My story started with essential oils after years of back pain. After years they told me that there is nothing wrong with my back, it’s my hips. I guess it doesn’t matter, I got very familiar with the over the counter medicine as well with the relaxants. Because I also have celiac disease, my stomach couldn’t handle them at all, let alone two weeks at a time as they suggest. So there I was popping pills and eating lactic acid bacteria.

When you go to aroma therapy, they often give you a massage. That does wonders for anybody, but who can afford it or has the money to go there all the time? I needed relief from pain almost every day, especially with a small boy and the job where I was standing the whole day. Peppermint oil works with a lot of people and that also worked with me very quickly. After few moments on the skin, I felt warming sensation. I was very surprised how effective it was! You should almost always dilute essential oils with a carrier oil. I always have coconut oil at home, so I usually use that. Other carrier oils work well too, especially when you are just staring out. After some time you can start trying other oils and see, which is the best for your skin type. Very good ones are jojoba oil (especially on your face) and olive oil.

Other good oils for your back pain and other muscle pain are: Basil, Roman camomile, juniper, eucalyptus, pine and marjoram. I haven’t tried those yet, but people really recommend basil. Lavender and sage reduce inflammation. You can put two drops on your bath water and two drops to your steamer to help you sleep at night. For kids under one years old, it’s not recommended to use essential oils for their skin or heavily use a steamer. With kids it’s recommended to use lot of carrier oil and maybe a drop of the essential oil. You should also be careful steaming eucalyptus with small kids. A lot of people are afraid of diluting the essential oil, because of it not working properly after that. Skin however absorbs the essential oil well, even if you use a lot of carrier oil.

When I first started, I was very price conscious and bought cheaper brands. When I got more into it and read more I found Do Terra products.  I use everyday their Deep Blue oil blend. It has peppermint, Ylang Ylang, camomile and other oils in it. I just put two drops on my coconut oil in my hand and I’m ready to apply it. Do Terra also has Deep Blue cream, but I haven’t tried it yet. I was thinking about testing it on some trip of mine. Do Terra’s products have been worth the extra money. They slowly extract the oils from the plants and they don’t add anything artificial in them (which immediately lowers the price of the product). I could smell the difference right away! You can read more about Do Terra’s steaming process in here: https://doterra.com/US/en/why-doterra