We are very pleased to have Christine Code, a fully qualified aromatherapist, regularly visiting our residents for a group aromatherapy session.  She will also see residents on a one to one basis if they would like.  

Aromatherapy is the ancient practice of using extracted essences (essential oils) from flowers, leaves, seeds, fruit and woods to promote health and well-being of the body and mind.  It is one of the most popular complementary approaches to the management of stress and have been proved to be useful in treating people who are very anxious, disorientated or have disturbed sleep due to developing dementia.   

Records of the use of aromatherapy date back several thousand years.  Aromatherapy takes an holistic approach to health by considering the "whole person" and treating both physical and emotional problems.   

The Alzheimer's Society has supported a controlled clinical trial of aromatherapy for the treatment of agitation in people with Alzheimer's disease and a follow up study to establish the mechanism of action of the essential oil ("Melissa") in the treatment of dementia.   Agitation is the most common and persistent of the Behavioural and Psychological Symptons in Dementia (BPSD) and frequently involves the administration of drugs which can have many serious side effects.  A safer, more effective treatment for agitation could be the use of plant essential oils.  Lemon balm essential oil ("melissa") was selected and the researches carried out a randomised clinical trial comparing it against an inactive essential oil and a commonly used anti-dementia drug.

The key result was the melissa was successful in decreasing agitation, a finding supported by work from other researchers.  It has been found that the essential oils act on the brain in two ways to calm excitatory pathways and stimulate other calming pathways.  

Further information can be found on the Alzheimer's Society website http://alzheimers.org.uk/

Our visiting aromatherapist, Christine is a member of the International Federation of Arormatherapists, whose practitioners have undergone training of the highest standard.  She adhers to a widely respected Code of Conduct and is fully insured to practice.  Christine is also a member of the British Complementary Medicine Association and a Registered Nurse.  

Some of the treatments Christine offers include a soothing foot and/or hand massage, a relaxing facial massage or an indian head massage. 

If you would like to know more about the treatments Christine offers, or perhaps treat a friend or member of your family who is one of our residents to a one-to-one treament session then please contact Christine directly on 01626 774524 or e-mail her at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it   Aromatherapy is a complementary therapy and all service users are encouraged by Christine to continue with any conventional treatments they are currently taking.