The Effect of Aromatherapy Applied to Intensive Care Nurses on Tension-Type Headache

Nurses are healthcare professionals who provide 24-hour care to individuals and their families. This shift and watch working style of nurses is a situation that creates changes in their adaptation to biological, psychological and social life. Working in this way contradicts the body's normal biological rhythm and can cause physical disorders such as chronic fatigue, insomnia, exhaustion, depression and tension-type headache (TTH) and damage to the person's family and social life. One of the most common problems among these disorders is TTH (Jensen, 2018). Studies have shown that TTH is experienced by 31.7% to 61% of nurses . In a study conducted on night shifts and pain perception in nurses, it was determined that sleeplessness increased and the perceived pain level increased, especially in shifts held at 12-hour intervals . Pain is one of the important determinants of quality of life. It is emphasized that depression, insomnia, irritability, anxiety, inability to cope with stress, and deterioration in social relationships are more common in individuals with pain than in those without pain. In the study of it was stated that all sub-dimension scores of the SF 36 Quality of Life Scale were low in individuals with TTH. Pharmacological methods are widely used in pain control. Studies have shown that there is an increase in the use of complementary and integrative treatment (CIT) methods or the willingness to use CIT methods together with pharmacological methods . When we look at the literature, CITs used in coping with pain include meditation, yoga, massage, deep breathing exercises, aromatherapy, relaxation exercises and applications such as reiki In some studies where CITs were applied; lavender inhalation applied to hemodialysis patients reduces the level of pain due to cannulation ; another study states that lavender oil inhalation applied for 15 minutes may be an effective and safe treatment method in the acute treatment of migraine headaches . Among these applications, aromatherapy massage has been one of the popular areas of TITs in recent systematic reviews (. In studies conducted with individuals diagnosed with cancer, it has been evaluated that aromatherapy massage applied significantly reduces the level of pain, and it has been determined that especially individuals who had pain before the application expressed relief after the application. The most commonly used essential oil in aromatherapy is medical lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) oil. It is stated that medicinal lavender, a powerful aromatic essential oil, has anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects. Studies on the subject have reported that aromatherapy massage applied with medicinal lavender is effective in reducing the pain of patients with many pain conditions such as infantile colic, dysmenorrhea and cancer pain, joint and headache . In a meta-analysis study, it was found that aroma inhalation applied by blending lavender, mint, lemon balm and various essential oils had a positive effect on reducing stress. Another meta-analysis study states that there are studies indicating that lavender oil reduces pain and anxiety when used by inhalation It has been determined that massage applied to individuals with burns and pain and aromatherapy applied with lavender oil significantly reduce the anxiety and pain levels of the individuals In a meta-analysis study examining the effect of aromatherapy massage in which lavender oil was used alone or with different oil mixtures in pain control;it was determined that the massage activated the parasympathetic nervous system, increased the level of hormones such as endorphin and serotonin in the blood and significantly reduced pain . Another aromatic oil used in pain management is eucalyptus striodora. It has been observed that eucalyptus striodora oil, with its pleasant smell and limonene compound, is a nervous system regulator and reduces pain in conditions such as neuralgia and headache.