Life is a race, and it can easily lead to racing thoughts as you try to balance family, work and other obligations. In this blur, your focus may drift to what’s wrong instead of what is working. However, you can learn how smelling aromas can help you be in gratitude and shift your focus. 

Feelings of thankfulness and grace have the power to root you and show you what’s beautiful in life, speaking directly to and from your mind. Smell uses your natural scent pathways into your brain’s emotional center, helping you feel calm and focused so you can take hold of what matters.  

Why you need more gratitude

It’s easy to fixate on stress, missed deadlines and strained relationships. Without realising it, your brain starts to apply that negative thinking lens to the world, seeing everything around you in a negative light. Scientists have demonstrated how scents have a stress-suppressing effect on the brain. 

Can smell hold the key to unleashing thankfulness and gratitude? With one in four people in England experiencing some kind of mental health condition each year, isn’t it time to find a way to live more balanced lives that help you overcome your daily burdens? 

Gratitude can help you break that mindset and interrupt the patterns that don’t serve you well. With a focus on thankfulness, you can train your brain to direct its attention to what is good, meaningful and abundant. Science even finds that gratitude can improve your sleep, reduce anxiety and depression, and help you see things in a better light — which is why getting a good night’s rest really matters. 

The results are profound when you combine gratitude with your primal sense of smell. 

Scent and the brain

Your ability to smell things hardwires into your limbic system — the part of the brain that governs memory, emotion and motivation. A single whiff of lavender or orange peel can pull you into a memory or completely shift your state of mind. Just think of how the scent of lemonade makes you think of summer and warm bliss while certain perfumes remind you of someone special in your life. 

Nostalgia, anxiety relief and stress reduction are just some of the applications of scent-based neural stimulation, as shown in a recent pilot study on the effects of white musk oil. Essential oils and natural fragrances can spark neural pathways that support clarity, peace and emotional balance. When you inhale something pleasing, you automatically deepen your breath. A deeper inhalation draws more oxygen into your lungs, feeding your brain, energizing your cells and improving your overall sense of vitality. 

Smells are a direct line to your internal state. You can use smell to achieve a greater sense of appreciation and presence. 

The body can also absorb scents and the therapeutic properties of essential oils into the skin, encouraging circulation and providing healing properties. 

6 best brain appreciation activation scents

Essential oils are a convenient way to support calm, joy and positivity and enhance your gratitude factor. Each scent has specific benefits and unique application methods to help you tap into an elevated state. 

Frankincense

Frankincense has been known throughout the centuries as a healing oil and is part of many traditional rituals and meditations. The aroma slows your breathing and invites your mind to a more reflective and centered state. It’s an ideal presence to embrace for gratitude journaling or spiritual practices. Use it in an aromatherapy diffuser or place a few drops on a tissue/cotton pad, hold in your palms and cup your hands over your nose as you breathe in deeply (take care not to get the neat oil on your skin). You could also use an aromatherapy inhaler. 

• Scientifically named Boswellia carterii
• Promotes inner peace and mental stillness
• Supports deep breathing and mindfulness

Sweet Orange

Citrus oils, like Sweet Orange, trigger happiness and warmth in the brain. The aroma uplifts the mind and helps to reset the lymphatic and immune systems for improved health. You may associate the scent of orange with cheerfulness and optimism — emotions that prime your brain to recognize and appreciate the good. Add it to a spray bottle with Orange Flower Hydrolat for an uplifting room mist or diffuse it while you create appreciation lists. 

• Scientifically named Citrus sinensis
• Elevates mood and counters anxiety
• Boosts a sense of abundance and joy 

Rosemary 

Gratitude may require calm, but it also needs focus so you can internalize your feelings. When your mind is clear, you’re more likely to recognize subtle things for which you feel thankful. Rosemary sharpens mental function and may even improve memory, so scholars commonly refer to it as the herb of remembrance. Apply it topically diluted into a carrier oil or inhale via a diffuser or inhaler before reflective practices. 

• Scientifically named Rosmarinus officinalis ct. camphor
• Stimulates mental clarity and memory recall
• Increases alertness and motivation 

Lavender

Lavender is well-known for calming you down when you’re overwhelmed and stuck in negative thought loops. It helps downshift your nervous system. Gratitude becomes easier to access when your body feels relaxed. Use Lavender in a diffuser at bedtime or mix it with a fragrance free lotion or carrier oil for a relaxing self-massage. 

