Essential Oils | Benefits, How To Use, + How To Choose

Monday, August 30, 2021

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Essential Oils | Benefits, How To Use, + How To Choose


I'm sure you've seen the memes circulating by now making fun of essential oils being used in place of traditional medicine.  It's true but it's not.  First of all the big disclaimer with any kind of natural solution to anything is that you should always seek advice or treatment from a medical professional first.  So no you can't always solve your anxiety issues with lavender essential oil, but you can use it to help you relax and unwind.  See what I'm saying? 


So today's post is all about essential oils - their benefits, how to use them, and how to choose them. 


WHAT ARE ESSENTIAL OILS? 
Essential oils are compounds from plants whether it's the root, flower, seeds, bark, or other area.  They are very highly concentrated and very potent.  The essential oils of a plant give it the aroma we know them to have and help the plant become pollinated and even protect it from harmful insects.  Essential oils are so strong that you can instantly smell the aroma when you open a bottle of one. Each essential oil has a different aroma or benefit so there are different oils that are used for different things, which I'll get to in a little bit. 

Ancient civilizations used plants for things like aromatherapy, health, religious ceremonies, food preparation, beauty treatments, and personal care all through history.  The method in how you distill an essential oil can greatly affect it's potency and purity.   Most often in modern times there is a process that uses special machinery to to separate the oil from the plant.  

Today, we use essential oils as perfume, a way to fill our homes with a lovely or therapeutic scent, a massage oil, and even bug repellent.  There are so many cool ways to use these oils. 


WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF ESSENTIAL OILS? 
There are certainly physical benefits as there are oils that can be used to help with digestion, clear your airways, and soothe skin irritations.  Most people use them as a supplement to their current health care routine and everyone flocks to essential oils because it's a way of using something to your own specific benefit in your own specific way rather than settling for a generic solution.  

On an emotional and spiritual level, some essential oils hold soothing and grounding properties while others energize you.  Just like it can be helpful to spray your pillow with lavender mist to help you fall asleep, you can use essential oils while meditating, praying, or working on a project. Have you ever smelled something that brings you an immediate and super strong memory of something whether it's a person or a moment from childhood?  That's the power of scent and it goes to show how something like an essential oil being diffused in your home can create that reaction with your brain. 


HOW CAN I USE ESSENTIAL OILS? 

There are few ways to use essential oils and if you do them correctly, they are very safe. You can also combine methods of use for an oil. 
Aromatic | Again, the sense of smell is very powerful and the purity of essential oils can go directly to the part of your brain that can give you a physical or mental response to the odor.  

You can diffuse essential oils in certain rooms of your home like I do with this essential oil diffuser from Amazon. It's cheap but it's gorgeous and it has beautiful colored light that comes out at the top (or you can turn it off if you don't want the light on).  I just add water and then a few drops of the oil I want to diffuse.  

It's also important to talk to your vet if you have pets so you know what oils may be harmful to certain animals, especially those with health issues.  

You can also mix oils in a spray bottle with water and mist it onto furniture, carpet, or into an open room to give a pleasant and soothing or invigorating feel to it.  Some people use essential oils in their cleaning routine as well. 

Topical | If you've ever receive an aromatherapy massage, you've likely had essential oils rubbed into your skin.  Essential oils are easily absorbed by the skin so methods like a gentle massage can increase the blood flow to the area and help distribute the oil benefits throughout the body.  Some people use essential oils with a lotion to help dry or irritated skin.  If you're starting out using an essential oil topically you should start with a very low dose until you know what works best for you.  Most doses can last 4-6 hours!  And of course you can use essential oils on different parts of the body like your chest, face, neck, and even the bottoms of your feet.  

Some people enjoy a foot soak with essential oils in the water or even an aromatherapy bath.  You can add a few drops to a hot or cold compress as well to get some extra relief for sore muscles.  

Internal | Some people use essential oils as a dietary supplement just as you wood if you sprinkle basil over your pasta or sip peppermint tea.  They can also add great flavor to a dish.  Essential oils, when ingested, go straight to your blood through your digestive system and then make their way to all organs of the body including your brain. To ingest an essential oil internally you can add a tiny drop to teas or smoothies, take them in the form of a capsule, or simply just placing a dot on your tongue. 


HOW TO CHOOSE ESSENTIAL OILS
Anytime you are wondering what a specific essential oil can do for you just google the benefits of it.  And if you want to find which essential oils are good for something you're dealing with, google that as well.    I get most of my essential oils through Simply Earth

And honestly they started because they were sick and tired of overpaying for essential oils or having to attend parties to buy them so they decided to start their own line.  They even have an  Essential Oil Recipe Box!   It has easy and fun recipes to follow at honest prices for products that really do work! Like just last month I got everything I needed to create a stress ball, bubbles, essential oils to wear, and even stuff to add to the bath!  I've started playing around with some of them and using some of the recipes to make oil blends that I use in very special ways.  I feel so empowered being able to do this for myself. 

Each Essential Oil Recipe Box contains 4 essential oils, natural ingredients, and a few fun extras like Psyllium Husk Powder.  This box contained Sweet Dreams, Lavender, Fir Needle, and Tangerine.  There were a bunch of fun recipes whether I wanted to make something for in the bath, wear as a perfume, or just use in a diffuser.  The possibilities are endless and it feels SO GOOD to create your own products that you actually use in your own home.  

Also, 13% of Simply Earth profits are given to organizations that are currently fighting human trafficking.   You can use the code ASKAWAYFREE on your first Simply Earth subscription box  and you get a $40 gift card for your next box or a future purchase.

 hope I've given you a better understanding of the whole idea and concept behind essential oils for everyday life.  If you currently use essential oils please let me know below! 
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Essential Oils | Benefits, How To Use, + How To Choose



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