Natural Body Guru

Today we will look at three kinds of stress and the aromatherapy essential oils that are best to relieve them. Of course, nothing is cut and dried and one kind of stress can lead to another. The environmental stress you experience at work can lead to mental stress which, when you take it home with you,  can lead to emotional stress.

Environmental stress is caused by such things as fluorescent lights over your desk, machinery noise, constant phone calls, or too little space in which to work. Essential oils to treat environmental stress are cedarwood, coriander, geranium, cypress, chamomile, bergamot, and basil.

Chemical stress is caused by such things as too much coffee, too much alcohol, too much sugar, too many pharmaceuticals, smog and pollution. The best aromatherapy essential oils to treat chemical stress are lavender, patchouli, geranium, clary-sage, grapefruit, lemon and rosemary.

Physical stress is caused by pushing your body beyond its limits, for example, running in your fraternity’s “fun run,” working out at the gym, or continuously driving long distances.  Essential oils to treat physical stress are rosemary, chamomile, lavender, bergamot, thyme, marjoram, geranium or fennel.

There are all kinds of stress in the world and all of us are under one kind of stress or the other. The kinds of stress and the degrees that we can have it are diverse. Because of this diversity in the sorts of stress, the essential oils or oil blends we use are also varied.

We first have to make a distinction between positive stress, normal stress and distress. Positive stress is the feeling you get when you perform your job fast and efficiently – it feels good when you accomplish something. Normal stress is what happens when circumstances require us to perform out of the ordinary accomplishments. You’ve heard of people who performed unheard of feats when they were in an accident and when it was over, they wonder how they did it!

Distress is the kind of stress that we do not want to have. It is when healthy stress becomes persistent and unrelieved leaving us with no energy, no will, and with increasing frustration over the ever increasing pressure. This kind of stress requires the use of aromatherapy essential oils. It will take some time to discuss all the different types and degrees of distress and the oil blends to treat it. I’m going to take several blogs to discuss this topic but today let me just mention  lavender essential oil.

Lavender essential oil can be used to treat most kinds of stress. Put 2 drops of lavender neat on your fingertips and gently massage your temples, forehead, the back of your neck and your cheek bones. You can also put lavender in a carrier oil like sweet almond oil and massage it all over your body before going to sleep. If you have no other oil, lavender is one of the most versatile essential oils and I believe it should be in everyone’s medicine chest.

In yesterday’s blog, we talked about keeping your lips healthy looking instead of letting them become dry and cracked. The blog also gave the formula for your lip gloss base. I have a friend who makes this lip gloss every year as a gift for her friends, she just uses a different essential oil each time. I love getting those because that way, I don’t have to take time to make it myself. It doesn’t take that much time, but I am a very busy person! Below are some formulas for you to use to keep your lips in great kissable condition.

FOR DRY, CRACKED LIPS

• 5 drops geranium
• 5 drops lavender

FOR SORE LIPS 

• 5 drops chamomile German
• 5 drops calendula

HERPES COLD SORE ON LIPS SYNERGISTIC BLEND

• 8 drops geranium
• 3 drops lemon
• 6 drops chamomile German
• 8 drops tea tree
• 5 drops lavender

Mixed together in these proportions and added to the lip gloss base in yesterday’s blog.

Are your lips ready for  kissing? Keep your lips looking their best and they will always be kissable. Lips can easily crack, become infected, develop lines and be the site of cold sores or herpes virus reactions. None of these unfortunate events are attractive and they can easily be avoided. Nothing is more irritating than dry cracked lips whether it’s due to illness, overexposure to too much sun or cold. Aromatherapy essential oils can help keep your lips soft and kissable without using petroleum or animal fat.

LIP GLOSS BASE

• 1 ounce white beeswax
• 2 tablespoons sweet almond oil
• 10 drops jojoba oil
• 5 drops carrot oil
• 1 capsule vitamin E

LIP GLOSS ESSENTIAL OILS

• geranium
• lavender
• chamomile
• palma rosa
• lemon
• rose

Melt the beeswax in a double boiler and add the almond oil, stirring constantly. When the beeswax is completely melted, add the jojoba oil, carrot oil and vitamin E, then stir again. Lastly, mix in the 10 drops of your chosen essential oils from the list above. Tomorrow, we will give formulas for the lip conditions mentioned above.

I want to share a recipe from Andrea Butje’s Aromahead Institute that uses Aromatherapy for muscle tension and headache relief at the same time.

