Aromatherapy is an age-old holistic healing remedy that has proven to promote good health and improve psychological and physical well-being. With the demonstrated remedial treatments that a cold plunge can offer, from reducing pain and inflammation to speeding up recovery time, together aromatherapy and ice bath therapy can unlock a series of advanced health benefits.
Aromatherapy Benefits
The process of aromatherapy uses essential oils from plant extracts to activate your senses when inhaled. Whether placed in a diffuser or just applied on the skin during a massage, the aroma exuded from essential oils has been demonstrated to alleviate stress, anxiety, and depression while improving sleep and feelings of relaxation. This entire concept gives meaning and purpose to the spa industry and is the basis under which it thrives.
For that reason, aromatherapy techniques used in spas are now widely practiced across industries. Scent Marketing is a strategy many businesses use to encourage consumer spending. The right scents can also make people feel calm, nostalgic, happy, energetic, or hungry. Evidence shows that certain food aromas affect our appetite. So many grocery shops and bakeries use this phenomenon to their advantage by lacing baked goods with scents like vanilla and cinnamon to induce food cravings of potential customers and to also reach people beyond the confinement of their shops. Just letting these scents linger through open doors and windows will bring customers inside.
Improving Ice Baths With Aromatherapy
Cold therapy and aromatherapy each have their unique benefits. When combined, they work together to provide an advanced set of health remedies. While adding bath salts and essential oils to a warm bath addresses some psychological and emotional symptoms, the same aromatic additives to an ice bath can do the same and will be far more effective.
The health benefits of cold therapy are known to help with muscle recovery, pain reduction, lowering inflammation, and improving blood circulation and immune responses. And similar to aromatherapy, cold therapy also helps treat depression, mood disorder, stress and anxiety, and improves sleep.
To achieve optimal results from cold therapy, having a personal unit like an Ice Barrel can help you take full control of the process. Not only can you personalize the aromatherapy treatment to your specific needs or preferences, but you can also take advantage of having quality ice bath therapy as frequently as you like.
Mental Health Benefits with Combining Aromatherapy and Cold Therapy
Experts have long ago established that the power of the human mind can alleviate certain types of health complications and ailments. Stimulating your mind through smell with aromatherapy and the tactile senses of the skin with cold therapy can unlock some remarkable mental health benefits.
For mental well-being, aromatherapy works to relieve stress, anxiety, tension, headache, and feelings of sickness. Combining ice bath cold therapy will unlock additional mental health benefits like improving brain function, increasing mental strength and mindfulness, and boosting the stress response of the nervous system.
How To Create Your Own Aromatherapy Ice Baths
Using a high-quality unit like the Ice Barrel is one aspect of creating your aromatherapy ice bath, and how you choose to blend your aromatic herbs is another. Data shows which scents improve well-being and target specific psychological issues; knowing this and using a good ice bath unit that allows for full-body immersion will make all the difference with your cold therapy treatment.
Inside The Cold Aromatherapy Bath
Combining mixtures of essential oils, salts, and herbs helps remedy different ailments. For instance, athletes and fitness buffs needing soothing relief of muscle pain can blend Epsom bath salts with eucalyptus and peppermint essential oils to reduce soreness and inflammation. Using these same additives with cold water (at 50 to 60 degrees Fahrenheit) will also speed up recovery time.
For your cold aromatherapy baths, pre-mix the Epsom bath salts in warm water first to allow the salts to dissolve, and then mix the solution into your ice bath.
Outside The Cold Aromatherapy Bath
For a fully spa-like experience, you may want to include scented candles, incense, and freshly cut flowers to get more out of your aromatherapy ice baths. Some popular relaxation and healing aromatic scents used in spas are herbal blends of lavender, eucalyptus, peppermint, spearmint, citrus lemon, and sage.
Undiluted fragrances and essential oils can deteriorate some plastic surfaces, this is why they are usually stored in glass rather than plastic containers. Essential oils with ingredients like d-limonene, which is found in lemon oil, can erode and dissolve plastic materials over time. So instead of adding certain oils directly to your bathwater, using aerial scents may be a better option during your aromatherapy ice baths. Remember, essential oils are safe when used correctly.
Aromatherapy Ice Bath Solution
Ice Barrel is a cold therapy training tool that’s made from highly durable, recycled LLDPE (Low Linear Density Polyethylene) material. So if you're looking for a long-term solution for aromatherapy ice baths and cold therapy, Ice Barrel comes highly recommended by several experts and fitness forums reviews. Just fill with water and ice, then take a plunge - the recommended 2-5 minutes plunge is all you need to reach new heights mentally, emotionally, and physically. Get familiar with Ice Barrel and unlock some advanced aromatherapy benefits with ice bath therapy.