東日本大震災の発生から４年。沢山の犠牲者と行方不明者を出した大災害ですが、現在も復興に向けて皆さん懸命にがんばっていらっしゃいます。エアアロマジャパンでは社員研修を気仙沼で行うなどして、４年間被災地の皆さんと交流を深めてきました。
４年前のその当時、エアアロマジャパンはエアアロマグループが100％出資した日本の現地法人としての会社を設立したばかりでした。震災直後にエアアロマとしても何かできることはないかと考えていた時、ある女性の医師の方が医療団と共に被災地に入ることを知りました。避難所ではお風呂もなく臭いが問題になっていると聞いていたので、少しでも役に立てればと大きなボトルの*エッセンシャルオイルを数本持って行ってもらうことにしました。食料も不足していると聞いていたので、そこに香りを持って行ってもらう事に関しては、本当に皆さんの役に立つのか少し不安な気持ちでオイルをお渡ししたのを今でもはっきり覚えています。
被災地から帰ってきた女性医師は、香りが薬よりも喜ばれたと嬉しそうに報告してくれました。ディフューザーがなかったのでティッシュに含ませて配ったこと、若いお母さんを中心に多くの方が「さっぱりする」「落ち着く」「リフレッシュできる」と言って、ティッシュに浸した香りを枕元に置いて寝ていたことを教えてくれました。お風呂に入れない状況でも香りだけで気分がすっきりする事があるのだ、というのが私たちとしても驚いた事実でした。
私たちは少しでも役に立てたことにホッとし、そして香りというものがアロマセラピーとしての薬理的効果だけでなく、心理的に及ぼす影響がいかに大きいかを学びました。香りそのものの大きな可能性を改めて感じたのがこの時でした。
3月11日の今日、改めて、東日本大震災でお亡くなりになられた方々のご冥福をお祈りし、被災された皆様に心からお見舞いを申し上げます。
*精油「breathe easy ブリーズイージー」
ブレンド：ユーカリ、ファーニードル、シダーウッド
抗菌効果が高く、リフレッシュして呼吸がしやすくなると言われています。
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Today marks the fourth year since the 2011 Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami. Four years since the disaster took tens of thousands of lives, with thousands still missing, the devastated areas are undergoing tremendous reconstruction efforts.
Over these past four years, we at Air Aroma Japan have frequented the town of Kesennuma, one of the hardest-hit areas, in an effort to build relationships and open lines of communication with local residents.
Four years ago, at the time of the disaster, Air Aroma Japan had just been created as a local subsidiary of the Air Aroma Group. Along with the rest of the country (and the world), we watched the news in horror and racked our brains to see if we could lend a hand in any way. Residents who had lost their homes and in many cases, their family and loved ones, were being sheltered in nearby school auditoriums and halls without heat, electricity or running water. Showers and baths were unavailable for weeks.
One day, we learned a team of medical doctors from Tokyo would be traveling to the disaster-stricken areas. This was in the first few weeks following the disaster, where food and water were in short supply. Knowing we were not providing items that were essential to survival, but hoping to be of some aid, we asked if the doctors could deliver a few large bottles of a specific *essential oil to the shelters. We hoped the fragrance might help to make the environment even the slightest bit more bearable.
Upon returning from the site, the doctor who had kindly carried our bottles to the shelters gave us news that the residents were grateful for the fragrance, possibly even more so than medicine. She informed us that because diffusers were not available, the essential oil was dropped into tissue and passed out to residents, and how many of them, including young mothers with babies, expressed how they were soothed, calmed, even refreshed. Many of them kept the tissue next to their pillows.
We were stunned to learn that even in situations where showering and bathing are not possible for weeks, one fragrance can help to create a refreshing environment. Relieved to be able to help even in the slightest way, we reflected on the effect a fragrance can have on one’s emotional well-being, in addition to the pharmacologic effects of aromatherapy.
On this March 11th, our prayers go out to all whose lives have been affected by the devastating earthquake and tsunami, and we pray for the lives that have been lost or remain missing.
*Essential Oil “Breathe Easy”
Blend: Eucalyptus, Fir Needle, and Cedarwood
Breathe Easy is a decongestant with antibacterial properties.