Introduction to Some Basic Usage of
Essential Oils
`I expect
that essential oils may someday prove a vital weapon in the fight against
strains of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
Lavender, thyme and tea tree (melaleuca alternafolia) oils have been
used for centuries as antiseptics; their chemical compounds appear to kill microbes
on contact.’ Andrew Weil, MD
This blog is for those of you who are new to the use of
essential oils – or it’s a good review for those who may not have used oils in
some time. I prepared this in response
to some questions, so try out these suggestions and enjoy the wonderful
benefits and fragrances of these natural therapeutic oils!
In the
Oxford dictionary of English, aromatherapy is defined as the use of aromatic
plant extracts and essential oils for healing and cosmetic purposes.
Aromatherapy
is ancient; although gaining more popularity today, it has been practiced for
centuries in various cultures. In this
blog, I answer some of your questions on the basic household uses of essential
oils: for purposes of healing common
complaints, as well as spiritual and other basic applications – all of which
are easy to apply. I have included some
basic recipes as well.
PRECAUTIONS
Aromatherapy
is also considered an art and a science; therefore these recipes and
suggestions do not qualify one to act as an aromatherapist, and it is not wise
for someone to experiment with these oils without proper training as some of
them can be potentially toxic in nature or in the amount or frequency of usage. They can also trigger allergic reactions or
sensitivities in certain people.
There are
precautions to be aware of such as oils to avoid during pregnancy, the
interaction of oils with medications and other natural remedies (like
homeopathy). There is a certain synergy
one can create with oils and combinations are often picked according to precise
calculations and knowledge of the interaction of the chemical constituents of
these oils and their combinations with each other. Certain citrus oils should not be applied to exposed skin if one is going to be in the sun for a while during the following 24 hr. period. So it is useful to consult an aromatherapist for safe usage guidelines.
Precautions
being said, the recipes included in this paper can be used with confidence. A skin test on the inner arm of a person is a
great way to check for allergies or sensitivities. After applying the skin test, wait a good 12 hours prior to a body
application of the product suggested... such as bath recipes or skin
applications such as skin oils (softeners) and massage. If you have no reactions, use your product as intended.
As an added precaution, if you have not checked out the oils you desire to use and the method in which you are going to use them with an aromatherapist, avoid direct sunlight for extended periods of time over the following 24 hrs. if you have applied oils to your skin
USING ESSENTIAL OILS FOR COMMON
COMPLAINTS & SYMPTOMS
Stress is a
well-known word of our times. Doctors
are aware of the impact of stress on the human body, mind and emotions. At the root of most illness lies the stress
we experience in our daily lives and we are further impacted by the way in
which we respond to this stress. If the
body, mind, emotions and spirit is unable to reach balance and harmony,
physical symptoms manifest... if these are ignored, acute and chronic illness
set in. Essential oils can be useful in
assisting us with dealing with stress, working with all parts of our body to
assist in our natural healing mechanisms and restoring our natural state of
balance.
To be sure, we have to
examine our mental/emotional, physical and spiritual states and address any
issues which may be contributing to our physical symptoms; the suggestions
which follow are to be used as a tool to assist us while we deal with the root
of our presenting disharmony.
INSOMNIA AND RESTLESS SLEEP
In the home,
essential oils may be used in a variety of ways, depending on your needs and
intentions. For example, many people
suffer with insomnia or restless sleep patterns. Essential oils can used to assist a person
with this imbalance by using oils with calming and soothing qualities in a
bath, on the pillow, as a spray in the room, in a diffuser, in a glass bowl of
warm-hot water, or in a blend to apply in self-massage or massage given by
someone else.