The recipe is really convenient because it’s made in an aromatherapy inhaler. When using aromatherapy for muscle tension, it’s good to also make a blend you can apply topically. It’s so soothing to massage sore muscles with a therapeutic body butter or oil. But you’re not always in a place where you can massage your aching muscles with a blend so an inhaler is great to use anywhere because it’s the size of a lipstick and you can keep it in your pocket or purse.

One reason this inhaler recipe can be so helpful is because the essential oils have components that are useful for easing tension and pain. Inhaling the essential oils also calms your nervous system, increasing circulation and encouraging your muscles (including the muscles in your neck and scalp) to relax.

Muscle Tension and Headache Inhaler

• 8 drops rosemary
• 3 drops black spruce
• 3 drops lavender
• 1 drop peppermint 

Have you ever made an aromatherapy inhaler? If not, you can see me make this recipe in a YouTube video by clicking here.

An inhaler consists of a little plastic sleeve with a cotton insert. The cotton absorbs the essential oils. A bottom piece snaps in place to keep the sleeve closed, and then there’s a lid that closes the whole thing up.

Aromatherapy is excellent for treating coughs, whether they are dry coughs or coughs with mucus. The aromatherapy treatments recommended here are much more natural for you than over the counter cough syrups and prescription medications.

To treat a dry cough, mix 2 drops of eucalyptus essential oil and 2 drops of lemon essential oil with 2 tablespoons of honey. Dilute 1 teaspoon of this mixture in 6 to 8 ounces of warm water and sip it slowly. Next, massage your back and chest with 3 drops of eucalyptus essential oil and 2 drops of thyme essential oil diluted in 1 teaspoon of carrier oil. If you like the steam inhalation method, use 3 drops of lavender in a steaming hot bowl of water.

If you have a cough with mucus, use the same treatment but instead of the drink described above, mix the following essential oils: 2 drops of eucalyptus, 1 drop of thyme, and 1 drop of tea tree blended together and then use only 1 drop of this mixture in a tablespoon of honey. Dilute 1 teaspoon of the honey-essential oil mixture in 6 to 8 ounces of warm water and sip it slowly.

Next in our series on aromatherapy essential oils and weight loss are formulas for fat blaster toning and diuretic massage oils.

FAT BLASTER TONING MASSAGE OILS

 Toning Massage Formula 1

•  10 drops basil
• 5 drops lemongrass
• 15 drops lavender

Toning Massage Formula  2

• 5 drops red thyme
• 10 drops rosemary
• 15 drops orange

FAT BLASTER DIURETIC MASSAGE OILS

Diuretic Massage Formula 1

• 8 drops juniper
• 10 drops fennel
• 12 drops grapefruit

Diuretic Massage Formula 2

• drops cypress
• 15 drops lemon
• 5 drops juniper

You can make fat blaster massage oils by adding 30 drops of essential oil to 2 tablespoons sweet almond oil plus 10 drops of carrot oil. The almond oil and carrot oil should be blended before you add the essential oils. For today, I have the general fat blaster massage oils for weight loss.

GENERAL FAT BLASTER MASSAGE OILS FOR WEIGHT LOSS

Formula 1

• 8 drops grapefruit
• 2 drops oregano
• 10 drops rosemary
• 10 drops cypress

Formula 2

• 5 drops petitgrain
• 10 drops lime
• 5 drops juniper
• 10 drops basil

Newborn babies respond well to touch and since it is an important part of the parent child bonding custom, parents should start using massage right away. Commercial baby oils usually have a petroleum or mineral oil base which is good for protecting baby’s skin from water and urine but not necessarily good for baby’s skin. I suggest using a formula which consists of carrier oils that are good for skin as well as essential oils that are good for the skin and have other benefits too.

The following formula uses 1/10th of the essential oil in an adult massage oil but it is still an excellent treatment for eczema and cradle cap, inflammation and teething problems and it acts as a general strengthener. It also boosts the immune system and has a wonderful calming effect  on the nervous system. The loving touch of mommy or daddy’s massage all over his or her body, avoiding only the genitals and the eyes, will keep baby contented.

Baby’s Massage Oil Formula

• Chamomile – 1 drop
• Lavender – 1 drop
• Geranium – 1 drop
  Dilute in 2 tablespoons sweet almond oil

This massage oil can be used daily on your two to twelve month old baby.