Living with pain can be very difficult and overwhelming, especially over a long period of time. The use of natural pain relief remedies such as Aromatherapy Essential Oils has become very popular, as generally people do not want to take pain killers over an extended period of time as they are addictive and have nasty long term side effects.

The Aromatherapy benefits on pain relief have been well studied and documented and for many have become the preferred method of healing pain and many common ailments today.

Essential oils can be used safely to assist with pain relief. There are many different oils which can be used to assist with the relief of pain and discomfort. These pure essential oils can be added to a base oil or cream and rubbed or gently massage into the affected area.

The 5 Commonly Used Pure Essential Oils Used For Pain Relief

1. Curry – Helichrysum italicum is excellent for pain relief as it has antispasmodic and anesthetic properties as well for relief of deep pain.

2. Peppermint – Mentha piperita has been used through the ages for headaches, aches and pains, backache and arthritis. Peppermint has excellent pain relief properties and is also know as a powerful anti-inflammatory.

3. Basil – Ocimum basilicum which is very good for any type of muscle or nerve pain. Basil is excellent muscle relaxant and also contains powerful anti-inflammatory and anti-spasmodic properties as well.

4. Marjoram – Origanum majorana also has muscle soothing properties for any type of muscular or nerve pain and is also very beneficial for headaches.

5. Clove – Syzygium aromaticum which is well know for relief from toothache. It has analgesic properties along with anti-inflammatory, analgesic properties and anesthetic properties.

Aromatherapy oils are generally safe and easy to use and people have been successful using Aromatherapy pure essential oil either on there own or combined in a blend to assist with pain relief.

Do not apply any pure essential oils directly on the skin as severe reaction or intolerance may occur. Always blend pure essential oils with a suitable base oil or cream.

The holistic benefits of combining aromatherapy pure essential oils and massage therapy, is well known to assist with relief from pain and discomfort and is suitable for people of all ages.

Coping with pain or any form of discomfort is emotionally taxing and distressing. Other pure essential oils can be used to help cope with the psychological aspect of dealing with pain including Lavender Oil which is excellent for people who are suffering from emotional pain, anxiety or distress. Lavender promotes a feeling of calmness, confidence and relaxation. Lavender also soothes the spirit and provides relief from anger and exhaustion whilst restoring and healing the body.

Aromatherapy for pets is a growing alternative healing method to heal and cure various emotional and health related issues with pets. I once thought that my dog had it easy. After the end of a very stressful day I often have wished that I had the life of my dog. It seems very simple and not overly complicated. Yet the more I learned about my dog I was quickly learning that they have good days and bad days just like I do. Often the emotions I carry with me in time become the emotions of my dog. Dogs are very dependent on their owners for just about everything. Whether it is food or just wanting attention they are dependent on us. Dogs do experience happiness, fear, anger, and love.

A greater number of dogs are living indoors more and more and are losing their primal abilities. Dogs that roam outside freely can appear much happier not just because they got to run around all day. They spend the day smelling all sorts of things, smelling everything natural. Aromatherapy for pets is increasingly a growing and proven alternative means of healing for both physical diseases and emotional disorders. I want to share with you one quick example of a recipe that will work wonders with your beloved dog.

Reduce Nervousness and Hyperactivity

If you are like me and has a dog that can easily become nervous or hyperactive an all natural aromatherapy recipe and cure your problem very quickly. Just mix together six drops of lavender, two drops of Roman chamomile, and four drops petitgrain along with your standard mixture amount of carrier oil and apply lightly to both the spine and the head of your dog.

Now I must confess that if your dog has never smelled anything natural in his life allow your dog to smell the essential oils to see how he reacts at first. If the response is negative at first it is important to get him use to the smell. Placing that recipe in a diluted mist form and spraying it where your dog sleeps and mostly roams will help break him into aromatherapy for pets. It is always important to follow a specific guide that can give you detailed examples of how to properly apply any type of aromatherapy for pets. The above recipe is a proven natural method that will calm your dog down in a short amount of time.

