The Massage Company: Aromatherapy Series – Creating Tension Relief

When I joined The Massage Company to support massage development amongst the team of Therapists there I let my passion for product slip out in conversation.

It was so natural to me to highlight the importance of what goes on the skin as well as the massage itself. Products compliment massage enabling the Therapist to acquire the right level of ‘glide’ on the skin, while increasing the level of results for the client and a sensory experience that adds a little extra ‘experience’ to their wellbeing massage.

I believed that it was important to align each of the blends I created to have a relevant meaning to The Massage Company – simply taking the first letter of each word as a starting point – TMC, after the names Tension Relief, Motivation and Calm & Relax came purpose! I needed to formulate in each blend something that would tackle all angles of each concept.

Here I’d like to focus on blend number 1: **Tension Relief**

Let’s start with the ingredients:

**Carrier base oils** – Olive, Arnica & Wheatgerm

**Essential oils** – Lavender, Rosemary & Black Pepper

**Dominating oils** – Olive & Lavender

**Ratios explained** – There are many different textures of oils both carrier and essential, some need to be in lower ratios so that they don’t overpower in aroma or effect and don’t make a product too heavy or sticky.

**Number of ingredients explained** – I am a huge advocate of simple formulas as it leads to a stronger result, if we formulate with 15-20 ingredients in one product then the % of each ingredient naturally becomes lesser and the outcome is questionable. If we maintain the potency we increase the result potential!

**The story** – I moved away from the usual carrier oils because the effects of the base oils are just as relevant as the essential oil. Over and above texture of product is the impact the whole synergy can have on a person.

Olive oil eases muscular pain, is astringent, antiseptic and relieving to the skin. When we are stressed with tension our skin can be reactive, sensitive and Psoriasis or Eczema-prone so Olive is a powerful oil for the skin itself.

Olive oil eases muscular pain, is astringent, antiseptic and relieving to the skin. When we are stressed with tension our skin can be reactive, sensitive and Psoriasis or Eczema-prone so Olive is a powerful oil for the skin itself.

Wheatgerm gives a richer texture due to a high Vitamin E content and forms a natural preservative.

Lavender is a renowned ‘safe’ oil and many love it but occasionally people dislike it! I don’t just work with any Lavender, I select a beautiful high altitude variety from Provence in France to heal, relax and ease tension.

Rosemary an incredible herb to improve circulation, moving blood flow freely through the system. In addition this oil improves focus, clarity and energy.

Black Pepper adds warmth to a blend that is a powerful muscle relaxant and sets this blend as the Aromatherapy version of deep heat!

[For more information about The Massage Company – visit their website.](http://www.massagecompany.co.uk/index.php)