For many, a warm bath before bedtime helps them wind down. If you find you need comfort in addition to the warm, relaxing water, try adding a few drops of sleep-inducing essential oils to the tub. A blend of Roman chamomile and geranium-rose oils make for a soaking experience that will help you release the stress of the day and soothe your tense muscles. Sleep Tight is a blend of pure essential oils created for the specific purpose of inducing rest. The blend contains neroli, chamomile, sweet orange oil, and frankincense, all intended to tranquilize the central nervous system and promote feelings of calm and peace. Relaxing for 15 minutes in a warm bath containing this oil will have you drifting off in no time.

If bathing is not your preferred activity before bed, there are other ways you can use essential oils to help you sleep. Take a few minutes when you climb into bed to massage essential oils into the soles of your feet, your skin, and your hands. The oils mentioned above can be blended with a base oil to create a gentle, soothing massage oil that will help you rest. The fragrance not only induces feelings of calm, the massaging motion will help you wind down and soothe tired muscles. A bedtime ritual like this is often helpful in communicating to your mind that it is time to end its work for the day.

In addition to a soothing essential oil massage, you can use the oils in the bedroom and on your bedding to create an environment of stress relief. Do not apply drops of oil directly to your sheets and other materials because it will stain. You can sprinkle dryer sheets with scents like chamomile, lavendar, sandalwood, ylang ylang, or the Sleep Tight blend. Also try scenting an old wash cloth and putting it beneath your pillow, or mixing the oil in a spray bottle and spritzing pillow and sheets.

A bowl of potpourri scented with your favorite sleep inducing oil beside the bed will also make the area tranquil. An oil burner is a convenient way to bring fragrance into your bedroom or bathroom, but use caution so you do not fall asleep while the burner is operating. Perhaps if you take five or ten minutes to meditate and calm your mind while the burner exudes relaxing scents, you will have a safe method for burning the oil before bedtime.Combine these oil techniques with comfortable, cozy bedding that is made of natural materials, surroundings that are soothing and lacking technological distraction, and avoid caffeine and excessive physical activity shortly before your desired bedtime. Take a few minutes to relax and unwind, possibly paging through a book of relaxation techniques or poetic verse. In no time at all, you will find yourself able to drift off to sleep every night without a struggle.

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Easing Sweat with Essential Oils

Geranium Oil is a great way to reduce the irritation of sweat all year long, but you may be especially thankful for it during the warm summer months. This works well with palm sweating, as well as underarm sweat. Mix it with a base oil and rub it on your skin. It dries the skin and gives it a fresh, clean smell.

Cypress Oil cools the skin and has an astringent effect. It will feel as if the perspiration is evaporating from your skin when you apply this essential oil. Cypress oil effects your nervous system which makes this oil great for nervous sweats. The calm emotions it evokes will leave you feel confident and dry.

Tea Tree Oil is a diverse oil that is great for a number of ailments, including foot sweat and underarm sweat. It protects against the growth of fungi and bacteria, creating a healthier environment for those areas of the body that tend to get moist. Some find this moisture leads to a type of heat rash, especially when temperatures rise. Women may want to rub tea tree oil in the area under and between their breasts, in the crook of their thigh, under their arms, and any other area where the folds of the skin do not permit airflow. Men can do the same in their problem areas.

Sunburn While sunburn prevention is the best way to keep skin healthy and feeling good, there are times you forget to reapply sunblock and you are left with an uncomfortable burn. Common remedies include aloe lotion, cocoa butter, and ice baths, but there are essential oils that can make these well-known remedies work even better. The natural oils help skin heal while easing the pain and discomfort of the burn.

Sometimes nothing works better to ease sunburn than a cool bath. To make the bath even more comfortable, add 20 drops of lavender and chamomile oil to the tub. You can also use just 25 drops of lavendar oil for a similar effect. Be sure to keep soaking time to around 10 – 15 minutes because water can have a drying effect on the skin, which is the last thing you want with burned skin. Bergamot oil is also a great addition to bathwater.

Calendula oil is another great method for coping with burned skin. Twenty drops in the bath helps relieve pain, or you can add it to fragrance free gel or lotion. Its anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties help skin heal quickly, and applying it in lotion form keeps skin moist. For added cooling, store the gel or lotion in the refrigerator.

Finally, you can apply peppermint oil to sunburned skin. Think of the cooling feeling your mouth has when munching on a peppermint candy or sipping peppermint tea. That same cooling effect will feel marvelous on your skin when it is burned. Dilute pure oils with a base oil or add the oil to lotion.

Seasonal Affective Disorder

Winter is not the only time you can use essential oils to cope with frustrations and health issues. When the days grow gray and cold, essential oils will help you cope. Those suffering from seasonal affective disorder, which is often worse during days that are short and dark, can benefit from exercising, socializing, and a healthy diet. However, if that is not enough, you can use essential oils to lessen your symptoms. Boil water and add peppermint, ylang ylang, thyme oil, or lemon oil. You can leave the pot on your stove for 20 minutes twice a day to have the scent permeate the entire house. If you need a stronger pick me up, place your head over the pot (away from the stove!) and cover your head and shoulder with a towel. Relax and inhale the scent for 5 – 10 minutes. You need to use care when working around the boiling hot water, but this is a quick fix when you are feeling depressed due to the climate or lack of sunlight.