Summer’s here and for most people that means it’s vacation travel season. Whether you’re traveling by car or plane, going on a long trip or a weekend getaway, no matter what time of the year it is, it helps to be prepared for some of the unexpected upsets and minor ailments that can sometimes mar a perfectly good vacation.

The biggest of these is probably the stress that simply comes with travel — delayed, canceled, or missed flights, lost luggage or misplaced documents, a flat tire or other major car trouble, motion sickness, jet lag, and various camping-related mishaps.

Then there are the more common culprits like colds and allergies, upset stomach or digestive stress, headaches, insomnia, fatigue, minor cuts and bruises, blistered feet, rashes or hives, chafing, and sun burn.

There are a number of surprisingly simple ways you can use essential oils, alone or combined with other plant-based ingredients, to address these problems head on and avoid the kind of misery that can make you wish you’d stayed home.

1. Colds, Allergies and Sinus Congestion

With plants, flowers, and grasses in full bloom, pollen is everywhere making summertime synonymous with allergies. Then there’s the congestion that accompanies minor colds you can pick up from air-borne bacteria on planes, trains, and buses, not to mention airports and climate-controlled hotels. To minimize the likelihood of picking up someone else’s cold, wash hands frequently with soap and keep a small bottle of hand sanitizer (preferably one made with essential oils) with you for when you can’t.

To ease congestion, Eucalyptus Radiata essential oil is your best option. It is the gentlest and safest of the various types of Eucalyptus available and can be applied frequently without irritation. For a more powerful decongestant, try our Breathe Ease Diffuser Blend (see our Guide to Diffuser Blends for ingredients and suggested uses). In extreme cases, a trace amount of Peppermint essential oil applied to the back of the roof of your mouth can bring fast and effective relief.

2. Upset Stomach or Digestive Stress

There are several essential oils that can assist with stomach upset and indigestion including Sweet Fennel, Ginger, Lemon, Peppermint, and Tea Tree. For relief from minor nausea and indigestion, place 1 drop of peppermint and 2 drops of sweet fennel in 24 oz of purified water. This also makes a cool, refreshing drink that you can use in place of plain drinking water. For stronger, faster relief of indigestion or nausea, add a drop of peppermint or ginger to a teaspoon of honey and place in a cup of hot water or herbal tea (Chamomile, Ginger, or Licorice Root tea will increase the effectiveness). For fast relief from diarrhea, add one drop of tea tree oil to a cup of chamomile or peppermint tea (or hot water if no tea is available but be prepared for the unpleasant taste). Repeat until discomfort subsides.

3. Headaches and/or Insomnia

Lavender essential oil is a remarkably effective antidote to minor headaches and accompanying muscle tension, and can provide a sense of calm when you have difficulty sleeping in a strange or uncomfortable place. For relief from migraine headaches try our Head Ache Blend, which combines lavender with peppermint (a cooling analgesic), marjoram (a sedative and muscle relaxant), basil, and chamomile, and comes already diluted in Jojoba oil for direct application to the affected areas (temples, forehead, brows and neck muscles). For insomnia, try our Sleep Ease Diffuser Blend, which combines lavender, tangerine, marjoram, spruce, and petitgrain.

With the exceptions of lavender and tea tree, undiluted essential oils should be used with a portable diffuser. If you’re camping or somewhere where you can’t use a diffuser, put a drop or two on a handkerchief or bandanna and wrap around your head or tuck under your pillow and breathe in the vapors. Don’t over-use.

