Aromatherapy and my top 5 favourite oils! What are yours?

I love essential oils. I feel addicted to them sometimes. Like how cocaine addicts snort that stuff, I sniff my bottles of concentrate plant essences. Yummy (please don't judge me)! They are all supposed to have wonderful properties. Some scents are great for relaxation. Others help you stay alert. You can use them for your homemade cosmetics and cleaning supplies without worrying about chemicals. Most also have anti-fungal and anti-bacterial properties. It's mind blowing to think that a little bottle of EO is the end product of  pounds and pounds of plants but that's also why they are so very potent.

The downside of essential oils is that they can be $$$. It can be hard to start an essential oils kit when the price is so off putting. Some oils can run from $5.00 to hundreds of dollars for a 5 mL bottle. I started buying low to moderate priced oils and bought them from various sources sparingly. Overtime I grew to have quite a collection and learned how to use them. What I learned about EO's are that they pack a big punch so you don't need to use a lot and they last a long time. I have some bottles over 10 years old but smell just as strong. Not everyone can experience and play with all the oils they want. However, if you wanted to start a decent sized kit or add to your collection without spending a lot of money I have just the place for you. Recently, I learned of a site www.newdirectionsaromatics.com   They sell oils at wholesale prices and my experiences with them have been fabulous. I don't work for them or get paid to promote their products. I just wanted to share this amazing source with those out there who are looking for quality oils at a price that won't break the bank.
 


Here are my top 5 essential oils.

1) Peppermint: 

Peppermint is my favourite oil of all time. The reason I love peppermint so much is because of the scent. It reminds me of candy canes and Christmas time. It gives me a sense of warmth and coziness even though peppermint has cooling properties. It is also one of the few scents you can really feel. You can feel it through your skin as it gradually works it way in and it also open your eye lids if you get too close. Nothing else will wake you up like peppermint in the eye (not recommending this of course). Probably works better than bear spray.

 I use peppermint for lots of things.  Just some peppermint oil and water in a spray bottle and you have a DIY room spray. I also use it in my diffuser for the same reason. When I have a tummy ache or cramps I rub a little with some oil on my belly. Some people add a drop to hot water and drink it to soothe their tummies. Another thing I use it for is making a tooth oil (peppermint, spearmint and carrier oil) as a replacement for toothpaste. I know it sounds weird but I've had wonderful results with it and I prefer it to toothpaste. You can also mix peppermint oil with some chammomile tea and use it as a hair rinse that makes your scalp tingle and feel refreshed after a shampoo. It also leaves your hair smelling amazing! I think the uses for peppermint are far and wide. If you doubt that essential oils can affect you physically and mentally just add a drop or two in your massage oil. It will awaken your senses and bring you into the moment as your whole body and mind become stimulated.


2) Eucalyptus Globulus:

There are two types of Eucalyptus that are commonly seen when buying essential oils: Eucalyptus Globulus and Eucalyptus Radiata. I use the first one since my earlier research into their properties revealed that the latter could have some harmful effects if used in excess. I felt better staying on the safe side.

If you are not too sure what Eucalyptus is and what it smells like imagine koalas hanging out on trees and the scent of Vicks Vapour Rub. Yes, Eucalyptus is the very plant that koalas get high on and eat every day of their lives. It is also used in VVR to relieve respiratory congestion. If you are down with a respiratory infection nothing feels better than inhaling some Eucalyptus. It is a cool oil just like peppermint and you can feel it as it travels through your airways. It clears the traffic and offers a sense of relief. It is amazing for inflammation.

At one point in my life I loved Eucalyptus more than peppermint due to the fact that I had chronic bronchitis for a number of years and it offered relief. It smells great as an addition in the steam room or rubbed onto your chest when coughing. I also use as a room spray with some orange oil to freshen the space and also clean the air.  You can also add it to unscented lotions and rub it into sore muscles.

