Nancy Suertin's great love has always been plants. When she was a girl, she used to make lotions with various botanicals and she was always infusing various plant oils into her tea.
So it was no surprise when she began commercially practicing aromatherapy about six years ago.
Now Suertin has brought her aromatherapy treatment to a new location at 28 E. Genesee St. and has partnered with massage therapists and an acupuncturist to create a diversified holistic and complimentary healing space. Suertin, a reiki master and teacher, also provides reiki treatment.
Walk into Suertin's storefront center and you are immediately hit with the fragrance of sweet flowers and musky woods. The aroma isn't cloying like the perfume counter at a department store, but more of a natural, calming fragrance, thanks to the number of essential oils she uses in her practice.
Aromatherapy has been around for centuries and is a holistic treatment using scents of essential botanical oils. The aromatic essences are extracted from flowers, trees, fruits, bark, grasses and seeds with specific therapeutic properties. The scent of the oil can simply be inhaled, added to a bath or it can be massaged into different parts of the skin, depending on the reason for the treatment.
Synthetic oils do not work, Suertin says, and only therapeutic-grade organic oils, like her preferred brand, Young Living, should be used. The properties in synthetic oils are not the same as those that occur in nature and thus do no have the same healing effects.
Suertin, an Auburn native who works in Syracuse as a paralegal, has been studying the healing properties of plants for years and swears by the oils' effectiveness. The method she uses is called the raindrop technique, where multiple oils are massaged into the back along the sides of the spine. Because viruses and bacteria are carried in the spinal fluid, it's the best place for oil to work.
"The technique uses quite a few different oils that each have different properties for enhancing the body," she said.
When being worked on during the raindrop technique, the client wears a hospital-style gown that opens in the back while lying on his or her stomach. Suertin first applies a carrier oil - generally sesame, avocado and almond oils - that is cold-pressed and unrefined, before applying the essential oils.
For raindrop, eight standard oils are used, though Suertin says they can be tailored to each client, depending on his or her personal needs. She uses oregano, basil, cypress, marjoram, peppermint, thyme and wintergreen oils, as well as a blend called valor that is applied first for balance.
After the oil is applied to the spine, Suertin uses the butterfly stroke - a gentle flicking of the fingers to spread the oil along the sides of the spine. Once all the oils are applied, a hot towel is placed on the back to give the oil a chance to soak in. The whole process takes about an hour.
Before Suertin does aromatherapy on a client, she first gets the person's medical history. Certain oils shouldn't be used if there is evidence of high blood pressure, chronic sensitive skin or other health issues.
Both the smell of the oils and the absorption of them into a client's skin can cause a positive effect. But Suertin says the client has to be willing to let the oils work.
"Usually, it's very mental. It's really how open you are to the experience. The smells get into the brain, but you have to let them work," she said.
Because of the potency of some of the oils, Suertin says some people have experienced nausea and/or vomiting after treatment. The reaction is the body going through a type of detoxification and isn't something to worry about unless it persists. Suertin recommends that anyone using essential oils topically drinks a lot of water afterwards.
Most of Suertin's clients come for a one-time treatment to help with aches and pains or cold and flu symptoms. If the symptoms go away, there's no need to repeat the treatment.
"Aromatherapy cuts the time of colds and flu in half," Suertin said.
She recommends the therapy for everyone looking for a way to compliment their medical care and insists that neither aromatherapy, nor any of the other services offered through her business, are meant to take the place of medical care.
Suertin would especially like to see more senior citizens take advantage of the oils. While she says many older people may be reluctant to take part in a complimentary therapy at first, the results generally make them into believers.
"I do aromatherapy on my mother and she loves it," she said. "It really can help to alleviate the pain often associated with aging."
While Suertin says that Auburn is "rather conservative" when it comes to accepting holistic healing practices, she's pleased with the response to her shop so far. She is still organizing things at her new location, but already she's had a substantial amount of foot traffic with people interested in experiencing not only aromatherapy, but reiki, massage and acupuncture.
"Coming to this location has really increased the visibility. It's already drawn people in," she said.
