, being subsequently metabolized by the body.
Once the essential oil components penetrate the epidermis and enter the dermis—a complex consisting of lymph, blood vessels, nerves, sweat and sebaceous glands, vesicles, collagen, fibroblasts, mast cells, elastin, etc.—the absorbed molecules are carried by the circulatory bloodstream and distributed to each cell throughout the entire body.
"Aromatherapy for Health Professionals" by Shirley Price / Len Price
I am not a scientist, so I cannot physically prove the connection between cells and the memory of emotions, but I found the following passages:
The basic unit of life is the cell, and genes exist within the cell nucleus as a substance called DNA. Although cells are constantly dying and being reborn, genetic information continues to be transferred to the new cells each time through the gene copying function.
"The Code of Life" by Kazuo Murakami
Cells have receptors on their surface that act as receivers for external signals—in other words, as receptors that respond to stimuli from the outside... It used to be thought that the signals activating these receptors were solely material factors such as hormones, vitamins, proteins, or chemical drugs. However, it is becoming clear that non-material factors such as air, vibrations, mind, and consciousness are also deeply involved...
There is a scientist who has made this his research theme for over thirty years. He is the American cell biologist Bruce Lipton, who proposes the theory that each individual cell is an independent living thing, and that humans are a community of life composed of sixty trillion of these unique living cells. He asserts that what controls cellular function is the non-material 'environment'—such as the energy of the mind, thoughts, beliefs, and passion—which, through cellular function, flips genetic switches, influences the workings of our physical body, and even changes our way of living and life itself...
So, where exactly does intelligence reside within the cell? According to him, it is in the membrane. Lipton proposes the stunning theory that 'the brain of the cell is in its membrane.' In other words, the entire 'surface' of the cell membrane performs brain functions, acting on the on/off functions of genes.
"SWITCH" by Kazuo Murakami
I feel that the information within cells regarding emotions and thoughts that I have been sensing is physically possible. Please try to feel during this 12-week course that "emotions and the memories associated with them reside within your cells"!