Natural Body Guru

Yesterday we talked about having a Halloween party using essential oils. If you have enough adult supervision at your party, candles will give a magical effect to your decorations. You can fragrance your candles with cedar wood, pine or vetiver to give off a deep and mysterious fragrance to the atmosphere.

Send your guests home with a Halloween party witches’ broom souvenir. Gather twigs for the brooms and soak them in water scented with a strong woody fragrance like pine or cypress. You can also use an earthy scent like vetiver. Let the twigs dry and then tie them into bundles. You can threaten to give them to only the good witches but when you actually pass them out, please give to all the guests, good and bad alike.

Children and adults both love Halloween parties – all those costumes and games bring lots of laughter and delight. You can make your guests, children and adults, special cakes and cookies. You can make those treats magical by flavoring your favorite cupcake recipe with a tiny amount of geranium or sandalwood essential oil.

Play your favorite games at the party but add a little bit of aromatherapy drama and flair. Get a piece of self lighting charcoal, the kind sold in specialty stores that stock incense, light it and put it in a heat resistant ash catcher. When the charcoal has started to burn and has a white ash on top, place 2-4 drops of essential oil on it. This will start to billow very fragrant smoke and will impress your Halloween guests. Use a heavy essential oil like patchouli or a woodsy scent like cedarwood. If any of your guests are afraid a real witch is coming, (because of your ghost stories) you can use frankincense to scare away the evil spirits.

Another beneficial addition to your aromatherapy pharmacy is rosemary essential oil. It is a great one to use during your morning shower because it is a mental and physical stimulant. You can also use rosemary during a relaxing bath after a long strenuous day because it is an excellent treatment for all muscular conditions. Rosemary has antiseptic properties and is often used to treat muscular sprains, rheumatism, arthritis, depression, fatigue, memory loss, migraine headaches, coughs, flu, and diabetes. It is used in beauty treatments, hair care products, and acne preparations too.

In the middle ages, rosemary sprigs were used in wedding ceremonies. The bride wore a rosemary headpiece and the groom and all the guests wore sprigs of rosemary. Newly married couples planted a rosemary branch on their wedding day, the thought being that if the plant grew, it was a good omen for their marriage. These traditions evolved into the title of  “love charm” being given to the rosemary plant.

Several years ago, I went to a conference in Nashville and we stayed at the Opryland Hotel – that place is gigantic- and at the end of the day my feet were aching terribly from all that walking. I massaged a mixture of rosemary and grapeseed oil on my feet after my shower and my roommate asked what the wonderful scent was. I’m not crazy about the scent although it is not unpleasant, but for my tired aching feet, rosemary essential oil is priceless!

Chamomile Roman essential oil is the best oil to use for the treatment of insomnia and nervous conditions. Chamomile is another essential oil that is antibacterial, antiseptic, and disinfectant but it is most useful for its internal and external anti-inflammatory properties. Chamomile is another good oil to add to your aromatherapy pharmacy kit.

Chamomile can be used when children have teething problems and can be added to the bath to ease nerves and tetchiness. It can also be used to treat burns, sunburn, psoriasis, eczema, asthma, hay fever, diarrhea, sprains and strains, nausea, fever, and nervous or depressed states. Chamomile’s analgesic, diuretic, sedative and calming properties make it absolutely essential to have in your basic care kit. Whenever you have a sick family member, use chamomile in the bath, in a massage oil or in a room diffuser to help calm the nerves and keep up strength.

The third item for your aromatherapy pharmacy is eucalyptus essential oil which comes from the leaves of the eucalyptus tree originally native to Australia. It has been used for centuries to treat chest and other respiratory problems. Eucalyptus is a very versatile essential oil that is anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, antibiotic, diuretic, analgesic, and deodorizing. Research has proven eucalyptus has antiviral properties as well.

You may know about its effectiveness against coughs and colds because several over the counter cold medications list eucalyptus as an ingredient, including many cough drops. It is similarly effective in the treatment of cystitis and sunburn and can also be used as an insect repellent for humans and pets. Put several drops of eucalyptus oil on a cloth or in a small bowl of water and place it in the room that you want to be insect free. Do this daily and you won’t have a problem with insects.

The second item I suggest for your aromatherapy pharmacy is peppermint essential oil. It has been used by many cultures (Egyptians, Chinese, and American Indians) for thousands of years because of its healthful properties. It is a superb digestive, it helps the respiratory system, it promotes circulation, it is an anti-inflammatory, and it is an antiseptic. These qualities make peppermint oil excellent to use in the treatment of indigestion, flatulence, bad breath, headaches and migraines, skin irritations, toothache, and fatigue.

