Kathleen Petrides

This is our first citrus.  I hope you’ve got your Q-tips ready.  Are you ready for your citrus Blast?  So start sniffing.  What do you think?  Do you like it?  Is it a cheerful smell?  A sweet smell?  Or perhaps it smells bitter and makes you feel crabby?  Don’t forget to leave it and come back and have another sniff.  And that third sniff, do you smell anything at all?

Safety information: Phototoxic - Be careful when using Bergamot in a massage oil; do not expose to sunlight or a sun lamp for up to 4 hours after use.  A lot of Aromtherapists and Pagans who are in the know use Bergamot FCF (furocoumarin free) which removes the problem of Phototoxicity.  Some Aromatherapists refuse to use any altered oil on the grounds that if it has been altered that it is not a true Essential Oil.

Ritual Uses for Bergamot: confidence, joy, motivation, burnout, grief, loneliness, concentration.

This is a great oil to use to help bring your life back into balance when it feels as though your life seems to be in the dumper, or if you are tired of living on your own and looking to find love.

Suggestions for use: If you are feeling rather down in the dumps, diffuse it in the room you are working in. Also if you are living in a house with negative energy, try making a Mister up with some Bergamot, Orange and Lemon with a touch of May chang to help lift it.  If it’s SERIOUS bad energy, try some Frankincense, Rose and Sandalwood along with the spell of your choice to help boost it out.

If you go into Circle, to try and change the mood, cleanse your Circle with your Bergamot Spray, and make sure your incense is of the uplifting type.

You can also fill an amulet bag with orange Rind and Lemon Rind, and add a few drops of Bergamot for the final touch.

Main uses, depression, helps relieve insomnia, refreshes, anxiety, stress, uplifting, flatulence, colds, flue, cold sore, chicken pox, shingles, acne, oily skin, psoriasis, scabies, eczema, insect repellent, boils.

Dosage time: the amount that one would use, in a tablespoon of diffusing or massage oil is in fact a whopping ten drops.  Just keep in mind the Photo toxicity.  This is an oil you might want to keep for sprays, amulet bags and diffusing only.

Side subject for this week: How do you store your oils and how long do they last?  Do you place your oils on the window sill and leave them there for forever?  Perhaps you store them in the garage where the temperature hits 100 degrees during the summer.

Both of these examples are of course ridiculous and wrong.

Your oils should in optimal circumstances, be stored somewhere dark and cool.  Did I hear someone say "refrigerator?"  Excellent choice especially for your citrus oils!.  Of course, once you start collecting more and more oil, sharing the fridge with your oils, carrier oils, creams and the family weekly food allotment might be out of the question.

So try and find the next best thing.  Somewhere that stays dark and as cool as possible.  But not freezing.

How long do your oils last?  Simple question.  The answer is not so simple.

Some of your oils will, fortunately for your wallet, last for practically forever.  Oils such as Rose, Sandalwood, Frankincense will last for a very long time.

Your citrus oils will last for up to two years, but only if extraordinary care is taken care of them.  On the whole however, one might notice a deterioration of their citrus oils starting at nine months.

Your other oils, will last anywhere between one and three years if you take care not to leave the tops off and expose them though the air.  If you keep them out of the oxidizing effects of the sun, and you take care never to touch the pipette, or top of the bottle etc.

Exceptions to this are your oils such as Rose, Sandalwood etc.  These more hardy oils will not only last for years, but will improve if taken care of properly.

Remember that your oils are fragile and need to be handled with care if you want them to last.

And there we have Bergamot and the side subject for this week.  I hope you are still following and enjoying the course, studying your vocabulary, sniffing your oils and have a great time!

Bright Blessings

Kathleen Petrides
GreenLady
 
 

© 2001 Kathleen E. Petrides, SmeLLeNNium
 
 

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