Fear is necessary for survival, but sometimes fear can overpower our thoughts and lead to worry, stress, and anxiety. Using essential oils for fear can be of great assistance.
By smelling essential oils, we can feel a sense of calm, safety, bliss, confidence, and peace. Essential oils can likewise promote deep breathing, which is proven to induce relaxation in the body.
If this sounds like something that could benefit you and your interested in trying out essential oils for fear management, continue reading!
Why Do We Feel Fear?
Whether it is the fear and worry you feel during a visit to a haunted house or the deep-rooted worry from life circumstances (fear of change, worry of death), fear has a vital function in our survival.
Fear is essentially an automatic response in our body called "fight or flight".
The fight or flight reaction is a process that begins in the limbic system.
As a result of fight or flight, the heart pumps faster, the lungs broaden, the pupils dilate, the gastrointestinal system is halted, the hormone adrenaline (or epinephrine) is produced. The body is preparing to either run away or fight.
Essential Oils and Fear
The anxiety of being afraid can be crippling. It's important to know that there are ways to manage fear using the power of essential oils. Let's have a look at the connection between essential oils and fear.
Fight or flight action begins in the amygdala, an almond-shaped set of nerve cells in the limbic system, which happens to be related to our sense of smell.
When we smell something, the olfactory nerve cells send out a signal to our limbic system. The signal travels through the olfactory nerves and bulb, directly into the amygdala (the same place that fight or flight begins).
Do you see the connection between our sense of smell and fear? This is how essential oils can help calm you when fear starts to get in the way.
15 Best Essential Oils for Fear and Anxiety
There are various levels of fear, some are frightening and incapacitating, while others may be unpleasant fears that linger in our thoughts. Essential oils can help when the fear that is felt is out of proportion to the event that we are facing.
Here is a list of essential oils for fear that are known to help calm and soothe worry. You can use one oil or a blend of a few.
- Frankincense
- Cedarwood
- Neroli
- Basil
- Clary sage
- Sandalwood
- Cypress
- Vetiver
- Juniper Berry
- Lemon
- Bergamot
- Orange
- Lavender
- Roman Chamomile
- Grapefruit
You can also make one of our 5 Essential Oil Recipes for Fear below.
5 Essential Oil Blends for Fear
The anxiety of being afraid can be crippling. It's important to know that there are ways to manage fear using the power of essential oils. Give one of these essential oil recipes for fear a try.
1. Fearlessly Diffuser Blend |
Directions: Add essential oils to an aromatherapy diffuser with recommended water for your diffuser tank. I like to use a 100-200 ml water tank diffuser but you can use whatever size you prefer. Read More: Diffusing Essential Oils |
2. Fearless Inhaler Recipe |
Directions: Add essential oils to the cotton wick and insert it into the inhaler. To use, bring the inhaler under nostrils and take a deep breath in. |
3. Fear Who? Roller Blend |
Directions: Add essential oils to the roller bottle, fill the rest of the bottle with jojoba oil. Place rollerball on and roll the bottle between palms to blend. Be sure to label your bottle. 3% dilution. Read More: How to Make and Use Roller Bottles |
4. No Fear Inhaler Recipe |
Directions: Add essential oils to the cotton wick and insert it into the inhaler. To use, bring the inhaler under nostrils and take a deep breath in. Read More: How to Use Essential Oil Inhalers |
5. Release Fear Bath Blend |
Directions: Mix essential oils into Castile soap, add to a warm bath and swirl around. Read More: How to Use Essential Oils in the Bath |