Book Review by Stacy Miller -Continued -
Unit 4, �Practical Matters� is geared toward the professional interested in starting a practice. It includes the chapters:
Requirements for Professional Practice
The Consultation
Guidelines to Prescribing
Methods of Administration
The Aromatherapy Massage
The first chapter covers professionalism, role of the aromatherapist, ethics, counseling skills, personal hygiene and health, along with a checklist of equipment and products needed.
The information on performing a consultation is quite detailed and seems to cover all the bases.
In the chapter on administration he outlines guidelines on the amounts to be used in various applications such as massage, inhalation, baths, compresses, douches, ointments, etc.
His section on aromatherapy massage, a technique developed by Micheline Arcier, details the process step by step. (I have an aromatherapist friend/mentor in New Zealand that swears by this massage sequence.)
Unit 5, �The Clinical Index� is a wonderful resource for the aromatherapy student. It�s organized by systems of the body and conditions that commonly affect them. I found the introductions describing each system of the body particularly useful and refer to this section quite often.
The last section of the book contains a series of Appendixes, including a (very short) glossary, definitions of therapeutic properties, a therapeutic cross-reference, a chart with basics on 149 essential oils, a bonus section on acupressure and addresses/contact information for aromatherapy courses, practitioners, journals and newsletters. (As with any book, this information is quickly outdated.)
Overall, I found it a solid book and would highly recommend it to anyone currently taking or considering taking an aromatherapy course, along with the massage therapist interested in using essential oils in their practice.
Stacey Miller is a certified aromatherapist who has studied essential oils for 4 years. She�s a confirmed bibliophile and aromatherapy conference fiend who lives in San Diego. Email her at [email protected]