When I have a cold, I add 1 or 2 drops of peppermint essential oil to a teaspoon of honey, stir it into a cup of hot and water sip it slowly. It sure does open up the sinuses and it helps soothe the achy feeling of the common cold. Peppermint oil can also help to keep pests like mice, fleas, and ants away! When the ants start trailing into your home this spring, spray peppermint essential oil (use a plant sprayer with 1 cup water to 30 drops oil and shake often) along shelves and wherever you see the ants. You can also put 5-8 drops of peppermint oil on cotton balls and place them wherever you see ants entering your home.

Anyone who wants to use natural products for alternative health care should know a few basic oils with which to begin their aromatherapy pharmacy. The therapeutic grade essential oils I suggest to begin with are lavender, tea tree, peppermint, chamomile, eucalyptus, geranium, rosemary, thyme, lemon, and clove. These essential oils are chosen for their medical properties first and second for their ability to take care of a broad range of health problems. In the next few blogs, we will discuss uses for each of these oils.

The first essential oil I recommend for your aromatherapy pharmacy is lavender. It is the most basic oil to have in your home because it is extremely effective in treating burns and scalds. In both cases, it can be put directly on the affected area right away. Lavender’s properties of antiseptic, antibiotic, antidepressant, detoxifier and sedative allow healing to occur more quickly and prevent scarring. It also accelerates the immune system and speeds the healing process because it stimulates the wound’s cells to rejuvenate more quickly. The next time you burn yourself in the kitchen, put a drop or two of lavender on it two to four times a day until it is healed.

It wasn’t as much of a problem when I was younger but gradually I’ve noticed that I have some problems with my feet. The skin on the bottom of my feet – especially on the bottom of my toes – tends to get really dry very quickly. Sometimes it will even get so dry that it starts to crack and that can be painful depending on the circumstances and what kind of shoes I’m wearing.

Lately, however, I’ve found a way to help myself not have to deal with this issue. I’ve started using a moisturizing foot cream that helps keep my feet from drying out as badly as they had been. Ever since I started using these creams, my feet have stopped cracking and there’s been no bleeding and they just feel a lot better in general, which is a relief.

I have had trouble with my feet since the 1990’s when I taught music in the basement of Randolph Elementary School. I never sat down during the day and we danced and marched around on a cement floor that had a thin carpet covering. Now that I’m older, my feet and ankles swell at the drop of a hat. I recently took off a pair of new shoes while visiting a friend but when it was time to go I couldn’t get my left shoe back on my foot and had to walk on the back of the shoe to get to my car!

The first thing I did when I got home was to sit down and put my feet up. My darling husband got out my foot bath (I got it years ago at Walgreen’s) and put 6 to 8 small marbles in the bottom with warm water. I rolled the soles of my feet over the pebbles very slowly for just a few minutes and then dried my feet.

While I drank a cold bottle of water, my husband added 15 drops of cypress and 15 drops of fennel essential oils to 2 tablespoons of sweet almond oil and massaged my feet and ankles upwards towards my knees including behind the knees. It felt wonderful and my swollen feet and ankles looked normal by the time we went to bed.

If your feet and ankles swell during hot weather, you can still use the above procedure but before your massage put a piece of ice in a plastic bag and massage the back of your knees until they feel very cold. Then rub the ice in the center of the soles of your feet.

The foods you eat can lead to organic stomach gases and also can be associated with gallstones or gallbladder problems. If you have a lot of gas every day but no disease, it could be that you’re swallowing air and the resulting gas is functional with no disease present at all.

To cure functional flatulence simply change your eating habits and be aware of swallowing air during the day. Belching does not help this problem, it causes you to swallow even more air.  If you cut down on cellulose and starchy foods like potatoes, wheat, peas, and onions you will cut out a lot of your gas problem. After eating, sip on a glass of hot water to which you’ve added a teaspoon of honey, a pinch of bicarbonate of soda and 1 drop of  peppermint essential oil. This helps not only your stomach, but also the intestinal tract.

If your gas is giving you pain, make a massage oil blend of 1 teaspoon of carrier oil (sweet almond oil, jojoba oil, or shea oil) plus 2 drops cardamom essential oil and 3 drops of peppermint essential oil. Rub this mixture over your whole abdomen in a clockwise direction. Relief is on the way!