4. Fatigue

Jet lag, stress, long drives, and extended sight seeing excursions (especially on foot) can lead to exhaustion and fatigue. The best way to deal with this is to pace yourself, try not to cram your schedule with more activities than you can realistically handle, eat a good amount of protein (preferably at breakfast), and always stay hydrated. Essential oils that can help are Eucalyptus (mental clarity) and Peppermint (stimulant) or try our Stay Alert Diffuser Blend, which includes both along with Rosemary, Cinnamon Leaf, Orange, and Cedar wood. Use this with a Car Scenter diffuser to help you stay awake during long drives. To relieve tired and achy feet, put a drop in a tepid foot bath, or several drops in a tablespoon of carrier oil for a stimulating foot massage.

5. Minor Cuts, Scrapes and Other Skin Eruptions

Minor wounds (i.e. splinters, hang nails, insect bites, blisters, cuts, scrapes and burns) need to be disinfected and treated immediately or they can lead to painful inflammation and a variety of uncomfortable skin eruptions. This is when Tea Tree oil can become a reliable and trusty friend! It kills bacteria, cleanses wounds, and promotes speedy healing. Like Lavender, it can be applied “neat” (directly) to the skin. Think of it as an invisible liquid band aid. Our Boo Boo Blend, which combines tea tree with lavender, geranium, and chamomile (anti-inflammatory) is an excellent choice as well. For sunburn relief combine 1 teaspoon of Lavender or Boo Boo blend with 4 oz of aloe vera juice and store in a spritzer bottle. Substitute 1 oz of peppermint hydrosol for the aloe juice to enhance the cooling effect. Shake well and spray liberally –as often as needed to reduce pain and speed healing.

To summarize, the four key essential oils you need in your travel kit are: Peppermint (headaches, fatigue, indigestion, and congestion), Eucalyptus (congestion and fatigue), Tea Tree (diarrhea, cuts and wounds, disinfectant), and Lavender (headaches, skin eruptions and burns, stress, muscle tension, insomnia).

Copyright 2009 Dropwise Essentials

Donya Fahmy, is a green business owner and the creator of Dropwise Essentials’ spa-quality aromatherapy body products that help you safely relieve stress, increase vitality, improve confidence, or simply manage your emotional state any time or place without popping a pill. For more free tips and valuable information visit http://www.dropwise.com and subscribe to the Dropwise Health & Beauty News Ezine or blog feed.

Recipe to Make Your Own Essential Oil

Essential Oils – A Holy Anointing Recipe For Christmas

Essential Oils – Creating Another Festive Anointing Recipe For Christmas

Christmas is a beautiful season to celebrate with healing fragrances such as those described in the Bible. There are several references to anointing with “myrrh, aloes, and cassia.” Psalm 45:8 and “I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes and cinnamon.” Proverbs 7:17

These are actually quite exotic fragrances and when put together in a blend can be very powerful physically and spiritually. At Christmas the fragrance of spices fill our homes, why not our churches as well?

First let’s examine the healing properties of these single oils.

Myrrh (Commiphora myrrha) was mentioned between 14-16 times depending on your Bible translation. This was the midwives oil in the Old Testament since it was used in childbirth to prevent infection. There are several references to its use for skin conditions, oral hygiene and embalming. Women believed it preserved a youthful look and is found today in some of the more expensive face creams. It is anti-infectious, antiviral, antiparasitic, anti-inflammatory, hormone-like and it supports the immune system. Myrrh is used for emotional releasing since it has a gentle calming effect and can instill deep tranquility, inner stillness and peace.

Aloes is actually the ancient name for Sandalwood (Santalum album). The sandalwood tree is actually a parasitic tree that grows off the roots of other trees. It was Nicodemus in the New Testament who came bringing a “mixture of myrrh and aloes, weighing about a hundred pounds” to embalm the body of Jesus. John 19:39 Sandalwood proved to be a great assistance in meditation and was considered an aphrodisiac. This is one of the oldest oils known for its spiritual qualities. It too is excellent for skin care and it enhances deep sleep. For the mind and spirit it can be clarifying and stilling.

