Summary
A stroke is an interruption of the blood supply to any
part of the brain. This can be caused by the blockage
of a blood vessel or bleeding in the brain. When a
part of the brain is deprived of blood the brain cells begin
to die within minutes therefore it is important to receive
medical attention as soon as possible.
Symptoms of a stroke may include paralysis, numbness, or
tingling in one side of the body especially the face or arm.
Also trouble speaking, double vision, an unusual type of
headache, confusion, or difficulty with balance and walking.
Types of strokes:
Hemorrhagic stroke – A blood vessel in
the brain may become weak and burst damaging a part of the
brain. The hemorrhagic stroke is not as common as the
ischemic stroke.
Ischemic stroke –This is caused by the
blood supply to the brain being blocked. This may be
caused by a blood clot forming in an artery of the brain
that is already narrow. This is known as thrombus or a
thrombotic stroke. Another cause is a blood clot that
forms elsewhere in the body, breaks off, and travels to the
brain. This is an embolism or embolic stroke.
TIA (transient ischemic attack) – This
is also know as a mini-stroke and occurs when blood flow to
a part of the brain is blocked for a short period of time
and then the blood flow resumes such that the symptoms only
last briefly. This should be considered as a warning
for a possible stroke and should not be ignored. The
symptoms will be similar to a stroke but only last for a few
minutes.
[search help: cerebrovascular,
CVA, cerebral infarction, cerebral hemorrhage, hemorrhagic,
aneurysm, arteriovenous malformation (AVM), brain attack]
Oils, blends & products
recommended:
Oils & Blends:
AromaTouch, basil, cypress, frankincense,
grapefruit, lavender, peppermint
Essential oils based
products: AromaTouch technique
Also consider:
helichrysum, ylang ylang
Suggested protocols:
For help with recovery after a stroke and proper medical
attention (see medical attention immediately with the
first symptoms of a stroke) massage AromaTouch over the
heart and 1-2 drops of frankincense under the tongue 2-5
times daily.
Couple this with the
AromaTouch
technique daily (or more often if convenient).
Frankincense may be added to the inflammation phase with
AromaTouch and Deep Blue blends.
Experiences and Testimonials of others
Samara – My
husband’s grandmother had a stroke. I believe Dr. Hill said
AromaTouch over the heart and frankincense under the tongue
for the stroke. Any other suggestions?
Rob - I know that the full AromaTouch
technique would be great for a stroke victim. If there is
any way to perform it daily, and then incorporate
frankincense in the inflammation phase with the thumb walk
it would be a great help.
Pat - My friends
mother has had a major stroke. Her daughter immediately
started putting Frankincense and Helichrysum on her mother,
she has also been doing the AromaTouch techinique two to
three times a day. Mom is now awake and aware, she cannot
speak or read and her right side is pretty weak and
non-functioning. They are continuing with the oils, but I
would like to see if anyone has other ideas of what we could
use or what can be done.
Samara - Last time Dr. Hill was in town
I asked him about stokes and he said to put AromaTouch over
the heart and Frankincense under the tongue several times a
day. Basil is also good, Grapefruit, Lavender.
Lynda - A young
lady in our area recently had a stroke. They have
since found and fixed the cause, but she is now using a
walker from the loss of feeling in one of her legs. She is
also pregnant and I was wondering what oil(s) would be
helpful for her to regain the feeling and strength in her
leg and would be safe for her during pregnancy.
Kendra and Pat - As soon as I hear
stroke, I know frankincense! Use the frankincense on the
crown of the head, the back of the neck, and the bottoms of
the feet. Also she could use cypress and peppermint on her
legs. The cypress helps with the circulation and the
peppermint wakes everything up! And yes they are great
to use even though she is expecting.
Rob - I had a hemorrhagic stroke caused
by elevated blood pressure and a cyst on my adrenal gland.
It happened about 3 years ago and left my right arm and leg
relatively useless for a number of weeks. With therapy I
have regained use of my leg, arm, hand and speech, but still
experienced numbness in those extremities for some time.
When I suffered the stroke, my family used Young Living
oils, but I reacted horribly to them (rashes, swelling,
breathing problems) and could not use them.
After experiencing doTerra essential oils, and finding
that I did not have reactions to them, I have been using
them to continue improving the effects of stroke. The
suggestions so far have been right on. I used peppermint
and cypress often on my arm and foot where I used to have
numbness. I use frankincense under my tongue and apply it
to the crown of my head and at my brain stem for “brain
fog”.
I also use AromaTouch blend for numbness and weakness in
my arm, leg and foot. If I were still recovering from
effects of stroke, I would also do daily
spinal treatments,
using frankincense and cypress in place of eucalyptus.
I have heard of helichrysum also being helpful in healing
stroke-damaged extremities.
The oils mentioned so far should not pose a problem
during pregnancy, if you are worried, call and discuss it
with her doctor.
Luke - The only oil that I have heard to
avoid using on new, nursing moms is peppermint because it
has a tendency to dry up the milk, I'm not sure if that
would be an issue while she is expecting, but for sure after
the birth its a good idea to avoid peppermint.
What Science & Research are saying
This study at the University of Calabria is among a number of
studies
into the benefits of Bergamot Essential Oil and brain functions
(from PubMed):
2009; 85:389-405.
(Cerebral Ischemia is a stroke)
Prevention of Glutamate Accumulation and
Upregulation of Phospho-Akt may Account for Neuroprotection
Afforded by Bergamot Essential Oil against Brain Injury
Induced by Focal Cerebral Ischemia in Rat.
Amantea D, Fratto V, Maida S, Rotiroti D, Ragusa S, Nappi
G, Bagetta G, Corasaniti MT. Department of
Pharmacobiology and Center of Neuropharmacology of Normal
and Pathological Neuronal Plasticity, UCADH, University of
Calabria, 87036 Cosenza, Italy.
Abstract
The effects of bergamot essential oil (BEO; Citrus
bergamia, Risso) on brain damage caused by permanent focal
cerebral ischemia in rat were investigated. Administration
of BEO (0.1-0.5 ml/kg but not 1 ml/kg, given
intraperitoneally 1 h before occlusion of the middle
cerebral artery, MCAo) significantly reduced infarct size
after 24 h permanent MCAo. The most effective dose (0.5
ml/kg) resulted in a significant reduction of infarct
extension throughout the brain, especially in the medial
striatum and the motor cortex as revealed by TTC staining of
tissue slices. Microdialysis experiments show that BEO (0.5
ml/kg) did not affect basal amino acid levels, whereas it
significantly reduced excitatory amino acid, namely
aspartate and glutamate, efflux in the frontoparietal cortex
typically observed following MCAo. Western blotting
experiments demonstrated that these early effects were
associated, 24 h after permanent MCAo, to a significant
increase in the phosphorylation and activity of the
prosurvival kinase, Akt. Indeed, BEO significantly enhanced
the phosphorylation of the deleterious downstream kinase,
GSK-3beta, whose activity is negatively regulated via
phosphorylation by Akt.
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