Archive for essential oils

Homemade Lavender Cuticle Balm

Ingredients for Homemade Lavender Cuticle Balm

Ingredients for Homemade Lavender Cuticle Balm

Blame my Vata tendencies, but, I have notoriously dry cuticles, usually all year, but particularly in the winter. I have used a number of commercial cuticle creams and balms, which work okay, but, I don’t like ingredients like read like a chemistry test. Also, as someone who wavers between vegetarian and vegan tendencies, I also don’t care for products that have been made from an animal based product or tested on animals. Since I make so many of the products I use and consume, I decided to make my own.

I just happened to have a leftover container from a commercial product, that I cleaned out and measured how much volume it could hold…not much – roughly 2.25 teaspoons. The recipe I used below fits this container perfectly. If you have a larger container or wish to make a larger batch, this can be doubled or tripled.

Cruelty-Free Lavender Cuticle Balm

3/4 tsp Candelilla Wax
3/4 tsp Coconut Oil
3/4 tsp Shea Butter
1/8 tsp Vitamin E Oil
5 drops of Lavender Essential Oil

Homemade Lavender Cuticle Balm

Homemade Lavender Cuticle Balm

In a double boiler, add the candelilla wax, shea butter, vitamin e and the coconut oil until thoroughly melted, making sure to not scorch the blend. Add lavender essential oil and stir until all ingredients are completely blended. Pour into heatproof container and let sit until cooled. This will harden fairly quickly. The cuticle balm was ready to use in less than half of an hour, but, it could take longer depending on the room temperature and how large of a batch you made. If you increase this recipe, take note that Candelilla wax tends to be a harder wax than beeswax, so you may want to decrease the quantities if you double or triple this recipe.

It smells delightful, has soothing ingredients and is cruelty-free, which is important to me. This container is also small enough to pop into my purse so that can easily reapply throughout the day.

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do.

Namaste!

Natural Solution for Hypothyroid

Thyroid Support Blend of Essential Oils

Thyroid Support Blend of Essential Oils

Last November, my thyroid was diagnosed as being low functioning, likely due to the medication I take to counterbalance my neuroendocrine cancer. Bummer. It sucks when you have to take a medication to counterbalance a medication. I won’t lie, I am one of the worst people when it comes to remembering to take any medication on a daily basis. (I never miss a beat to make sure my dogs get their meds though!) So, in addition to my levothyroxine, I have decided to try essential oils to see if they boost my thyroid and energy levels. I don’t anticipate this will ever replace my medication, but, if it helps me get through the highs and lows of this disease, ultimately, I win.

After researching a number of sites, I decided to use the following combination:

(Hypo) Thyroid Support Blend

10 drops Myrrh

10 drops Lemongrass

2-3 drops Clove

2-3 drops Peppermint

I combined all of these ingredients into a rollerball and topped it off with coconut oil for a carrier. It recommended that you apply this blend “neat,” however, I tend to have problems with certain essential oils on my skin, so I chose to dilute. I may end up using this blend more frequently through the day because of it.  The recommendation is to roll over the thyroid, 2 – 3 times a day, until you achieve results. Please note: clove oil and even peppermint can be very difficult for sensitive skin when applied neat. Use accordingly.

My biggest symptoms are fatigue, poor sleep, inability to handle stress, brittle fingernails and weight gain. I am hoping to turn a few of things back in the right direction. The nice thing is, I can throw my new essential oil blend into my purse and (hopefully) I will remember to apply occasionally, especially when I forget my meds…again.

Most of the essential oils that I used are from doTERRA, except the Myrrh, which was a brand I bought while I was visiting India last month!

Let’s breakdown what each of these ingredients does for us:

Myrhh essential oil is known to stimulate the immune system and blood circulation. It is anti-inflammatory and most interestingly, can help regenerate tissue. It is also analgesic, anti-inflammatory and is very calming.

Lemongrass essential oil is sweeter than most citrus oils and is a super effective pain reliever. It is also a mood balancer and helps with mental clarity.

Clove essential oil has a lot of wonderful attributes that help during treatment for hypothryoidism. It is analgesic, anti-inflammatory, antidepressant, and acts as a sedative.

Peppermint oil helps to improve your mental alertness and acuity. It is analgesic, anti-inflammatory, anti-parasitic, antiseptic and acts as a stimulant.

Namaste!

 

Some of my favorite essential oils

I have been using essential oils for many years, but only recently started using dōTERRA. They make very high quality, therapeutic grade essential oils. Essential oils are wonderful tools to help alleviate a variety of symptoms and for overall well-being.

These are a few of my favorite uses of essential oils….

Peppermint Oil

When I am feeling congested, I will put a couple of drops of peppermint oil in my hands, rub them together and then cup them over my mouth and nose and inhale slowly for a few minutes. This almost always helps open my airways.

Also, when I feel like a fever is coming, I will rub some peppermint oil on the back of my neck to help “cool” me down and rest for a bit. It works relatively quickly.

NOTE: Be careful with peppermint oil around your eyes! It will sting…I speak from experience.

