By Sandy Durand, ACHS Master of Science in Complementary Alternative Medicine
Attending the recent conference for the Alliance of International Aromatherapists (AIA) truly was a highlight of my year. What a fantastic and thoroughly enjoyable learning opportunity!
As an ACHS graduate student, a registered aromatherapist focusing on natural skin care and wellness, and a mom of special needs youths who use aromatherapy daily, this conference helped me on all fronts.
The 2011 conference featured informational sessions ranging from using aromatherapy to treat depression in postpartum mothers to applications in cancer care to understanding aromatherapy chemistry. Held in Minnesota’s Twin Cities area, the three-day main conference, “The Future of Aromatics in Integrative Healthcare,” was sandwiched between optional pre- and post-conference seminars.
Rhiannon Harris, a clinical aromatherapist, nurse, and educator from France, hosted the full-day pre-conference workshop on skin integrity. I couldn’t miss attending this option and enjoyed every minute of it. Ms. Harris packed an incredible amount of information into a day that just flew by. She shared a wealth of professional experience in how to address specific skin care challenges and kindly took time to answer audience questions. I think the consensus in the room was that we all would have loved another day or two to listen to Ms. Harris and absorb even more of her expertise; I heard many comments to that effect.
Dr. Jane Buckle’s “M” Technique was the subject of the post-conference session. Dr. Buckle developed her technique while monitoring patients’ vital signs in hospital settings, observing which touch/massage methods were helpful in calming patients in stressful situations. She said she wanted to put the “care” back into healthcare. After observing the affable and witty Dr. Buckle demonstrate her technique during our session, we practiced (and enjoyed!) giving and receiving hand and foot massages using the signature very light touch. Dr. Buckle circulated, observing our techniques and giving helpful pointers. The technique is so gentle and relaxing that it is suitable for use on fragile individuals in hospital and hospice settings. Zoning out while receiving the massages was commonplace in our room. What a wonderfully relaxing way to end the conference before we all began our travels back home.
Other topics offered during the main conference included how to establish an aromatherapy business, current trends in spas, kinesiology, research strategies, oils of Australia, and daily morning aromatic Kundalini yoga sessions. AIA management and volunteers did an excellent job of selecting presenters and keeping everything running smoothly. They and the speakers also incorporated a lot of sparkle and humor into their presentations to keep us laughing while we learned.
There isn’t room here to name all of the wonderful speakers and describe their sessions, but each of them presented such valuable information that I was glad that I was able to attend every minute of every information-packed session. I took many notes, met many wonderful people, and thoroughly enjoyed the experience.
The only downside is that I skipped school to attend the conference and still have not caught up in my anatomy class. Sorry, Dr. Berger. I’m trying.