To make a
bath blend, use 1 oz. Sweet almond oil, and add 4 drops lavender, 2 drops
chamomile and 1 drop bergamot. A
teaspoon of this can be added to a warm bath, or massaged into the skin –
shoulders, neck and upper back are particularly useful areas to apply these
blends, but they can also be used like a moisturizer – all over the body. The drops of oil without sweet almond may be
placed in a warm-hot glass bowl and left in the bedroom for a while before
bed. The drops may be placed on a tissue
and placed into the pillow or mixed with a carrier of distilled water and placed
into a small spritzing container – linens, pillows and the room can then be
sprayed prior to bed. An electric
vaporizer for essential oils can be purchased.
Many of the better ones will come with clear instructions, and then any
of the oils we provide in recipes may also be used with this method. When using a vaporizer, it is not necessary
to use any carrier oil, but water is added to a reservoir.
Young Living
Essential Oils are wonderful ... a lot of them are now Kosher and many can be
ingested for their dietary and therapeutic properties as well. They tend to be a bit pricy, but they are
worth it. A nice blend for assistance in
relaxing before bed is a blend called Peace and Calming. Place a drop or two on your pillow about a
half hour before bed ... diffuse several drops in your room for half an hour
before bed ... take a bath with a few drops of this oil in the tub about a half
hour before retiring to bed. Make a spritzer
and spray yourself before you leave the house – it makes a lovely relaxing
scent and you get the therapeutic benefits as well.
HEADACHES AND HEAD TENSION
Headaches
and head tension can be soothed with the cooling properties of peppermint and
calming lavender. Use 1 oz. Sweet almond
oil and blend in 2 drops of peppermint with 4 drops of lavender. You may use this to massage the temples, back
of the neck and upper shoulder area. A
cooling compress could also be used: Add the essential oils mentioned to a bowl
or cool water. Place a clean cotton
cloth into the bowl, wring it out and place it on the forehead. Relax into a comfortable chair with eyes
closed. This can be repeated a few times
as necessary.
FEELING RUN DOWN OR OVERWORKED?
When feeling
overworked and/or rundown, combine 1 oz. Sweet almond oil with 4 drops tea
tree, 2 drops of lemon and 1 drop of frankincense. This blend will stimulate the immune system
and assist the body with getting back into balance. You can use this in a diffuser once in a
while to promote this balance or for a few days when needing extra
assistance. A teaspoon of this blend can
be used in a soothing bath, and can also be applied directly on the skin via
massage. When working, a bit of this
blend may be placed on a tissue and can be used by sniffing the tissue
periodically during the day. This tissue
can be protected by placing it into a plastic baggie which one can reseal after
each use.
SPRING DETOX TIME
While you can
make the following water drink at any time of the year, in the spring, it is an
especially useful practice to tonify and detox your liver.
Young Living
lemon and grapefruit can be ingested safely.
Place a couple of drops of lemon or grapefruit into your water bottle
and sip on it during the morning.
We also have
liver blends that you can place into your bath and massage oil in the spring to
assist your liver in its detox and refreshing period.
FLU SEASON
Vaporizing
can be used with practically any blend you can create. It is effective and preserves the therapeutic
value of the oils by not subjecting them to extreme temperatures. The following is a blend which is great to
use during flu season: 50 ml. distilled water, 8 drops eucalyptus, 6 drops
lavender, and 8 drops lemon. Place this
into a 50 ml. dark glass bottle. Shake the bottle a bit to disperse the oils prior
to each use. You could also use this
blend in a spritzer and spray your sheets, pillows and room before bed. Using the above blend, you could also add 3 –
4 oz. sweet almond oil instead of the 50 ml. of distilled water and now you
have a blend for bath, and massage.
I have a
number of wonderful recipes to use depending on the nature of your flu symptoms,
so come in to see me if you’d like a special blend prepared for you specific to
your complaint and/or symptoms.
SKIN:
MINOR BURNS, INSECT BITES AND PLANT
IRRITATIONS
One of my favourite oils is lavender. I love it for its many applications and its gentleness
on the skin. It is one of the few oils
which can be applied directly to the skin without a carrier and without
irritation.
