TCM and Aromatherapy: A case study on how a combined treatment of TCM and Aromatherapy can help a patient heal

The following case study was conducted by one of APA's students for her final Diploma Course exam. She kindly allowed us to share her successful treatment process with us which highlights the successful combination of TCM and Aromatherapy to help the client heal:

Intake Overview:

Ms. A, aged around 40, is a typical workingwoman in Hong Kong. She has a full-time job working as a manager in a company and also needs to take care of her family, husband and an 8 year-old daughter with the help of an Indonesia maid after work.

Her job is very challenging in nature with lots of changes at all times and she has to deal with lots of political issues in the office. She always feels exhausted after a day’s work. Back home, she still has to assist her daughters' studies as well as get everything organized in her home.

She completely lacks time for herself as well as for her husband; this leads to a deteriorating relationship in her marriage, which causes her to be even more exhausted whenever they have an argument.

She is overweight, looks heavy and clumsy. A recent body check-up has shown that her cholesterol levels are high and she admitted that she always has bad temper. She always feels cold despite of putting on a lot of clothes. She has got sweaty palms and is not sensitive in smelling at all.

She has never had an aromatherapy treatment before and she does not believe in the healing power of essential oils. Basically, she does not admit having any health problems and insists that her body condition is quite good. She has accepted the following treatment only because she needs relaxation and some time for herself.

Treatment Plan:

Since the student chooses this case study to be the required case done from the Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) view, therefore, the diagnosis for Ms. A shows a deficiency in spleen and liver Qi (氣) and also in lung Qi. Ms. A is also too Yin(陰).

The student decides to push up Ms. A’s Qi in her spleen and liver so that her body can release the moistness and reduce the water retention while at the same time help Ms. A to reduce stress during her treatments.

Mainly, essential oils with Yang properties are used including Citrus bergamia (Bergamot), Boswellia thurifera (Frankincense), Citrus paradise (Grapefruit), Commiphora myrrha (Myrrh) & Citrus aurantifolia (Lime) together with other oils that can work well to increase the stomach, spleen, liver & lung Qi.

Over the course of seven treatments, the student hopes to convince Ms. A that aromatherapy is a kind treatment with healing power that can help improve both her physical and emotional condition.

Client Response:

After the first aromatherapy treatment, Ms. A told the student that she is surprised to find the comfortable feeling after an aromatherapy treatment which is a lot more relaxing than her past massage sessions.

In the second and third treatment, Ms. A reported that her frequency of going to the toilet has increased on the very night after the treatment. She feels the overall pace is slowing down a bit and this helps her to feel more relaxed even though dealing with a tense working environment.

In the fourth treatment, she is very excited to tell the student that she lost two inches in her waist, not only she feels slimmer and lighter, but all her colleagues can see a major change in her body shape. She started to believe that essential oil can make ‘changes’ in one’s body.

In the remaining treatments, Ms. A is willing to use home-made blends prepared by the student for her after treatment and finds that she has better sleeping quality and that her overall body condition has improved. She now will turn to an aromatherapy treatment whenever she feels that she is in a tense condition or feels exhausted.

At the end of the case study, Ms. A has already established a habit of using essential oils in her daily life and keeps to her aromatherapy treatments to help herself whenever she finds herself in a stress condition.

Results / Treatment Summary:

The student successfully introduced the healing power of aromatherapy and established a habit of using essential oils on her client. The client has found a good way to improve her body condition and will surely explore more in this area to help herself and also her family members.

The result of this case study has convinced the student once more of the healing power of essential oils and is proud of being a therapist helping people.

Interested to learn more about TCM and Essential Oils? World's Authority on Clinical Aromatherapy and TCM Gabriel Mojay will hold a special intensive course on October 11 and 12 in Hong Kong - click here to find out more details and to register for an Early Bird discount!