How To Use Essential Oils For Depression Relief

If you want to include essential oils for depression relief in your efforts to feel better, select oils that can stimulate and strengthen your nervous system. The effectiveness of aromatherapy for depression will depend on your individual mental and physical condition.

If you are seriously depressed, please get professional help.

Skip to information about postpartum depression.

Aromatherapy Recipes For Depression

Here are a few suggestions:

• Diffuse a depression-relieving essential oil for 20 minutes three times a day. Oils to try include lemon, cedarwood, basil, frankincense, and peppermint.

• Make a massage oil with 7 drops rosemary and 2 tablespoons carrier oil, and massage along your spine.

• Take a depression-relieving aromatherapy bath with 2 drops jasmine, 2 drops rose, and 1 drop melissa. Drop the essential oils in one teaspoon oil or milk and stir into the bath.
  

Foot Massage Blend

Massage your feet with the following blend:

• 5 drops angelica essential oil
  
• 6 drops cardamom essential oil
• 2 drops basil essential oil
• 2 tablespoons carrier oil

Body Massage Blend

Get a massage with the following blend:

• 3 drops clary sage essential oil
• 2 drops lemon essential oil
• 2 drops frankincense essential oil
• 2 tablespoons carrier oil

Source: Essential Oils For Healing

Smelling Salts Using Essential Oils For Depression

Blend the following ingredients in a small container that has a cap. Keep the container with you and smell as needed.

• 3 drops bergamot essential oil
• 2 drops geranium essential oil
• 1 drop neroli or 3 drops petitgrain essential oil
• 1 tablespoon rock or other coarse salt

Source: Aromatherapy for Dummies

Bath or Massage Oil For Depression

Use for the following blend for massage or add the blend to bath water and soak 15 to 20 minutes.

• 2 drops lavender essential oil
• 2 drops neroli essential oil
• 2 drops marjoram essential oil
• 2 drops ylang ylang essential oil
• 2 drops Roman or German chamomile essential oil
• 3 drops clary sage essential oil
• 2 tablespoons carrier oil

Source: Aromatherapy: A Complete Guide to the Healing Art

Aromatherapy For Postpartum Depression

For feelings of postpartum depression, try any of the following essential oils: 

• Rose
• Neroli
• Melissa
• Bergamot
• Roman chamomile

Massage: Add up to 8 drops essential oil to one tablespoon of carrier oil. Get a  gentle, full-body massage, with a focus on your back. 

Bath: Take a bath with an added 4 to 5 drops essential oil.

Diffusion: Use an aromatherapy diffuser to diffuse the essential oil.

Air freshener: Add 5 drops essential oil to one cup distilled water in a spray bottle. Spray around the room.

Baby Blues Bath Blend

• 3 drops jasmine absolute
  
• 3 drops clary sage essential oil
• 3 drops ylang ylang essential oil
• 1 drop mandarin essential oil

Combine the oils and add to a warm bath.

Source: Massage & Aromatherapy: Simple Techniques

Other sources:

• Essential Oils Desk Reference
• Healing With Aromatherapy
• Aromatherapy Massage

I recommend Young Living essential oils.

Photo Credit: Dennis Lapets/Flickr/CC

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