I was having a fire one night in my backyard
and was burning some brush leftover from the fall before. As the fire was burning, I went to pick up
what looked to me like a very thin branch on the side of the fire which I
wanted to move more deeply into the fire.
I went to pick it up and burned my hand across all my fingers and was
suddenly in severe pain. Looking closer,
I realized that it was a hot piece of wire that I had picked up. I remembered what I learned about lavender
and its healing properties – particularly with burns, so I ran into the house and
liberally poured lavender across my fingers.
My fingers had already started to swell and were throbbing with
pain. I did this a few more times and
then made a cool compress with some lavender on it and kept it across my
fingers. The pain subsided and there was
no burn mark except for one small area on one finger – which healed without a
scar. I literally had no sign of being
burned within hours. This was my most dramatic experience with essential oils,
but I was a huge fan afterwards!
I had a burn some months ago which was not
nearly as bad – hadn’t been near my lavender and dealt with the pain for hours,
had a longer period of healing time and ended up with a small scar. My
experience convinced me of the effectiveness of essential oils and their
healing, restorative and regenerative potentialities.
I keep a lot of lavender handy and use it for
insect bites, burns, and one of the oils I use the most in my own blends. Chamomile is also useful for insect bites,
but lavender is one to keep handy, as it has multiple purposes. It is an adaptogenic oil, so it will be used
by the body in the areas it is needed.
A
synergistic blend which can be used as a disinfectant is 2 drops lavender, 4
drops thyme and 2 drops of eucalyptus.
This blend can be made in larger quantities by doubling or tripling the
recipe and kept in a dark sealed glass bottle.
Then 8 drops can be added to a warm-hot bowl of water in order to make a
disinfectant wash.
This particular one is especially effective
for insect bites and other irritations which can be encountered out of doors
while gardening or while kids play. It
is a great little blend to take on a camping trip or to keep handy for the
home. The above blend of 8 drops of
essential oils could also be added to 1 oz. of sweet almond oil and used on the
skin as a moisturizer for a week or so
prior to your trip. This ensures the
oils are well into your system. The rest of the blend can be taken with you on
your trip and used daily – you may be pleasantly surprised that the insects are
not as interested in you due to the oils in your system.
I have personal experience with this as well,
though everyone is different, so give the blend a try. Many people use citronella oil for insect
repellent in a variety of ways; however, I have not chosen to use that oil in
this discussion, as I personally do not enjoy the scent as much as other oils
which will do the same job.
SPIRITUAL APPLICATIONS
Oils and incenses have been used throughout time in spiritual and religious practices. We can still find some of them used in contemporary churches as well as in other more ancient spiritual practices. Frankincense is one of the more well known oils. Other oils have also been known throughout history for their uses spiritually and religiously: sandalwood, myrrh, cassia, cedarwood, cypress, galbanum, hyssop, myrtle, onycha, rose of Sharon (cistus), and spikenard.
The use of essential oils adds a wonderful addition to any rituals or ceremonies you do.
When looking more deeply into the balance,
rhythm and harmony of a person, we come to consider the aspects of the person
which are not related to the material or physical only. There are many ways in which oils can assist us when we are working on these subtle levels. Below is one example that you can easily work with for some time.
Being that
we are essentially energy, we can approach wellness, healing and balance by
reaching for higher levels of consciousness and freeing the flows of energies
throughout our form. By doing so, we can
also relieve stress, heal imbalances and restore the natural flows of energy in
the more subtle aspects of our being.
One way of doing so is through working with
the 7 major chakras (wheels or vortices of energy residing along the main
central channel of the body...or spine for a visual). These centres of energy become blocked by
stress, life experiences and our responses to them and other factors,
restricting the flow of the universal life force energy which permeates and
sustains all things. While we can also
work with these energy centres via breath and movement and visualizations, we
can also do the following meditation with the use of crystals and essential
oils.
