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Kovatasana
Tuesday, June 2, 2015
DIY Sunscreen
Lets get started!!
Wednesday, May 27, 2015
Testing. Testing. 1. 2. 3. and more??
Wednesday, May 6, 2015
Lavender, The Queen of Oils.
I use Lavender for everything. Here is what the book Modern Essentials: Sixth Edition, says the common primary uses for Lavender essential oil are:
- In my hair. I straighten and blow dry my hair so I have really dry ends. I spray Lavender (and sometimes Geranium if I can stomach the smell) on my hair. It helps keep it smooth and silky with less dead ends!
- As a perfume. I love the way Lavender smells! So after I'm done spraying it on my hair, I'll continue spraying on to my clothes. BONUS: Lavender is great for relieving stress and helping keep you calm. Not only does it smell wonderful but it makes me a nicer person AND it makes those around me nicer as well. I'm doing a public service here, really.
- In a bath. I love baths. Add some epsom salts and some Lavender oil (Some times I step it up a notch to Serenity oil, doTERRA's calming blend that contains Lavender and other relaxing oils) and I am one happy mom!
- Before bed. I use lavender oil on my kids every night before bed. I either massage it onto their feet, chest, back or diffuse it in their room. I mainly put it on the bottoms of their feet, but I do the other options as well from time to time.
- Teething. Oh. My. Lord. This oil has saved me some stressful nights with a teething baby! It seems like my youngest daughter (who is about 1 1/2) has been teething constantly since she was about 6 months old. I just rub it on her cheeks/jawbone and it helps with the pain as well as helping relax her! Such a win. Also consider peppermint oil for teething babies who have high fevers. Peppermint oil helps lower fevers. Amber necklaces are also great for teething babies!
- First-Aid. Cuts, scrapes, burns, bumps/bruises, bug bites/stings: Lavender. Taken care of. My children are extremely accident prone. They may get that from me but I am not admitting to anything. I am constantly putting Lavender on them (and maybe myself too) for first aid reasons. Lavender is an analgesic, anti- fungal, anti-infections, anti-inflammatory, regenerative and sedative, among many other things. This means that it can help reduce pain, bring down swelling and prevent infections. However, be careful using it on deep cuts or anything that you want to stop bleeding. It is also an anticoagulant so it can prevent the blood from clotting. This can be good in some cases but on deep cuts, you'll want to wait until the bleeding stops before applying Lavender. Helichrysum oil is great for stopping bleeding, in case you'd like to know.
- Sunburns. I felt this should be separate from the first-aid notice because a lot of people don't think of sunburns in the same way as burns from fire, touching something hot or spilling hot liquid on yourself. I didn't for a long time either. Lavender is great for relieving pain associated with sunburns and helps your skin recover faster. The sooner you can get Lavender on a burn after it has happened, the faster it is going to work. I have put Lavender on burns and sunburns immediately after they happened and they went away so fast, I barely remembered that a burn had occurred. I've also waited multiple days after the burn. It helps speed up the healing process either way.
- Stress Reliever. Lavender is calming and relaxing. It helps me keep a level head when I am too overwhelmed with everything. Especially at night. You know when you lay in bed and you remember everything you were supposed to do that day and everything you're supposed to do tomorrow and you're contemplating the world and the meaning of life when all you want to do is sleep? Yeah, Lavender helps with that.
Monday, May 4, 2015
The Difference
Tuesday, April 14, 2015
Vaccines
I know this is a touchy subject and a lot of people have really strong opinions about vaccines and that is fine. However, I am not posting this to get into any debates about it, so if that is what you're looking for please take it to another place.
My children get vaccinations. That is what my husband and I decided was best for our children. I know the risks, I know the benefits.
I am posting this because getting vaccines is not the most fun experience and can come with some common, unpleasant side effects and I want to share some things that we do for our kids to help with those.
My princesses are very mild mannered and usually extremely sweet but when we walk into the doctor's office the demons come out and all hell breaks loose. The screaming, the crying, the evil looks of "I can't believe you're making me go through this". It's a good time.
Here are some oils I like to help keep the demons at bay:
Balance. This is my pregame go to oil. I rub this on the back of their necks and behind their ears to help stabilize emotions. I also like to do this before we go shopping. It definitely helps with the meltdowns.
Lavender. This is a staple in my house, especially when it comes to my kids. Something wrong? Oh yeah, just go ahead and put some lavender on. In this case, I put it on immediately after injection. It helps with pain, inflammation and it's very calming and relaxing. If you've ever had to hold an infant while those evil nurses stab them in the legs, you know that relaxing afterwards doesn't always come easy. Feel free to throw some on yourself too, mom. If this is your first kid, I bet it breaks your heart and makes you a little teary eyed too. (PS: I do not really think nurses are evil, but it's nice to put the blame on them when you're getting the look of complete mistrust. Thanks for taking that blow nurses!)
Frankincense. I use this right after the lavender has absorbed into the skin. Frankincense is great for healing broken skin and swelling. Plus it is just an amazing oil and the lavender/frankincense combo is something I use on my children on a regular basis. This one is not necessary, lavender will do the trick for all of these things but like I said, I am in love with frankincense so if I have a reason to use it, I do.
You may also want to consider Helichrysum if you have a bleeder. My kids aren't really bleeders so I don't use it in this case usually.
Cilantro. This oil helps the body rid itself of heavy metals. Vaccines contain heavy metals. We don't want those in our bodies and they an throw everything off. I apply this to the feet once or twice a day for about two days after vaccines.
Peppermint. Sometimes vaccines can cause fevers. Applying peppermint oil to the bottom of the feet and/or back of neck really helps get fevers lower and under control. Of course if their fever gets too high and you can't get it to come down quickly, seek professional help, especially for infants.
Geranium. Sometimes vaccines can cause nasty bruises. Those deep, knotty, extremely painful ones. Geranium can help with that but lavender can as well so choose whatever you like.
I am usually putting lavender on the injection site a couple of times a day until I don't feel it's needed anymore.
Notes: Always be sure to properly dilute essential oils, especially on infants, children and elderly. If you need help with dilution, there is really good information in the Modern Essentials book.
Essential oils are potent and only require small amounts to be effective. Please do not dump all of these oils on you or anyone else at one time. Use what you need when you need it and you will get the best results!
Always make sure you are using pure essential oils, I use doTERRA. If you have more questions about essential oils and doTERRA, please contact me or click here.
**These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration.
These products are not meant to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent disease.