Breathe

This is a new product that I started using, which is what sold me on dōTERRA products in the first place. This is now my first line when I am feeling congested from allergies, cold, flu or other respiratory crud. Breathe is a proprietary combination of laurel leaf, peppermint, eucalyptus, tea tree, lemon and ravensara. It feels less “intense” than pure peppermint oil, but it is extremely effective for opening airways. Again, I will put into my palms and rub together and cup my hands over my mouth and nose and breathe deeply. If it is before bedtime, I will rub it into some coconut oil and on my chest.  This could also be put in a diffuser.

Lavender

Lavender is my go-to essential oil. If I have an insect bite or a paper cut, I will place lavender oil on it.  Lavender oil is anti-microbial, so it helps to fight infections. It is also extremely calmitive, so it is wonderful to place a couple of drops on your wrists or temples before bedtime to help sleep.

Rosemary

I just love rosemary oil and I combine it, almost daily, as my regular fragrance. Rosemary is uplifting and helps with respiratory issues. (Notice a trend here?) It also helps with indigestion. I make a hair rinse combining lavender and rosemary that I use each time I wash my hair and not only does it smell good, but, it makes my hair really shiny and soft.

Vetiver

Pardon my saying so, but vetiver is damn sexy. I combine it with passionflower, ylang ylang, vanilla, and jasmine in a little distilled water and make a light fragrance. I will also combine these together with dead sea salt to make a bath salts.

Tea Tree (Melaleuca)

Another oil I use on my skin. Excellent for acne and other facial blemishes.

Rose Oil

I like to infuse witch hazel with rose oil to create a refreshing toner for my face after rinsing it. Rose oil is naturally antiseptic and anti-bacterial, so it is a nice way to cleanse the skin. Afterwards, I usually use coconut oil for moisturizer.

Digestzen

This is another dōTERRA blend that I love. This blend combines ginger, peppermint, tarragon, fennel, caraway, coriander and anise, all which aid in digestion. When I have an upset stomach, I will rub a few drops of this combined with coconut oil on my tummy. It can also be taken internally, so you can place a few drop into a capsule and take with a few sips of water.

These are just a few of my favorite essential oils that I use on a regular basis. There are dozens more. Please visit dōTERRA for the highest quality, therapeutic grade essential oils available on the market today.

Moisturizing Essential Oil Hand Sanitizer

germs!

I won’t lie. I am a germaphobe. This is partially due to the fact that I have a compromised immune system, so I try to be mindful of my behaviors and surroundings. The worst part is, when I am at work, I frequently find myself resting my hand on my face or rubbing my eyes, which immediately sends off my creepy crawly alert. Blech. I use hand sanitizer like it is going out of style, but, it is very drying for my skin. Also, with the horrible chemicals (triclosan or benzalkonium chloride) that are in it, I hate having to ask my body to process that stuff. So, I decided to make my own. I looked at several recipes online and kind of came up with my own version. This may change over time, but, here are the products that I used for this round:

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MOISTURIZING ESSENTIAL OIL HAND SANITIZER

  • 4 oz Witch Hazel
  • 2 Tablespoons of Aloe Vera Gel
  • 1/8 Teaspoon of Vitamin E Oil
  • 30 drops of dōTERRA On Guard blend
  • Distilled or Filtered Water

I placed the first three ingredients into an 8 ounce measuring cup and mixed well. Then, I topped off the mixture with filtered water to hit the 8 ounce mark.

Using a funnel, I then poured equal amounts into 8 one-ounce glass atomizer bottles. DO NOT use plastic bottles! Essential oils are extremely potent and will actually make the plastic bottle “collapse” in a few days. Stainless steel bottles would work, too.

Voila! You are done. Shake the bottle before spraying about 5 squirts into hand. Rub hands together and you have just sanitized your skin with a safe and fragrant hand sanitizer.

Witch Hazel is an astringent, but, it is also soothing for the skin. It helps to lock moisture into your skin, plus the oils will blend better than with straight water.

Aloe Vera is both healing and moisturizing for dry skin and rashes. Generally speaking, I would use a clear aloe vera gel, but, I was desperate and the pictured item was all that I had on hand.

Vitamin E oil is a supercharged antioxidant and can actually help with cell repair by neutralizing free radicals. It actually helps with scar reduction and improves the moisture of the skin.

dōTERRA‘s On Guard is a proprietary blend of essential oils that is a non-toxic way to eliminate and control pathogens. (Like your co-workers nasty unwashed hands that you just watched them sneeze into!) It combines Wild Orange Peel, Clove Bud, Cinnamon Bark, Eucalyptus Leaf/Stem, Rosemary Leaf/Flower and Cardamom.

Water – nothing is as pure and healing and distilled or filtered water. I originally used just plain water and essential oil for my hand sanitizer, but, felt it took too long to dry and that there were additional ways to help preserve the water I was using on my skin.

I hope you enjoyed this hand sanitizer recipe. Please, let me know if you have any other suggestions by sending me a note to: {This email is obscured. Your must have javascript enabled to see it}