Essential Oil Notes — Find Your Calming Scent

By Caryn Gehlmann

Are you looking for an essential oil to help you feel calmer? When you understand essential oil notes, you’ll be on your way to finding the right calming scent for YOU. Because maybe something like this has happened to you before and you’ve been disappointed…

Your friend is raving about this new essential oil blend she’s using. She says it helps her feel more relaxed and rested and now that she’s using it she sleeps better every night. So you rush to get a bottle because you’ve been feeling a bit frazzled of late. You give it a try and you’re so disappointed… you don’t feel any calmer! Actually now you just feel frustrated.

Is something wrong with you? No, absolutely not. Each of us is special and unique so there is not a one-size-fits-all essential oil or blend to help you feel calm.

Watch this video of my latest Q&A with Caryn where I answer the questions — “Which essential oil should I use to help me feel calm?”

As you saw in the video, most essential oils can be categorized into three scent notes — top, middle, or base notes. Understanding the different characteristics of scent notes can be a good starting point to help you decide which essential oil will be the most calming for you.

Top Scent Notes

Many are derived from the top of a plant, like citrus. They often have a fresh, uplifting aroma. So if you’re dragging and could use a bit of a lift, these top scent notes are a great option — like Bergamot, Orange, or Grapefruit.

Middle Scent Notes

Generally speaking, middle notes come from the middle of the plant — such as leaves or needles. They have a little more depth and staying power than top notes. So if you love scents like Peppermint, Lavender, or Marjoram then this middle zone might be a good place to look for your calming scent.

Base Scent Notes

Most come from woods, resins, and gums with properties that are sedating and used to promote relaxation. Vetiver and Frankincense are popular essential oils for calming. Another one is Jasmine, even though it has a floral scent, it’s considered a base note.

Maybe you’re thinking, this is all really interesting Caryn, but what’s the next step? You have a couple of options — you can buy a single essential oil or blend or make your own essential oil blend.

If you choose to buy a blend, please peruse our list of calming e3 essential oil blends that contain the combination of scent notes you’re looking for. Feel free to reach out to us and one of our clinical aromatherapists might be able to help steer you in the right direction. With e3’s sample policy you can request essential oil samples, both singles and blends, along with your next order.

If essential oil notes are intriguing to you and you want to create your very own blend, I recommend you download my free guide where I walk you through the blending process. Once you learn how to mix essential oils, you can come up with your very own signature scent or customize a blend to address your physical and emotional health and wellness.

Before I go, just one last reminder to listen to how your body responds at the moment. There is no wrong answer, learn to listen to your nose and you’ll find a calming scent using essential oil notes that are right for you.