Lie down on
a flat surface like on a mat on the floor or a massage table or your bed. Pick out about an hour of instrumental, calming music that you
like and put it on low. It is useful to
have a friend assist you with this process, but if you are prepared, you may do
it alone.
1. Place a small hematite or garnet stone at the
base of your pubic area. If this is
unstable... balance it on the pubic bone - place a drop of cedar, cypress or
rosemary on it.
2. Place
a piece of coral, gold topaz or aventurine about an inch below the navel with a
drop of myrrh, sandalwood or pepper on it.
3. Place a piece of amber, tiger’s eye or
citrine on your solar plexus with a drop of lavender, chamomile or lemon on
it.
4. Place a piece of jade, rose quartz or emerald
on your heart area with a drop of rose or jasmine on it.
5. Place a piece of lapis lazuli, topaz or aquamarine
on your throat with a drop of eucalyptus or peppermint on it.
6. Place a piece of blue sapphire, opal or blue
tourmaline on your third eye area (middle of forehead) with a drop of
lemongrass or violet on it.
7. Place a piece of amethyst, rock crystal or
diamond at your crown chakra with a drop of rosewood on it.
In various sources, some of these stones and
their corresponding essential oils are different... there is more than one
choice possible for uses of this type of meditation and chakra clearing, so
remember that you can choose from several options you might have available. If you study the chakra system more deeply,
you will understand the correspondences and possible substitutions.
Once you are
all set up, lie down with your spine and neck straight and properly
aligned. Close your eyes and relax. Breathe in the aromas, listen to the
background music and move deeper into your self.
If any thoughts come into your mind, let them
pass like a cloud in the sky in a gentle breeze. This is not time for thinking or analysis or
anything but relaxing, breathing in the lovely aromas, and quieting your mind
and body.
Let your CD play until the end and then
slowly, as you are ready, open your eyes and begin to remove the stones. You can clean them by laying them out in the
sun or moon, with a soft cotton cloth and incense, water and sea salt or a
little bit of organic soap, but refer to a crystal book for information on
cleaning stones, as some of them do not like water submerging, and can get
damaged.
Candle meditations
Another way
to use oils is to place several drops of an oil or an oil blend into your
diffuser. Frankincense is a great oil to use during
meditations, but we can suggest other oils and blends for you as well. Sit quietly in a comfortable position and
simply gaze at the candle and the moving mist from the diffuser. Take in the aroma and quiet your mind. Simply observe your thoughts as they arise
and let them pass as a cloud would in the sky in a gentle breeze.
Light a pure
beeswax candle beside your diffuser (other regular candles emit chemicals into
the air when burned, so use pure candles).
A diffuser is a great tool to have for the use of oils in your home and
during your meditations. Many people enjoy the use of these oils during
their spiritual practices such as yoga, chi kung, tai chi, meditation and
healing sessions etc. Be sure to know
the amount of oil to use and how long it is appropriate to diffuse, as these
oils are therapeutic and need to be used with care ... Enjoy!
COSMETIC APPLICATIONS
Essential oils are very popular in the area of
beauty and cosmetics. Virtually all
products we use can be made with natural ingredients which include essential
oils. From shampoos, to soaps,
moisturizers, creams and deodorants, essential oils can be a part of your daily
beauty and cosmetic applications.
In order to learn more about creating unique
recipes, taking an aromatherapy course is very useful; otherwise, there are
plenty of books on the market written by certified aromatherapists which
include dozens of recipes you can make at home once you have the proper
ingredients and tools.
To make a
delightful anti-wrinkle night oil, add 2 drops patchouli, 3 drops lemon, and 5
drops of rose to 2 drops of evening primrose oil and 1 teaspoon (10 ml) sweet
almond oil. Blend this well and apply it
to your face and neck at night.
A really
nice aftershave soother can be made by adding 4 drops of sandalwood, 6 drops
benzoin, and 4 drops of chamomile to a bottle with 4 teaspoons (20 ml) of
hazelnut oil. Warm a tiny amount in the
hands and then apply to the area after shaving.
