Scents and nonsense

One fights against the status quo at one's peril, at risk of sounding like a nutcase, and having to fight off the feeling of tilting at windmills. I could not stop myself (and am glad I did not) from leaving a comment about this statement:

"Editors note: These statement and treatments are anecdotal, and not "medically" based. If you have been diagnosed or suspect you suffer from anxiety, post traumatic stress, depression or other mental health disorders please consult your doctor."


This was at the bottom of a lovely post about the healing properties of scent. 


How brainwashed we all are! If one is feeling down, reaching for a bottle of good perfume will probably do you more good (and certainly less harm) than a bottle of most anything else. 


Dialectical Behavioral Therapy teaches people how to self sooth, something that a good many of us don't know how to do. It's a testament to how out of touch with simple reality we are as a culture that it takes some fancy sounding therapy to teach us to pay attention to our senses. Nonetheless, it's all good advice. From the site Truer Recovery, the following bit of advice about self soothing with scent:

"Do you have a perfume or cologne that you enjoy? Wear it, spray it in the air and let yourself enjoy the scent. Try to keep a small vial of it with you in your purse, car or pocket, and take it out when you could use a boost. . .Find a scent that works for you, and try to keep it close."

No disclaimer at the bottom of that page.

There's no doubt in my mind that what we take in with our senses can have a profound effect on our psyches. How could we think otherwise?

I write this as I sit in a messy apartment that truly bothers me. I wouldn't want anyone to come visit and see the way my place looks (though I am telling the world about it). This gets me down, and right now I'm trapped in an altogether too familiar vicious cycle of feeling bad about it, not doing anything about it, feeling worse, doing less. . .at least I'm wearing a scent that cheers me! I may be dressed so badly that I wouldn't go out on the street without a change of clothes, but, thanks to Bulgari Black and the privilege of having running water (yes, some people do not have that) I do smell good.

Image note: Bergamot Overused, perhaps. Uplifting? Indeed.

Addendum: It appears that I needn't worry about offending anyone at that lovely blog. The comment I left is going either unnoticed or ignored. Either way, I would have preferred a fight to that. This needs to be discussed.