Cinnamomum cassia
I've been having a problem with being cold lately. Yes, it's winter, but still, there's a limit to how freezing my hands can get when I'm a masseuse... This week I decided I needed to tackle it. I've tried warming teas. They're good, but I don't carry around a thermos of ginger-cinnamon-nutmeg-whatever else tea with me everywhere. Maybe I should! In any case, I started thinking about how I could keep my hands warmer during sessions. I've started wearing two pairs of thick socks with legwarmers everywhere, and that seems to help me feel comfortable, on the whole, but hands still wouldn't warm up. Then one day, I thought to myself, I'm being silly! I'm an aromatherapist! After all, I have cassia oil in my arsenal. Cinnamomum cassia, is, as its Latin name suggests, a close relative of the cinnamon tree. I read somewhere that not infrequently, cassia will be sold as cinnamon. Having in my possession both cassia oil and cinnamon oil, I can say that cinnamon oil has a more cloying scent, while cassia makes my mouth water more. I've tasted a drop of cassia, and it tastes just like a fireball candy (I don't recommend doing this at home unless you know you have a food grade oil and know how to dilute it properly). Cassia has been called 'cold cinnamon' because it isn't too suffocating when used in the summer, while cinnamon oil does have that tendency. Both cassia and cinnamon help increase blood flow in general, but cassia is specifically good at getting blood to flow all the way to the extremeties; ie, my hands. So, this week, before I had a session to get to, I dabbed a drop of cassia oil on the collar of my sweater. By the time I got there, my hands were still a decent temperature, even with part of my trip being on foot, outside! It made just enough of a difference that i think I'll make sure to always use some cassia oil before a session, and maybe in general. It never hurts to have better blood flow.
Cassia oil also helps bring a small amount of sweat to the skin. Now, this may sound bad, but in the winter, or in the elderly, bringing back a healthy glow to the skin can make the difference between dry, dead looking skin, and slightly more supple, alive looking skin. Oh, and the thing that I really love about cassia essential oil: it makes you smile. It really does!