Nowadays, depression has become a common and serious medical illness that negatively affects how we feel, think, and act. It is treatable and for some people, it may take very little time to come out from depression while for others it may take a while. Depression causes a change in our feelings and consequently, we become sad and lose interest in things we love to do. It also leads to an ample amount of physical and emotional problems that can decrease our performance efficiency at school, college, office, or home.
How to Choose the Best Essential Oils for Depression and Anxiety?
Aromatherapy with different essential oils can essentially help to deal with depression and anxiety. They can’t cure depression but can better your mood, relax and relieve psychological symptoms and handle the situation.
The scent is the essence of essential oil. Scents are very emotive, everyone has a different reaction to them. The smell is one of the five senses of humans. When neurons of our nose detect the smell, they send information to various regions of the brain via the olfactory bulb. The particular regions after receiving information about smell control mood, memory, emotions, and behavior.
Reports from various research suggest massage aromatherapy has a greater effect on mood than inhaled aromatherapy. However, direct application of essential oils on the skin can irritate. So, it is always prescribed to use with a carrier oil like coconut oil, olive oil, or almond oil.
We have curated a list of the best essential oils that would help fight off depression. These are the most prescribed and have helped a lot of people. Scroll down to know the different types of essential oils to calm your mind while dealing with depression.
10 Best Essential Oil for Depression and Anxiety: 2022
Here is a list of the recommended essential oils that can help you ease out your depression and anxiety issues.
1. Plant Therapy Organic Lavender Essential Oil: Best Lavender Essential Oil for Depression and Anxiety
This lavender oil comes from the Bulgarian Lavandula augustifolia plant and is certified organic by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). It does not contain any artificial fragrance and contains real lavender oil.
Usage and Benefits: Lavender essential oil can be used for lowering anxiety, and stress, improving mood and helping you relax more. Along with it, it also helps with disturbed sleep, nervousness, agitation, restlessness, and depressive symptoms. The floral yet homey fragrance of lavender oil is valued for its magic of creating euphoric moments of relaxed feeling and calming effects.
How to Use Plant Therapy Organic Lavender Essential Oil:
- It can be used with a diffuser, or bathing water, or can be massaged directly on skin mixed with coconut oil.
- Add a few drops of essential lavender essential oil to your diffuser or warm bath water and relish its boon.
- To use it as a massage oil, mix a few drops of lavender oil with ½ tbsp coconut oil and apply it behind the ears, wrists, or on the back of the neck. You can also use it in a roller bottle.
2. Soulflower Ylang Ylang Essential Oil: Best Ylang Ylang Essential Oil for Depression and Anxiety
Soulflower Ylang Ylang Essential Oil is extracted from the flowers of Cananga odorata by steam distillation. Soulflower Essential Oil offers the finest grade of organic essential oils from Pure and Natural Ingredients that are grown in India.
Usage and Benefits: Ylang Ylang essential oil is one of the most widely used fragrance oils, and it’s not hard to see why! With a sweet and botanical scent, Ylang Ylang helps reduce feelings of depression, anxiety, and outrage likewise improving the state of mind. Similarly, it aids in releasing muscle and facial tension for total relaxation. By calming your mind as well as your body, you’ll receive a therapeutic-grade aromatherapy session in the solace of your own home.
How to Use Soulflower Ylang Ylang Essential Oil:
- It can be used with a diffuser, or bathing water, or can be massaged directly on skin mixed with coconut oil.
- Add a few drops of essential ylang ylang essential oil to your diffuser or to warm bath water and relish its boon.
- To use it as a massage oil take mix a few drops of ylang-ylang oil with ½ tbsp jojoba oil and apply it behind the ears, wrists, or on the back of the neck. You can also use it in a roller bottle.
3. Tuscany Lemon Essential Oil by Juicy Chemistry: Best Lemon Essential Oil for Depression and Anxiety
This 100% pure and organic Tuscany Lemon Essential Oil is obtained from the citrusy peel of the lemon. It has antioxidants and antimicrobial properties that refresh one’s mood instantly. It reduces headache and calms the mind. It also refreshes and revitalizes one’s mood instantly.
Usage and Benefits: We all are very familiar with the lemon scent. Some of us have even noticed how lemon scent vanishes stress and uplifts mood. It gives a calming feeling to the ingredients that lemon essential oil has, affects reduces symptoms like exhaustion, anxiety, and depression effectively.
It can be used with a diffuser, or bathing water, or can be massaged directly on skin mixed with almond oil.
