Have you ever walked into a room and the scent you smelled instantly took you back to a memory, and whether you fully remembered the memory or not, it left you with some feelings?
For me, the smell of Jasmine Blossom takes me right back to preschool – I can’t tell you exactly why, because I don’t know myself – maybe my teachers had Jasmine Blossom tea steeping or maybe there was a plant in the school? What I do know is the scent brings me a sense of joy.
According to Lisa Dion (@synergeticplaytherapy), our smell memory is the fastest form of memory recall because our olfactory system bypasses the diencephalon, that is, the part of the brain that functions as the relay station helping sensory data move to higher levels of the brain.
The reason I share this insight is because for me this was a mind-blowing concept! I now incorporate asking about scent/smells in my assessments of the situational context of a person’s recall of a memory – for example, what scents did you notice? What did it smell like in the room? The smell of a room can elicit powerful feelings, those that can include distress.
Bedtime Strategy!
@synergeticplaytherapy shared a helpful tip for a bedtime routine – just before your child is about to fall asleep, try massaging a small amount of an essential oil on the bottom of your child’s feet. The pressure of the touch not only helps regulate your child’s nervous system, but paired with the scent of the essential oil it creates a memory for your child of this relaxed state. Later when your child is having difficulty falling asleep, smelling that particular scent will bring your child back to how they felt in that memory.
What kinds of smell memories do you have?
-Parcilla