cuz I'm probably going to go on and on here for a bit.
something awesome is happening in our house- and, if you and I are facebook friends, you've seen me mention it a bit... But I feel like I have lots more to say, and I need more space than FB allows. Cuz it's awesome. And I'm stoked.
A few months ago I was talking to my friend Meghan and I said something about the fact that we have been sick from first to last snow for the past four years and I am over it. OVER IT. Will not have it again. ...but I had no idea what the fix could be. And she proceeded to tell me. The answer. She told me all about these Essential Oils she'd recently begun using for herself and her family. I was intrigued. All natural pure plant-y goodness- I was intrigued. Being a research nerd I fiercely read a ton of info and was excited about what I was learning- and super excited to try them in my own family. So I dove in. Ordered the starter kit.
Now that some time has past- I feel like I want to share some of what I've learned, what our experience has been.
*first- just from reading I learned a lot. There are huge differences between the oils I was getting (Young Living brand) and the oils I've snagged randomly at like the co-op or the mall. These are not just aroma oils. These are straight up healing oils. Many brands of essential oils out there say "do not ingest" on their bottles- which, whether you plan to ingest them or not, should raise a red flag in your brain. If you are going to apply them anywhere on your body- they will absorb. And for me- that's pretty close to ingesting. You know? I mean - it's entering my body. I want to know that no pesticides were used. I want to know there's no additives. If I'm going the natural route here- I want it to be the real deal. And Young Living flat out is.
*when I first opened the kit and started checking out each bottle- I went from so excited to like complete olafactory overload. They all smelled SO MUCH. I wasn't really prepared for that. And then I felt like an idiot for not realizing that aromatherapy was going to smell a lot. GENIUS. But- these things are really potent. Like no joke. Nothing like the oils you get at the mall or the grocery store. These are serious, friend. And at first I didn't really like the smell of any of them. I was kind of pissed. Looking back- it sort of reminds me of when I'm super excited to get a new cd, and then I listen to it and hate like all but one song. And then I take a breath and listen to it again, and again and finally I'm like- wait- I love them all exept #11. Awesome!
So, yeah- I went through my order and found the oils I immediately liked and just started with those
(for me that was orange, lemon, Purification- anything citrus really...) then branched out a bit when I wanted the benefit of what the oils could do- rather than just how they smelled. So now-there are some I love the smell of. And some I love the effects of. And- if we're being completely honest- there are still some I can't even handle. Like Joy? Smells to me like someone's Aunt Mertle wearing too much perfume. I can't deal with that one! (which sucks- cuz JOY! it's called Joy. Who doesn't want that...? I'm not writing it off though... given enough time, I may even grow to like that one...)
*a couple other lessons I learned real quick were- 1.) start slow. LIKE REAL SLOW. and 2.) different people react differently to oils. How did I learn this so quickly you ask? Well- first day my kit shows up- I rip into it and grab Peace & Calming- that sounds fantastic for a day at home with the whole family... a nice chill Saturday morning- yes? ....not in this case. I put eight drops of the P&C in my diffuser and set that puppy up right in the middle of the living room. Let's full on bomb this house with some straight up Peace and Calm. Too much. Too soon. And turns out some of us don't do so well with that one. The boys went crazy. Full on crazy. And me? I had a day long panic attack, thanks. This was seriously our first experience with the oils. I was so bummed. Again. But I decided to stick with it. Meghan swore by them. And that girl would not lie to me. I know that in my heart. (but I also knew I didn't want to tangle with P&C for a while- so I gave that to my mom- who LOVES it. A bit on her wrists chills her right out. See? Different people. Totally true.) Anyway- I decided to stick with it- and give it another go. And I could not be more glad I did. (But we did ease up and go super slow after that... super diluted the EOs in carrier oil, started with just a little on the feet to watch for any weird reactions and go from there...)
*We are seeing serious results. Issues that we had no more ideas on how to solve- Keaton's sensory issues, Ollie's sleep issues and cradle cap, my anxiety + sleep issues, random rashes that weren't responding to any medication, incessant headaches, the list goes on- we are now totally tackling with these Essential Oils. And things that we didn't even think to do anything about, things we just lived with cuz that's how things were- like I just totally did away with one of those deeply underground zits the other day. Just dabbed some Frankincense on it a couple times- gone. Done. awesome. And the colds/sickness we've avoided so far- OMG. Life + sanity saving. For real.
ok- let's go over some of my fave oils so far and what we use them for...
Valor: this is my go to for shutting down my crazy chatty brain at night. The brain that recites everything I need to do tomorrow, freaks out about whether or not I emailed that chick back, writes lists of what I need to grab at Target next time I go and obsesses over that one thing I said that one time... Valor shuts it down. Love it for any other anxiety quieting, too. Also- I rub this on Keaton's back at night to help him "feel brave"- totally stops the whining for a grown-up and calling us to his room several times. AND- stops the nightmares he's had for months and months now. Done. I rub coconut oil + Valor on his back- and he's set until morning. It's like a miracle. For serious.
