Essential oils are another increasingly popular tool for reducing workplace stress. According to writer Stasia Bliss of the online news source Guardian Liberty Voice, Vanderbilt University Hospital in Nashville, Tennessee, is one of many hospitals now using therapeutic-grade essential oils in the emergency room to boost employees’ productivity and health. 

“Over 50 hospitals nationwide are using oils for increased healing benefits such as germ-fighting and the well-known mood-lifting properties of these amazing natural tools,” Bliss writes. “Fox News originally reported on the phenomenon that is spreading across the country—as word gets out that essential oils can not only improve the smell of hospitals, relieving patients of that ‘bad smell association,’ but also raise the morale of workers and ward off infections.” 

A study conducted at Vanderbilt University Hospital concluded that before diffused essential oils were incorporated into the ER environment, 41 percent of the workers there reported feeling stress on the job, but afterward that number dropped to 3 percent. Workers reporting feelings of frustration dropped from more than 60 percent to 6 percent. 

Essential oils to utilize in the workplace could include a combination of peppermint, wild orange and rosemary. This trio combines uplifting, energizing and memory/focus support with the additional mood uplift of citrus essential oils. For higher-stress areas, diffusing calming essential oils such as lavender or bergamot has been shown to increase the serotonin and dopamine production needed for relaxation. 

Diana Pereira teaches local and web-based workshops on the basic use of essential oils for family and business. For a listing of these workshops, visit PereiraProduceAndHealth.Weebly.com, or visit Pereira Produce & Health on Facebook/Events.