4. Soulflower Frankincense essential Oil: Best Frankincense Essential Oil for Depression and Anxiety
Soulflower Frankincense essential oil has a sweet, woodsy aroma that works as a sedative to help with feelings of stress, anxiety, concentration & nasal congestion.
Usage and Benefits: Frankincense is extracted from the resin of the Boswellia tree. According to a study this oil has effectively reduced anxiety, depression, and pain in patients dealing with the last stage of cancer.
It can be used with a diffuser, or bathing water, or can be massaged directly on skin mixed with coconut oil or bergamot oil.
5. Aroma Magic Patchouli Essential Oil: Best Patchouli Essential Oil for Depression and Anxiety
Patchouli essential oil is obtained from the leaves of the herb plant patchouli. From ancient times, it has been used in different medicines to relieve stress and anxiety.
Usage and Benefits: Patchouli essential oil has strong anti-depressant properties that do the deed, It potentially increases the level of secretion of dopamine and serotonin in the brain which gives relief from chronic depression.
It can be used with a diffuser, or bathing water, or can be massaged directly on skin mixed with coconut oil.
6. Forest Essential Blended Essential Oil Jasmine: Best Jasmine Essential Oil for Depression and Anxiety
Forest Essential Jasmine Oil is 100% pure and is extracted from organically grown Jasmine plant by the cold-pressed method. Jasmine Oil is well known for its mind-inspiring properties which assist in battling stress, tension, and depression.
Usage and Benefits: Unlike other essential oils, jasmine can calm the nervous system without sleepiness. Thus, it can be used both at home and at work. It improves focus and concentration and keeps stress at bay.
It can be used with a diffuser, or bathing water, or can be massaged directly on skin mixed with warmed coconut oil to cherish the enchanting properties of jasmine that rejuvenates mind and body.
7. Nykaa Naturals Rose Essential Oil: Best Rose Essential Oil for Depression and Anxiety
Nykaa Naturals Rose Essential Oil is 100% pure and is extracted from petals organically grown Rose plant by the cold-pressed method. Rose Oil is well known for its mind-inspiring properties and lower levels of pain and anxiety.
Usage and Benefits: Roses have a sweet and delightful smell that relaxes the senses.
It can be used with a diffuser, or bathing water, or can be massaged directly on foot skin mixed with jojoba oil.
8. Bergamot Essential Oil by Kama Ayurveda: Best Bergamot Essential Oil for Depression and Anxiety
Bergamot Essential Oil is obtained from the peels of a hybrid product of orange and lemon called bergamot. It has an extremely pleasing citrus scent which relieves mood and anxiety.
Usage and Benefits: A fresh and fruity essential oil that dissipates anxiety and stress to create a feeling of freshness, joy, and energy. It does wonders for the skin, it is also a wonderful relaxant that soothes nerves to help cure ailments associated with stress such as sleeplessness and depression.
It can be used with a diffuser, or bathing water, or can be massaged directly on skin mixed with coconut oil.
9. USDA Organic Vetiver Essential Oil: Best Melissa Essential Oil for Depression and Anxiety
Vetiver, scientifically known as Chrysopogan zizanioides is called khus in Ayurveda. The roots of this tall perennial aromatic grass are extremely beneficial due to its healing and soothing properties. Vetiver water, obtained from the roots of plants solely can suppress anxiety and depression.
Usage and Benefits: Vetiver oil can assist with relaxing the nervous system and can assist with sleeplessness. Thusly, it might likewise assist with mitigating sensations of stress or depression.
It can be used with a diffuser, or bathing water, or can be massaged directly on skin mixed with coconut oil or lavender oil.
10. Blended Diffuser Oil Mysore Sandalwood by Forest Essentials: Best Sandalwood Essential Oil for Depression and Anxiety
To aroma, the house is a deep-rooted Indian custom. The Forest Essentials Blended Diffuser Oil Mysore Sandalwood epitomizes the mitigating scent of pure Sandalwood, obtained from Mysore in South India. Its aroma decreases stress while initiating a feeling of calm, and orchestrating the senses.
Usage and Benefits: It helps to diminish stress & uplift your senses. The exotic fragrance of Sandalwood is naturally dispersed into the environment through evaporation leaving the region magnificently fragranced.
It can be used with a diffuser, or bathing water, or can be massaged directly on skin mixed with lavender oil.
Roundup
It is essential to carry out a patch test to know whether you have any allergic reactions to any of the essential oil mentioned above. As said earlier, essential oils don’t cure anxiety or depression, it just relieves the symptoms and uplift mood. I hope the mentioned essential oils will help you to deal with depression. You can read our other articles to know more about depression and fight it.