3) Lemon:

Everyone has heard that lemon is great for a number of reasons. It aids in digestion and is a great cleaning agent. It also has an uplifting scent. These are the same reasons why the essential oils of lemons are wonderful. I use lemon in home cleaning products which I try to make myself. Most of the time my general cleaning spray is nothing but white vinegar, water and some essential oils. If you are cleaning it's always best to include lemon to cut grease and disinfect surfaces. I don't use lemon for anything else aside from cleaning and  scenting a space but it is a go to oil for cleaning and works really well.

4) Tea Tree Oil:

Tea Tree Oil is another amazing cleaning essential. I cannot stress how amazing this oil is for cleaning. It's anti-fungal and anti-bacterial and seems to kill everything. Where lemon is a great everyday cleanser, tea tree is what you use when the black plague hits. I've used this to clean mold and mildew (vinegar, water, tea tree oil), and I've used it to cleanse the air with a diffuser. It's great for putting in shampoos to eliminate dry scalp. I've also heard that it treats dandruff relatively well. When used as a hair product it kill bacteria and fungus growing on the scalp allowing healthy hair to grow.

Tea Tree Oil is not the most pleasant smelling oil but I would never do without it. I often use it in solutions with water and/or vinegar but was never sure of it's profound effectiveness until one day a miracle happened. A number of years ago I had a clog in my sink. The clog dissipated but a strange smell and funk started to rise from it. This was sadly the kitchen sink so it made it really hard to wash dishes or do any "kitcheny" things without trying to run away. I tried many chemical products to destroy whatever was living down there along with some natural solutions like vinegar and baking soda. However, none were successful. At one point I thought I was doomed to have this smelly kitchen sink forever. Then one day I found an old squirt bottle that housed a homemade solution with a high concentration of Tea Tree Oil and water. I decided to make a new batch since it was sitting there for a while so I poured the stuff down the sink. Voila! It did take a day for me to notice but the smell was completely gone and has not come back. The tea tree killed EVERYTHING in there... EVERYTHING. That was the proof in the pudding for me and that's why I love Tea Tree Oil sooooooo much!

5) Oregano Oil:

This is another not so pleasurable smelling oil. I would not sit there and sniff it all day. In fact, it smells pretty bad. It smells so bad that sometimes your eyes sting and you need a moment to recover. Some people use it in their diffusers and as a room spray but it's never for the scent. Oregano is one of the most powerful anti-bacterial oils you can use. And if you don't like the scent that's OK because what most people use it for and how they use it has nothing to do with smelling it (at least not for very long).

Oregano oil is an amazing oil that I use whenever I start feeling sick. When I start feeling like something is coming on I ingest about 8-10 drops of it in the morning and then again at night before I sleep. Often the cold never goes full blown. I've used it to get over minor colds and also major infections. It usually helps a lot. But as it tastes even worse than it smells sometimes I am reluctant to go that route and try to wait out my illness and hope it will go away quickly.  Usually when I do this things take a turn for the worse.  So during those times when I'm so ill I can't go to work or stand without coughing I give in and take some and it works even then, even when antibiotics fail, it works.  If you are ever really sick and are desperate enough to try it, take my advice and chug it with some orange juice. The OJ will cut the smell and taste down so that it's manageable. You can still get the benefits without the high pungency. Oregano oil is supposed to be a big boost for your immune system.

Even my dad, a previous non-believer, was desperate enough to try it one day when he was deathly ill from a respiratory infection and a high fever. He had no time to waste because he had to go on vacation within the next two days. The next morning he came up to me and asked me what the "stuff" was. After just one dose, he was feeling much better and on the road to recovery. Soon after he went out and bought a bottle for himself to take on vacation. A 15 mL bottle of Oregano Oil is roughly $30.00 but it's worth every penny. If you are to try Oregano Oil I suggest buying Oregano Oil from a health food store that sells the kind approved for ingestion, just to be on the safe side.

So those are my fave fives. I would love to hear yours! Cheers!

Little Loving Intentions: A request. Make an intention for global change.