This aroma is especially appreciated by men, but can be used by anyone
who likes the heady rich aromas it provides.
For those
who are athletic, here is an after-sports shower formula: add 2 drops of
rosemary, 2 drops of pine and 4 drops of lemon to a handful of unscented shower
gel. Work this into a lather all over the body with a shower sponge
or cloth. This is both refreshing and
invigorating.
You can make
a very nice hair and scalp tonic to use prior to shampooing by placing 10 drops
of juniper, 7 drops of cedarwood, 8 drops of rosemary to 1 ½ oz. of olive oil
and massage this into your hair and scalp.
Wrap your hair up into a warm towel and wait for about 2 hours before
shampooing. Before wetting your hair,
massage your shampoo into your hair to assist with removing the oils.
At the end
of a busy day, you can refresh your hot and sweaty feet with a nice footbath. Place 4 drops of citronella, 3 drops of
cypress with 2 drops of tea tree and soak in warm-hot water.
For greasy
hair you can add 2 drops of lemongrass to a bit of unscented shampoo and wash
your hair.
You can make
a nice skin replenisher by preparing the following recipe for yourself in a
glass dark battle you can seal: 4
teaspoons of sweet almond oil with 3 drops of rosewood, 3 drops of frankincense
and 3 drops of sandalwood. Seal the
bottle and shake before use. Use this
mixture over your face and neck and dry skin patches, using gentle circular
strokes over the skin.
EVERYDAY HOUSEHOLD USES
We have already mentioned how essential oils
can be used to freshen rooms when added to distilled or spring water in a
spritzing bottle. This can effective for
unwanted odours such as cooking, animal and other unwelcome smells. Prepare a bottle with distilled water and put
5 drops of lemon, 3 drops of eucalyptus and 2 drops of lavender per every 2 ½
cups of water...depending on the size of your bottle, you can adjust this
recipe accordingly. This mixture can be
used to spray and wipe counters after cleaning them in order to disinfect and
add a lovely scent to the kitchen. It can
be used to disinfect and deodorize any room in your house, but due to this
particular combination, it is useful in areas like the kitchen and bathroom.
I was given
the following recipe by a woman at an aromatherapy shop years ago. She told me to dissolve ½ cup of Borax into
boiling water. Immediately remove from
heat. Let this cool and then add 30
drops of lavender and 20 drops of eucalyptus with 2-3 drops of organic liquid
soap – like dishwashing liquid. Place
mixture into a gallon container and add water to the top. You now have a concentrated cleanser for the
house. This is meant to be diluted just
as you would dilute another household concentrated cleaning product. I dilute this product and use it to clean my
ceramic floors, bathrooms, fridge (not stainless steel) and counters...
dilution is important as this is a potent cleaner. It works well and leaves the house refreshed
and disinfected. I use this product on
ceramic, tile or concrete flooring – diluted properly out of your prepared
gallon container, it cleans the floors nicely.
For carpets,
use Borax – for each tablespoon in your prepared mixture, add one drop of lemon
essential oil. Mix this well. Sprinkle the carpeted areas and let sit for
about 15 minutes, then vacuum slowly over the sprinkled areas.
You can
infuse your clothing with an essential oil, cut a piece of cotton about 4
inches square and place 2 drops of one of the following oils on it – depending
on what you like: for a fresh scent, use lavender or rosemary. For a floral scent, use pettigraine, palma
rosa, neroli, or Bois de rose. For a
romantic essence, pick jasmine, or ylang ylang.
Put the piece of cloth with your chosen oil into the dryer with your
clothing.
Essential
oils are versatile. They may be used
therapeutically for healing, wellness and preventative measures. They can be used in spiritual practices and
for cosmetic and household purposes.
With proper training in the use of essential oils, we can have the
knowledge necessary to use more natural products in our everyday life.
