Story Time & The Sense Of Smell


Even though I've been a stay at home mom for 11 years now, every once in a while the Elementary School Teacher in me surfaces. 😉 The other day, during story time with my 5 year old, was one of those moments...My preschooler had received a free book with his Scholastic Book Order (side note: I always loved book order day when I was in school, and it's still fun as a mom) called One Day in the Eucalyptus Eucalyptus Tree. The book is a story about a little boy who gets swallowed by a snake and convinces the snake that there's still room in the snake's belly for him to eat more things...until the snake is so full he burps them all out. The book mentions the word eucalyptus many times throughout the book (19 times to be exact 😉), and I started wondering if my son had ever smelled a eucalyptus tree before. As an adult I have smelled eucalyptus many times, and could even try to describe what a eucalyptus tree would smell like to an adult (fresh, earthy, clean, spa like, etc). Those descriptive words would mean nothing to my little guy, and although my son has smelled eucalyptus before (when I've diffused it), I could tell he wasn't putting the smell and the visual of the book together.

However...Momma's got an oil for that 😉!

I quickly grabbed my bottle of Eucalyptus Globulus for him to smell. He held the bottle, sniffing it, as I read him the story again. It was so fun to watch the story come even more to life for him. 

I am blown away when I really start to think about our sense of smell. The sense of smell is such a powerful thing with the ability to quickly trigger memories and emotions...

 "When essential oils are inhaled, the molecules rise to the top of the nose and meet the olfactory mucous membrane. The olfactory membrane has thousands of receptors that identify the smell and thus, the sensory stimulation is sent through the olfactory bulb, which acts as an amplifier, through the olfactory nerve into the limbic system of the brain.

This is the oldest area of the brain. It deals with emotional and psychological responses.

The limbic system is triggered by nerve impulses. The scent is compared to a known scent, compared and labeled, thus we can have memories associated with the scent information and react emotionally and physically through our autonomic nervous system.

These responses are determined by the specific qualities of the essential oil being used, and can range from relaxing to stimulating. The nerve impulse in the limbic system leads to other areas of the brain that are responsible for secreting hormones and regulating body functions."


 Its pretty incredible when you read an excerpt like the one above and really think about how our bodies were created, and how amazing our sense of smell is when supporting the different systems of our bodies. 

I'm so thankful to have these oils in my life (for so many reasons), and thankful for moments like storytime with my 5 year old to remind me how truly incredible our sense of smell is.

Your Oil Loving Friend,

Heather Dent

Member #3007412