• Scientifically named Lavandula angustifolia
• Reduces stress and promotes emotional regulation
• Supports deeper sleep and parasympathetic activation (rest and digest response)

Ylang Ylang

Ylang Ylang, which is known for its exotic floral scent, balances your heart and sacral energies — areas deeply tied to emotional intimacy and joy. It works well during practices like gratitude meditation or when you want to reconnect with your body. Mix 4-10 drops in 15ml of Bath Oil or Shower Gel and add to a warm bath, or blend up to 6 drops into 15ml of carrier oil for massage.

• Scientifically named Cananga odorata var. genuina
• Encourages emotional openness
• Regulates heart rate and soothes tension 

Cedarwood

Cedarwood has a stabilizing, earthy aroma that reminds you to slow down and tune in. It’s excellent when you’re feeling scattered or disconnected. Diffuse during quiet time or mix 2 drops into 5ml of lotion and apply to the bottoms of your feet before journaling or reflecting.

• Scientifically named Cedrus atlantica
• Grounds body and supports stillness
• Promotes feelings of safety and connection

How to use scent to stimulate gratitude

You can include essential oils in your daily routine and meditative practice to help you feel more positive and appreciative. These are some of the best ways:

Aromatherapy diffusers

The easiest way to engage with your olfactory system is to use a few drops of your chosen oil in water in an aromatherapy diffuser or candle burner, letting the aroma fill your space. You can also create a reed diffuser with a few bamboo sticks and our Augeo™ Clean Multi diffuser base.

Topical application

Blend essential oils into a carrier oil like Jojoba or Sweet Almond oil and apply it to the pulse points on your wrists, neck and soles of your feet (2 drops of essential oil per 5ml of carrier). The therapeutic properties will be absorbed into your skin and the fragrance will develop on your body throughout the day, creating a subtle harmony cue. You can mix your oils into a pulse point roller for easy application.

Scent rituals

Rituals are tiny habits that help anchor you to moments or feelings. Include essential oils during your daily journaling and nighttime reflections. Over time, you will experience even more benefits from your meditative habits.

Massage and body care

You can blend essential oils into carrier oils, body lotion, or cream and use massage for a full-body sensory experience. Combining scent, touch and intention can deepen your appreciation and self-awareness. Use 2 drops of essential oil per 5ml of your chosen carrier.

Inhalers and aromatherapy jewelry

Aromatherapy inhalers, aroma bracelets and necklaces can let you take smell cues wherever you go. Use these when you need peace and presence to remind you that slowing down is good. You could also make your aroma dough/putty to help relieve stress or anxiety (search for DIY recipes for making your own dough).

How smelling aromas can help you be in gratitude

You may wonder what the best time of day is to use essential oils for gratitude. It all depends on your rhythms and habits. In the morning, energising oils like Orange and Rosemary can set your day’s tone. An evening rounded off with Lavender and Frankincense helps you reflect on the positive moments of the day so you sleep better. 

You can even blend up to three different oils for a bouquet of scents and layer your experience. Try pairing grounding and uplifting choices, like Cedarwood and Orange, or calming and clarity-enhancing oils, like Lavender and Rosemary. 

Essential oils really can change your mood and mindset. Research shows that scent directly influences brain activity, improving memory and learning by 226% — pair this with intentional practices like gratitude journaling, to amplify your experience. 

A wonderful whiff 

Your senses are powerful, and aroma can bypass thoughts and trigger feelings. While scientists agree that the sense of smell is rooted deeply in your emotional brain center, it doesn’t need a scientific reason or logic to believe that it helps you feel better — it just does. When you consciously use it to support appreciation, you create a daily ritual that grounds you in the now and helps you see the beauty in what’s already here.

Beth Rush
Managing Editor at Body+Mind

Beth Rush is the mindfulness editor at Body+Mind. She writes about mental health during pregnancy and beyond. She also shares tips for coping with emotional trauma, autoimmune disorders, and climate anxiety. Subscribe to the Body+Mind Newsletter for more posts by Beth.