There are so many things I want for myself. I have asked the Universe over and over again for these things to be delivered but I have not received all of them yet. Recently, when I sit and think about my wants I start to feel resentment.  Resentment leads to ungratefulness and I know I shouldn’t feel that way but it is there. It lingers like a dark passenger and I work hard at ignoring it.  Some people believe that asking the Universe for things is the easy way out and completely wacko but I truly believe that you get what you ask for. I believe in it because I have experienced receiving the gifts in the past too many times to ignore it. However, the things I want the most elude me. I find myself asking all the time now, what is keeping me from receiving the gift I want the most? Intent has brought me so many things why can’t it give me …. (fill in the blank)?

Well, I feel extremely selfish. As I watched the news about the scare of the Ebola virus today  something occurred to me. I am so incredibly lucky and have been all my life. With gratitude, all I should ask for is that my life will continue to be blessed with the warmth and safety I have right now. What I want are 1^st world wants and 1^st world needs. I had won the jackpot when I was born in Canada to a loving family. Anything else on top of that is a bonus.  I should be forever grateful for those bonuses. They are the rainbow to a beautiful day.

In other places of this world, survival is a want. Many people don’t get comfort or love. They don’t get a home and food in their belly. Their daily lives are riddled with fear and threats from every corner. When we complain about being tired from work, someone else in the world has never even had a day off. Those that are in the midst of true helplessness still smile and still find things they can be grateful for. Here in the West, most of us already have everything we need to be fulfilled. Yet, we want more all the time. We are a collective mind of take and very little of give. What kind of energy are we sending out into this world.  I hope we start to wake up and learn to appreciate everything now. What a waste it would be if time were to pass and we didn’t realize that we were already given one of the greatest gifts on Earth. What is this gift? The gift of being able to make a difference. 

The world is shrinking. The  discomfort and fears I experience from seeing what is unfolding before us is probably just a small percentage of what others in the world feel. Globalization, with travel and media has certainly changed this world. It has opened up so many realities. We are ONE world. There is terrorism highlighted daily from across the world. And from across the world terrorism can touch us. Diseases, like Ebola, which were foreign viruses that couldn't affect us, have now crossed oceans.  There is also global climate change affecting all citizens of this planet. This is everyday life as we know it now. We are on the brink of an evolutionary change. Yet some of us are still ingrained with concerns of the latest celebrity gossip or government scandal. We are still overly concerned about our own  needs.  We are generating huge amounts of energy but in what direction is this energy spinning the Earth? 

We have accomplished so much with technology. We have learned so much about animal and human behaviour. We know more facts than we have ever known in history. At the same time, something has been lost. Yesterday a friend told me a story about a rich man in Vancouver. He had immigrated here when he was 18 from China. They had recently named a building in UBC after him for all his contributions and accomplishments. He told a story during his speech about remembering a day in the village when everyone had passed a bucket around. Each, with very little money of their own, contributed some money into that basket so he could come to Canada and make a better life for himself. A totally unselfish community act. The villagers knew that money would give him a chance. They knew they would lose their hard earned cash but they all did it.  Because of this loving act of many, this man was able to have a different life. He was able to have a better education. He was able to have liberties and freedoms. He still sends money back to his village every month. How many communities in North America would ever do the same? We are already the richest people in the world. We have so much more than others. But people don't give up things anymore for someone else to have a better life. We have more than enough. We can share. We can help. We can give.

Plenty of people devote their time to individual change. We work on daily affirmations that help us find peace. We ask for guidance towards love. We ask for health. We ask to have courage to get through difficult times. Yes, it’s very noble and great to work on ourselves. We know how important it is for us to take ownership of what we put out in this world. But if we believe in the power of intention and what it can do for us individually we should also use that power of intention for a global purposes as well. Let’s heal the world. Let’s ask for peace in war torn countries. Let’s ask for health upon all. Let’s hope and pray for all to be happy. Let’s generate compassion to those we do not understand. Let’s give a helping hand to someone we don’t know.  Let's ask for courage in other's to get through difficulties. Let’s manifest global change. I mean it’s a small world now after all. If something as small as the Ebola virus can make it’s intention to cross an ocean come true, we are much bigger than that. We can make a much bigger difference and for everyone, not just ourselves. That’s just a thought. It’s just a little loving intention.