Staff writer Lauren Ober can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 245 or lauren.ober@lee.net
Now Suertin has brought her aromatherapy treatment to a new location at 28 E. Genesee St. and has partnered with massage therapists and an acupuncturist to create a diversified holistic and complimentary healing space. Suertin, a reiki master and teacher, also provides reiki treatment.
Walk into Suertin's storefront center and you are immediately hit with the fragrance of sweet flowers and musky woods. The aroma isn't cloying like the perfume counter at a department store, but more of a natural, calming fragrance, thanks to the number of essential oils she uses in her practice.
Aromatherapy has been around for centuries and is a holistic treatment using scents of essential botanical oils. The aromatic essences are extracted from flowers, trees, fruits, bark, grasses and seeds with specific therapeutic properties. The scent of the oil can simply be inhaled, added to a bath or it can be massaged into different parts of the skin, depending on the reason for the treatment.
Synthetic oils do not work, Suertin says, and only therapeutic-grade organic oils, like her preferred brand, Young Living, should be used. The properties in synthetic oils are not the same as those that occur in nature and thus do no have the same healing effects.
Suertin, an Auburn native who works in Syracuse as a paralegal, has been studying the healing properties of plants for years and swears by the oils' effectiveness. The method she uses is called the raindrop technique, where multiple oils are massaged into the back along the sides of the spine. Because viruses and bacteria are carried in the spinal fluid, it's the best place for oil to work.
"The technique uses quite a few different oils that each have different properties for enhancing the body," she said.
When being worked on during the raindrop technique, the client wears a hospital-style gown that opens in the back while lying on his or her stomach. Suertin first applies a carrier oil - generally sesame, avocado and almond oils - that is cold-pressed and unrefined, before applying the essential oils.
For raindrop, eight standard oils are used, though Suertin says they can be tailored to each client, depending on his or her personal needs. She uses oregano, basil, cypress, marjoram, peppermint, thyme and wintergreen oils, as well as a blend called valor that is applied first for balance.
After the oil is applied to the spine, Suertin uses the butterfly stroke - a gentle flicking of the fingers to spread the oil along the sides of the spine. Once all the oils are applied, a hot towel is placed on the back to give the oil a chance to soak in. The whole process takes about an hour.
Before Suertin does aromatherapy on a client, she first gets the person's medical history. Certain oils shouldn't be used if there is evidence of high blood pressure, chronic sensitive skin or other health issues.
Both the smell of the oils and the absorption of them into a client's skin can cause a positive effect. But Suertin says the client has to be willing to let the oils work.
"Usually, it's very mental. It's really how open you are to the experience. The smells get into the brain, but you have to let them work," she said.
Because of the potency of some of the oils, Suertin says some people have experienced nausea and/or vomiting after treatment. The reaction is the body going through a type of detoxification and isn't something to worry about unless it persists. Suertin recommends that anyone using essential oils topically drinks a lot of water afterwards.
Most of Suertin's clients come for a one-time treatment to help with aches and pains or cold and flu symptoms. If the symptoms go away, there's no need to repeat the treatment.
"Aromatherapy cuts the time of colds and flu in half," Suertin said.
She recommends the therapy for everyone looking for a way to compliment their medical care and insists that neither aromatherapy, nor any of the other services offered through her business, are meant to take the place of medical care.
Suertin would especially like to see more senior citizens take advantage of the oils. While she says many older people may be reluctant to take part in a complimentary therapy at first, the results generally make them into believers.
"I do aromatherapy on my mother and she loves it," she said. "It really can help to alleviate the pain often associated with aging."
While Suertin says that Auburn is "rather conservative" when it comes to accepting holistic healing practices, she's pleased with the response to her shop so far. She is still organizing things at her new location, but already she's had a substantial amount of foot traffic with people interested in experiencing not only aromatherapy, but reiki, massage and acupuncture.
"Coming to this location has really increased the visibility. It's already drawn people in," she said.
Staff writer Lauren Ober can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 245 or lauren.ober@lee.net
