I don't know what it is but some people draw you in and you just deeply crave to spend time with them in a room alone together, talking and listening to each other breathe. Wanting to drink in part of someone else's magic for awhile

Lets open up the gates
tounge and teeth
bone and hair
I need to feel your breath on my back
your fingers wrapped around my ribcage
eyes shattered like mirrors
Cutting me kaleidoscopic

I sang of death down by the river
Then felt the ground move from under my still feet
I know the earth breathes
As I feel it moving against your pulse
I know the wind has changed
As I've been pulled up into your storm

Down at the bottom of the deep black sea
Your naked body is waiting for me
Beneath a halo of underwater light
Reflecting red stars of madness
In your eyes, in my eyes...
And in the future there will be no one
And all the water will turn to stone
And in the desert where your memory lies
I'll kiss your shadow in the sand
Beneath the cold, blue, starlight...

Michael Gira

JH Engstrom

The Dream of Sappho by Agostino Arrivabene

The 2013 painting The Dream of Sappho, as a depiction of a state of creative being, is extraordinary. We see the poetess, her head turned away from the viewer, her eyes closed, and from the crown of her head a headdress of corals and pearls springs. Veiled, unreachable, the poetess dreams, her creative energy pushing its way through the bone limits of her skull, bringing new thoughts, new poetry into being, and transmuting her life force into the blood-formed corals and pearls of her poetry.

Paralytic Sylvia Plath

It happens. Will it go on? ---- 
My mind a rock, 
No fingers to grip, no tongue, 
My god the iron lung 

That loves me, pumps 
My two 
Dust bags in and out, 
Will not 

Let me relapse 
While the day outside glides by like ticker tape. 
The night brings violets, 
Tapestries of eyes, 

Lights, 
The soft anonymous 
Talkers: 'You all right?' 
The starched, inaccessible breast. 

Dead egg, I lie 
Whole 
On a whole world I cannot touch, 
At the white, tight 

Drum of my sleeping couch 
Photographs visit me- 
My wife, dead and flat, in 1920 furs, 
Mouth full of pearls, 

Two girls 
As flat as she, who whisper 'We're your daughters.' 
The still waters 
Wrap my lips, 

Eyes, nose and ears, 
A clear 
Cellophane I cannot crack. 
On my bare back 

I smile, a buddha, all 
Wants, desire 
Falling from me like rings 
Hugging their lights. 

The claw 
Of the magnolia, 
Drunk on its own scents, 
Asks nothing of life. 

She looks out for me

Lost in a time and space when I knew her

Her hair like straw and her eyes like fire

Living in a forest thick and dense with memories

Where clasping branches become thickets and growing flames burn on her doorstep

Twisting out words through her lips like smoke

The wind dances and moves through her the way I wish to

Her eyes close and darkness holds the landscape

Isolation has frozen her skin and her breath has caused cities to fall

She has lost herself amongst the passing hours

And as time moves she haunts me

Aromatherapy for treating Generalized Anxiety Disorder

My topic is on the use of aromatherapy oils on Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) and on anxiety in general. Worry and anxiety seems to be a large part of today’s modern lifestyle as we put a lot of pressure on ourselves to succeed in our career ambitions and goals which often come hand in hand with stress and anxiety as we try to fit these around our personal lives and commitments. Often people do not focus on trying to undertake stress relieving exercises or health treatments and ignore these emotions choosing to solider on and as they continue to do this it can become detrimental to their mental and physical health. 

Generalized anxiety disorder is a mental condition that causes a person to feel chronic feelings of excessive worry, anxiety and severe dread without any real cause. People with this condition feel on edge, tense and jittery throughout the day and depending on the severity of the condition their anxiety levels can rise to unbearable peaks and fall in a wave like fashion throughout their day which is extremely emotionally draining and exhausting for the individual. A person with this disorder may worry about minor things, daily events or the future. This condition is often linked to depression as an individual suffering from this condition may be inhibited from living their life the way they wish to, this can lead to poor quality of life and in some cases can even lead to suicide. Some physical traits attributed by this condition are elevated blood pressure, increased heart rate, muscle tension, sweating and shaking, insomnia, nausea and stomach problems.

