As written by Keri in the BeautyNZ Magazine.

Did you know that we carry the most vivid memories through our sense of smell, more so than any other sense.  This is what is called the Olfactory Memory or as I like to call it ‘your smell memory bank.’  The Olfactory Bulb runs from your nose to the base of your brain and has direct connections to the area of the brain that is responsible for processing emotion and the area linked to memory and cognition. 

How often do you smell something and it evokes a memory?  

Like the smell of bread cooking being linked to Sunday mornings growing up as a child or the smell of rosewater transporting you to your grandmothers dressing table or the smell of a woodworkers bench reminding you of your grandfather standing in his shed making things?   

This is what the Olfactory Memory is – awakening something in your soul through the sense of smell. 

So how can we utilise this to help us thrive in our daily lives?    

If you smell a scent you love, it instantly makes you feel warm inside like you are nourishing your soul even to the point that the corners of your mouth turn up slightly to smile and we all want that warm, content feeling of happiness.  So how can we consciously delight in this sense more? 

Here are a few ways to work with your sense of smell to create more vivid beautiful memories and add to your daily bursts of contentment: 

+ When you walk in your home is there an overriding scent? Is there a concoction of smells that are competing against each other? Pick the ones you like and get rid of the rest or pick one smell for each room. Some ways this can be done is through candles, room sprays, plants, flowers, food and essential oils. 

+ When you do your beauty routine in the morning and evening, do you take time to smell your products? Do you like the scents of what you are using? If not, replace them next time with something you love. These are two opportunities in your day to enliven your day, so why not capitalise on it? 

+  When cooking, smell everything before tasting, Asian cultures cook through their sense of smell before they taste it. Smell your coffee before you sip it. Place freshly cut herbs in your kitchen.   

Smelling is one of the underrated senses that we take for granted, so by utilising this sense in small ways each day we begin to celebrate life a little more by igniting and consciously being aware of how smell can impact our daily life's.