Hydrosols

Kurt Schnaubelt

Enter Kurt Schnaubelt's approach to life, the universe, and aromatherapy appeals to me. His excellent conferences bring together presenters from many fields and modalities, creating a bigger picture for aromatherapy within the context of holistic health. During his intensive course he explained the science of aromatherapy in an accessible way, never getting stuck in rigid paradigms.

Schanubelt lets nature and the intention of the products play their part, promoting the view that flexibility is key when dealing with aromatics.As a chemist he knows better than most the importance of working from an informed psition, and as a humanist he honors all of life and what it means to be alive. As he says in his 1999 book Medical Aromatherapy "It is the most blatant admission of hubris, that scientific proof amounts to the act of creation." 

With more science under my belt I finally understood why bay leaf hydrosol clears swollen lymph nodes in breast tissue  and why green myrtle hydrosol can be put into the eyes. The connection between homeopathy and hydrosols also became clearer.

Hydrosols can be seen as microdoses of oil, and if used in the manner prescribed by Grosjean and others, this microdose is further diluted in water. In Homeopathy , the more you dilute, the stronger the remedy. When you drink a litre of water containing hydrosol over the course of a day, you are taking multiple microdoses of you "remedy".

In homeopathy, multiple doses at frequent intervals are the most powerful and potent way to take remedies. And as Schnaubelt points out, a microdose can achieve the same thing as a megadose in the appropriate situation.There are many people and hundreds of events  that have influenced my learning path and direction in the world of aromatherapy, but in the context of hydrosols, my encounters with Grosjean, Penoel, Franchomme, and  Schnaubelt have most dramatically altered my thinking.

Reference: Hydrosols The next Aromatherapy: Suzanne Catty