Some good natural treatments for anxiety are a good healthy diet, exercise, meditation, regular sleep patterns and herbal treatments such as st johns wort. Other treatments often prescribed by doctors are therapy and medications such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI’s) and benzodiazepine (sedatives). SSRI’s work to inhibit the uptake of serotonin in the brain eventually causing the emotions felt by the patient to be of a more normal, less distressing range. SSRI’s often come with unwanted side effects such as blurred vision, feelings of agitation, loss of appetite, loss of sex drive and sexual dysfunction and sedatives have side effects such as drowsiness, fatigue, confusion and disorientation and often have highly addictive qualities that can lead to drug abuse. Thus the need for alternatives such as aromatherapy which can be a non-invasive, natural treatment option without any unwanted side effects. It is so non-invasive that it can often be used alongside SSRI’s and other prescribed medications and not affect their actions.

The ‘grandmother oil’ Lavandula Angustifolia is one of the most appropriate oils to use to treat anxiety. It is well known to have sedative and antidepressant effects. The chemical composition of Lavender allows it have anxiolytic effects with the main active constituents being linalool and linalyl acetate which are esters. Esters work to be calming and balancing on the body’s central nervous system and is good for terrain support. Appleton (2012), states that in clinical studies linalool has been shown to inhibit acetylcholine release (which is an excitatory neurotransmitter of the autonomic nervous system) and influence ionic conductance of neurons in the brain and linalyl acetate is described to exert a relaxing effect. Lavender has also been shown to reduce dose dependently spontaneous motility and caffeine induced hyperactivity in mice.

Also a study undertaken on the levels of anxiety on patients which chronic hemodialysis showed on the Hamilton rating scale for anxiety (HAMA) that the aroma of Lavender decreased the mean scores of HAMA suggesting it to be an effective, non-invasive means for treating anxiety in patients. Now discussing the effects of Lavandula Angustifolia compared to other treatments such as SSRI’s and sedatives. Schafke & Woelka (2009) wrote an article discussing the effects of silexan, a new oral lavender oil capsule in comparison to Lorazapam (a common sedative prescribed to people with this condition) the efficacy of a 6-week-intake of silexan compared to lorazepam was investigated in adults with GAD.  They also used the Hamilton anxiety scale to measure the results; which found that the lavender capsules effectively decreased generalized anxiety at a highly comparable level to Lorazepam with the HAMA total score decreased clearly and to similar extents in both groups. The overall conclusion is that the lavender capsules work as effectively as lorazepam and is a preferable choice for treatment for GAD as it does not have side effects or highly addictive qualities that lorazepam possesses.

Lavandula angustifolia is not the only oil you can use to effectively treat anxiety there are many others to choose from such as Basil, bergamot, Roman chamomile, Virginia cedarwood, cypress, frankincense, geranium, jasmine, marjoram, neroli, palmarosa, patchouli, rose, rosewood, vetiver and ylang ylang.

I believe one of the most effective ways to treat anxiety with aromatherapy is through Swedish massage as it combines the therapeutic benefits of the essential oils with the sedative effects of massage. A study was undertaken by Edge (2003) on the effect of aromatherapy massage on mood, relaxation and anxiety in mental health. The study was conducted on eight subjects who were assigned an aromatherapy massage weekly for 6 weeks and were measured on the hospital anxiety and depression scale after their initial and final massages. Results of improvement where shown in 6 of the 8 subjects showing aromatherapy to be highly successful and a powerful treatment option in improvement of  anxiety and mood levels of those in mental health care.

To conclude my presentation aromatherapy is found to be a highly effective, natural and non-invasive treatment that can work just as well as certain prescription medicines prescribed by doctors for sufferers of general anxiety disorder. Lavender especially with its active chemical constituents being esters has a profound effect on the central nervous system and peripheral nervous system at decreasing sympathetic nervous system dominance and exertion and it has been found in combination with Swedish massage to positively treat those in mental health care.

References

Appleton., J. (2012). Lavender oil for anxiety and depression. Natural Medicine Journal. 5 (12). Retrieved from http://www.naturalmedicinejournal.com/article_content.asp?article=289.

Edge., J. (2003). A pilot study addressing the effect of aromatherapy massage on mood, aniety and relaxation in adult metal health. Complementary therapies in nursing and midwifery. 9 (2). Retrieved from http://ezproxy-mc.mywisenet.com.au:2051/science/article/pii/S135361170200104X

H, Woelka., S, Schlafke. (2010). A multi-center, double-blind, randomised study of the Lavender oil preparation Silexan in comparison to Lorazepam for generalized anxiety disorder. Phytomedicine. 17 (94). Retrieved from  http://wellpark.moodle.co.nz/mod/resource/view.php?id=9495