Thieves: ah, my other miracle. This is it. This is the one that has broken the "sick from first to last snow" streak we've had for the past four years. I LOVE THIS ONE. First sign of cold (for me this is usually a sore throat just starting...) I slam a couple drops of this (plus Lemon oil) in some water- and rub a bit of the Thieves balm (Thieves mixed w coconut oil) on my feet and throat. And within a couple days- max- I'm feeling fantastic. After hanging out in crowded public places, or with friends/family we find out later are sick, get sick, were sick- anything- I slather up the boys feet with the Thieves balm and Ben and I do the same. It's been amazing. We have been cold/flu free since we've had Thieves. Have I mentioned I love this oil? Cuz I do. There will never again be a winter where we will be without this. (also- Thieves totally helped Ollie out when he was cutting his 2 yr molars! win.)
Lavender: Lavender is called the "swiss army knife of oils" cuz it does like 101 things. Cuts, burns, eczema, allergies, runny nose, insomnia, dry skin, bug bites, cramps, fever, headaches... Lavender is on it. And I love it for all of those things. This oil is fully Ollie's jam. It tackled his cradle cap (after 2 years of trying everything from dietary changes to special shampoos to homeopathy to calendula oil) I did one "baby spa" session of coconut oil and Lavender on his head- and it all came off. And stayed off. It's been 2 months and his head is still clear. Also- this is the solver of Ollie's sleep trouble. That kid is on the go- all. the. time. We call him "helicopter" in his chair. He's just always going. Even at night. He used to sleep for one 45 min cycle at a time and then wake up. All through the night. As he's gotten older it's gotten a little better- but still- a typical night is Ollie wakes 3-4 times. And fights bedtime. Sometimes a little. Sometimes with everything in him. But now? A little Lavender on his temples- maybe a little in the diffuser- kid is down for the count. Like sleeping through the whole night. It's life changing, this.
Orange: this one didn't come in my starter kit- I added it on. But at just under $11- I can't recommend it highly enough. This was the oil we called in to do damage control after the above "P&C incident" And it totally rose to the occasion. I honestly diffused it just cuz I like citrus and Keaton chose it when we were all wigging out and wanted to try to fix it- and I thought- it can't hurt, right? Orange oil totally turned things around. We started the evening of the P&C day and seriously- like 180. Everyone was cool again. After using it a couple more times- and really paying attention to the boys- I noticed something awesome- Orange oil totally gets them into this great happy/calm/creative headspace. They play together- SO WELL. Like really together. Not just tolerating the other in their space. The first time I diffused it in their room they invented an elaborate "recycling guys" game- and I got to shower and get dressed + ready all by myself. No interruptions. No one crying or freaking out or mad at the other or trying to climb in the shower with me for no reason. Just peace. And some giggles. We use this almost on the daily. And it really saved Keaton on Christmas (normally when the house is full of extra people he really struggles with all the extra noise, bodies, energy, etc. I have to be on constant meltdown alert. And route him to his room to chill throughout the day. And mealtime with extra people? Usually falls apart real quick into him sobbing and needing to sit on my lap while I try to sneak forkfulls of food around his head. This year? I diffused Orange and he was a different dude. Much more comfortable and calm and happy the whole day. And at dinner- he ate a few bites and asked to be excused, and went to go play quietly in the living room by himself. AMAZING.)
Frankincense: this is one that I've dabbled in a bit- but I just know it can do more... slowly working it into my life more. So far I've used this one to get rid of a rash on my arm that itched so fiercely I had visions of just scratching through my arm. Some Frank- done. That future giant zit that I caught underground and hit with Frank- done. Headache- drop of Frank on my thumb and press into the roof of my mouth- done. I used to take Advil almost every day. No longer. It's awesome.
Purification: this one smells awesome- first off. (Seriously- I would wear it even if it did nothing.) So it's got that going for it... Past that, it's great on sore throats (I team this up with Thieves on my throat when I feel sick trying to sneak up) itchy rash and bug bites, cuts & scrapes, infection fighting, and smells- I popped a couple drops in my stinky HE washer (I hate that thing...) and it totally kicked the stink. Huzzah!
PanAway & Peppermint: I've combined these two for a pain cream that has helped my mom with some deep leg pain. And passed some on to my brother who was having some crazy nerve pain from sleeping on couches over holiday break. Totally did the trick. (Peppermint is also super for digestive issues. Of varying kinds. Just sayin.)
So now do you see? Why I can't shut up about them? They are like amazing little bottles of magic potion and they are fixing shizz left and right up in here. And these are only some of the oils in my starter kit (with the exception of the Orange I added on) There are a kabillion oils available and I kid you not when I say I want to try like- all of them.
I'm not trying to convince anyone of anything- I'm just sharing my family's story. If this sounds coo-coo time to you, move along and forget I ever mentioned it. But if you hear anything in my story that strikes a chord with you- anything that makes you think "we could get help with that??" ... if you are hurting or struggling or know someone who is- or if you're just curious, frankly- I'm telling you- this could change your life. Not even being dramatic here. It honestly could. Cuz it has changed ours.
If you have any questions, if you want to toss out some issues/symptoms and have me brainstorm what oils might help, if you want to dabble and add a few things next time I order, if you want to dive in and snag that starter kit that started it all- let me know. Hit me up. I seriously am so geeked to talk about these oils. And I'd love help. :)
Thanks for posting this! I ordered my kit last week and am anxiously awaiting its arrival. It's so good to hear others success (and failure!) stories! Best wishes to you!
Posted by: photogazelle@home | January 10, 2014 at 01:42 PM