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Essential oils for animals

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Animals react as well to essential oils as humans. Essential oils have an effect on emotions and stress.We all know how smells influence straight away on our emotions. If we smell something gross or something wonderful. If we smell something uplifting or something delicious. Are memory of all the smells is extremely large and those memories makes us feel things. People who compete in dressage will use calming essential oils like chamomile or lavender just before the contest with their horses (DoTerra also has an oil blend called Serenity).

You can also use aromatherapy for your animals just as well as for yourself when treating cuts, calming them when travelling or other stressful situations and taking care of their skin. Just make sure that your animal doesn’t need immediate care from your vet.

Treating cuts and taking care of your animal’s skin and your own

Good oil for treating cuts is Melaleuca. It cleans the wound and reduces the infection. It’s good one to try at first, when the wound is fresh. If the cut is longer you can take two drops of essential oil and dilute it to some carrier oil. Lavender works great also to skin irritation. It calms irritated, burnt or damaged skin. If you want more antiseptic care, frankincense is your oil. Helichrysum doesn’t let your wound become septic.

Calming an animal in stressful situation

Lavender calms addition to adults and children also your stressful pet. Valeriana and vetiver are calming too. They mimic the naturally calming GABA transmitter. You can put your essential oil to the steamer or put a drop to your own fingers and let your animal smell it. If it’s a larger animal, you can rub a drop on top of their nose.

 

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Better sleep with essential oils

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Are you ready for the world of essential oils?

Nothing is as easy as sleeping or falling a sleep when you are tired, or is it? Nothing is as terrible as staying awake, when you are super tired and you just can’t fall a sleep. People have different routines and tricks with falling a sleep, but what if you run out of tricks and nothing works? Have you tried essential oils? Could plants be a solution for better sleep for you and your family?

Back with the basics

Make sure first that you are doing things right with the basics. The most important things are healthy foods and exercise. We were made to eat healthy, exercise and sleep. Regardless of our age. Exercise helps you keep your blood pressure down and control your weight. It also helps you sleep. Just don’t exercise too close to your bed time. If you get hungry before going to bed, eat nuts. They have protein and fats in them that release energy and digest slowly. Many people are convinced that routines in a day are important for the kids, but they are important also for the adults, especially if you have trouble falling a sleep. Try to come up with great bed time routine and stick to it for 2-3 weeks and after that you don’t have to keep reminding your self of them.

Say NO to stimulating drinks and electronics before going to bed.

For some people drinking caffeine drinks before going to bed disrupts their sleeping and falling a sleep right away. If you want to drink coffee or tea in the evening, stick with the non caffeine ones, like rooibos and calming herbal tea (like chamomile) without green and black tea. There is some caffeine in white tea also. Same with the nicotine. You need to leave it out few hours before going to bed.

You should empty your bed room of all the electronics. If you want to read before falling a sleep, you should stick to books and magazines. I read newspapers late at night and if I’m not sleepy yet I switch to a book. Make sure also that it’s cool and quiet enough in your bed room. Some people are surprisingly sensitive to any noises from the next room and small amount of light. Trying asleep mask can be a good option.

Calming essential oils

Calming oils are bergamot and lavender. They have linalool in them, which is known to be relaxing. You can also use your steamer in your bedroom (or the kid’s bedroom) by putting two drops in the water. You can use Do Terra’s oils internally to calm your central nerves system or rub it to your temples, wrists or hairline. You can put a couple of drops to your water or tea.

 

 

 

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Essential oils for flu and colds?

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Are you ready for the world of essential oils?

There are great remedies for flu and colds in the world of plants. Many nationalities have been mixing herbs and plants to drinks to gain health benefits since the beginning of times. What are good remedies for upcoming colds?

Ginger

In the Middle and Far East they have been using ginger for thousands of years. Also in Chinese medicine they use it to treat many things. Ginger is great for flu in the beginning of the cold and during it. You can grade it to the food and sauces. You can cut a thumb size peace to a hot or cold water. If you like you can add honey or lemon in it (You can digest Do Terra’s lemon and ginger essential oils, so one option is to just add a drop or two of them in the hot water). I think it’s convenient to always have them at hand.

If you suffer from coldness, ginger is a great help for that. It also has a cooling effect. Ginger helps to improve your appetite and regulate fluid balance. Ginger reduces flatulence and nausea. It makes your stomach stronger and releases mucus. It also reduces pain in the throat and activates blood flow. A real super herb!!

If you want to release mucus, you should put two drops of peppermint or eucalyptus to your carrier oil and rub it to your back and chest (also Do Terra’s Breath oil blend). It’s NOT recommended to do that for babies or small kids or people with asthma! Essential oils are very powerful!

How to avoid the flu?

If somebody in the family has flu, you should put purifying essential oils to your steamer, for example lemon, peppermint and eucalyptus (Do Terra also has oil blends called Shield and On guard). You can also put two drops of these oils to bottom of your and your kids’ feet. Some of the hospitals have started to use steamers with essential oils also in the west to purify the air.

3% hydrogen peroxide is readily available in your pharmacy. You can rinse family’s toothbrushes with that and put a drop or two to your ear if needed. I use hydrogen peroxide in my self made cleaning products, like in all-purpose cleaner and dish soap (But more about that later!). A human body produces hydrogen peroxide, when fighting disease, so it’s very natural product.

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Tips on how to use essential oils in skincare

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Are you ready for the world of essential oils?

Essential oils can improve the condition of your skin and help you in your skin problems. Skin is the largest organ in human body and absorbs essential oils very effectively. If your body doesn’t agree with a particular essential oil, you can probably see it first from your skin. In this case you should choose a different oil from another plant.

Oily skin and acne

When your sebaceous glands are over activated, your skin gets oily. When you add unhealthy diet, lack of exercise, hormonal problems and stress, your skin can get even worse. Skin problems can also be caused by puberty, pregnancy, menopause and menstruation. You can put a drop of T-tree, camomile or lavender oil straight on your pimples. You can also mix two drops of essential oils on your bath water or put two drops of lavender to your steamer to release stress. Roman camomile helps also to the inflammation of acne. Lemon is antiseptic. Basil, grapefruit and lemon grass help to clear the skin. You can dilute two drops of them and use regularly on your face or back.

Dry and mixed skin

The dryness of your skin maybe caused by your sebaceous glands not being active enough, but also outer factors like: coldness, wind and sun. Dry skin gets flaky easily and also ages quicker than oily skin. Mixed skin is very common and the most common skin type among Finns. Having mixed skin means that the skin on your nose, jaw and fore head gets oily, but cheeks maybe still be dry. Dry skin absorbs oils very quickly. It’s good idea to add two drops of essential oils to your face cream or carrier oil like coconut oil or jojoba oil. It helps also to put two drops to your bath water. Good essential oils to dry skin are: Rose, sandal wood (moisturising), lavender, jasmine and camomile. T-tree oil is good for flaky skin. Good essential oils for balancing mixed skin are: Geranium and ylang-ylang.

 

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Essential oils for backpain

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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