Read more in my book How To Overcome Stress Naturally with a Foreword by His Holiness The Dalai Lama.

Injuries and Muscle Strains

While hitting the slopes may be your idea of a good time, it can result in muscle strain and injury. Less fun are those injuries that come from shoveling snow. Aches and pains may be worsened due to the cold temperatures. If you find your muscles feeling less than supple, try a massage with pure essential oils. The manipulation of the skin and muscle tissue will get blood circulating, which speeds healing. The tissue will also be warmed from the touch which loosens it and helps it feel softer. The addition of the oils will enhance the massage experience. Oils to try include peppermint, rosemary, black pepper oil, cypress, marjaram, petitgrain oil, or vetiver oil.

Essential oils may not solve every seasonal problem you face, but combined with other natural remedies and stress reduction techniques, pure essential oils will lesson your symptoms and help you cope.

Specific health benefits of carrot seed oil include:

• Liver cleansing
• Clears skin
• Reduces liver-related symptoms of jaundice
• Eases the effects of hepatitis
• Helps cure infections, especially of colon, mouth, throat, stomach, intestines and urinary system
• May be beneficial in curing certain forms of cancer due to its antioxidant properties
• Reduces gas and bloating
• Increases urination, forcing toxins, microbes, and small amounts of fat from the system
• Hormonal improvements reducing painful and irregular menstrual periods

In addition to these benefits, carrot seed oil is a tonic for the skin. It can be blended into lotions or base oils and applied to the skin to clear the complexion and improve skin tone. The essential oil stimulates the growth of new cells and tissues, the best way to improve the health of your skin.

Carrot seed is popular in aromatherapy treatments because it has a pleasant, earthy fragrance that blends well with other essential oils like juniper, orange, and lemon. Following a carrot essential oil treatment, your skin will feel refreshed and emotionally you may feel less stressed and anxious. Some believe carrot oil application helps cure anorexia, and a massage with carrot oil will ease the effects of tight, sore muscles. Carrot seed oil is best used in pure essential oil form and mixed with a quality base oil.

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Lemon myrtle is a great natural treatment for headcolds and it helps clear up chest congestion and improves mood. This means that grumpy, irritable feeling you get when you are under weather will vanish and your bright, sunny mood will help your body heal faster. Lemon myrtle is also helpful if you are suffering from digestive disorders and it improves skin condition. A blend of spring water and lemon myrtle oil makes a great skin astringent that will brighten your complexion. Those who suffer from acne have found it to be more effective in clearing skin than many of the topical medications on the market.

Lemon myrtle oil contains more citral than any other plant. This substance is what provides lemon myrtle with its anti-viral qualities. Lemon myrtle oil has been shown to kill staphyloccus and salmonella, making it one of the most powerful oils for cleaning and self-care. It should not be applied directly to the skin without blending with a base oil.

Lemon myrtle is one of the more recently discovered oils, but has quickly become a popular component in an organic essential oils collection. Best of all, the aromatherapy benefits of lemon myrtle’s clean, lemony scent smell fresh. The oil does just as much as a chemical antibacterial soap, but the smell is natural and delightful. Ordering a bottle of organic lemon myrtle oil now means you will have it available to use for spring cleaning in the next few months!

For an extensive range of pure essential oils and massage oils, visit our store at www.essentialhealth.com.au

Click here for a FREE eBook “How To Use Pure Essential Oils”

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Tea tree oil, is one of the best oils for calming irritated skin, and it also works as an antiseptic. Since dry skin often occurs during cold and flu season, organic tea tree oil offers the added benefit of boosting the immune system.

A problem many of us encounter during cold weather season is dry skin. In some cases, recycled heating and cooling in the home pulls moisture from the skin, creating the nagging effects all year long. Aside from making you uncomfortable, dry skin can create further problems if not treated.

Dry skin itches and burns, and your first instinct may be to scratch the patchy, scaled areas. While scratching an occasional itch will do little harm, scraping your nails across irritated skin can be damaging. If you break the skin, it can easily become infected. Sometimes it feels like the more you scratch, the greater the itch becomes. Instead of temporarily relieving the itch with scratching, consider a natural remedy like an organic pure essential oil.

Applying pure essential oils to the affected area soothes the skin and lessens the itch. Your skin will feel soft and supple, and the scaly look of dry skin will be a thing of the past. Furthermore, essential oil not only prevents dryness, it will alleviate other problems. Essential oils offer aromatherapy benefits like relaxation, stress reduction, improved concentration. Massage oils are great for softening tense muscles, and they take the edge off a long, stressful day.

Organic Tea Tree Oil is safe to use on your scalp and will help eliminate flaking, itchy scalp, and dandruff. Tea tree oil can be combined with a base oil, or you can add drops of the oil to a bath.

Massage: Add 3 drops of Organic Tea Tree Oil to 25 ml of Base or Carrier oil (ie Apricot Kernel, Jojoba Oil, Macademia Oil, Sweet Almond Oil)

Bath: Use 6-8 drops in a warm soothing bath, or gently apply the massage blend before you have a bath.

Electric Oil Burner: Add 5 drops to enjoy the cleansing aromatherapy of  Tea Tree oil.

For an extensive range of pure essential oils and massage oils, visit our store at www.essentialhealth.com.au

Click here for a FREE eBook “How To Use Pure Essential Oils”