Cassia (Cinnomomum cassia) is related to cinnamon (Cinnamomum verum) but is much sweater in its fragrance. Traditionally the ancient world used both cassia and cinnamon as ingredients in the holy anointing oil given to Moses and considered cassia and cinnamon as “oils of gladness” and “oils of joy” since they both have mood elevating effects. Cinnamon is the stronger of the two oils and tends to be harsh by comparison. Both are highly antibacterial, antiviral, anti-fungal and immune system builders.

Creating the Recipe

To create an anointing oil, be sure to use only therapeutic grade oils. Perfume oils can have alcohols, extenders and artificial fragrance. Myrrh and sandalwood are very gentle and can be used on the body without diluting. This is not true for either cassia or cinnamon which are both high in aldehydes and can burn the skin when used alone and not diluted. Since we will be adding enough myrrh and sandalwood to our blend recipe, it is not necessary to dilute with a vegetable oil unless you are creating an anointing oil for a healing service or Christmas service. In that case you can add the oils to a teaspoon of carrier oil like almond, jojoba or other vegetable oil.

• 12 drops of myrrh
• 10 drops of sandalwood
• 2-3 drops of cassia

Aromatherapy is an alternative to traditional medicine which uses unstable liquid plant resources known by the term “essential oils” and other scented mixtures from ingredients from plants for the function of enhancing the mood of the person or their state of health. Recent expert evidence has shown a number of known health issues will benefit from aromatherapy.

Aromatherapy is a general term that references a range of traditions that make use of essential oils often combined with other unconventional medical practices and spiritual ideologies. The most practical use of these products includes massaging products, medicine, or any topical purpose that incorporates the use of true, pure essential oils in their products.

What are Aromatherapy Oils?

Essential oils used in aromatherapy are different in chemical mix from other herbal products. Aromatherapy uses pure, natural, unmodified aromatic essences, (essential oils) and hydrosols (colloidal suspensions) that come from botanical material. These substances can have a broad range of therapeutic effects and actions on the body.

Many of us have already used these oils in our normal daily lives. Many toothpastes as well as mouth washes contain these oils, as do many special care products and perfumes. There are some baked goods that are made using essential oils. Aromatherapy involves the therapeutic usage of these oils for health purposes.

Aromatherapy implements the use of essences gleaned from plants, as it’s a botanical treatment, or plant remedy. Homeopathic treatments, herbal mixtures, and flower treatments are also examples of botanical therapeutics.

How are Aromatherapy Oils Used?

Aromatherapy oils can be useful in many different ways. They are handy to use and most aromatherapy applications only need the use of only a very small amount of oil.

Topical Application
Aromatherapy oils can be applied topically in the form of massage, alcohol rub, salt rub and compresses. In each case the essential oil must be combined with a “carrier oil” in a specific dilution ratio to aid application. Sweet almond, grape seed, and olive oils are all suitable carrier oils. Aromatherapy oils can also be added to bath salts, oils, or milk, and poured into a footbath or a bathtub.

Inhalation
Examples of inhalation methods using essential oils include diffusion using a nebulizer to spray a fine mist into the air, steam inhalation of vapors from oils put into hot water, or directly inhaling by adding drops of aromatherapy oils onto a tissue or cotton ball for inhalation, or by rubbing a couple of drops between the palms, and cupping over the nose and mouth.

Internal Use of Essential Oils
Using oils orally can be safe and effectual, but should only be done by those who have detailed knowledge of essential oils, or under the direction of an experienced Aromatherapist. Some very common oils like Eucalyptus are particularly toxic when taken internally.

Care and Safe Use of Aromatherapy Oils

There are some safety issues when handling and using aromatherapy oils because they are very concentrated so they can irritate the skin when used if not diluted with carrier oil. Many of these essential oils have chemical compounds that are sensitizers, which means that they will cause reactions to the skin following repeated use.

While some believe the intake of some essential oils to be beneficial, aromatherapy professionals do not propose self prescription due to the high toxic nature of some oils. Adulterated oils may also pose problems depending on the type of substance used.

Pure essential oils are natural products and are preservative and additive free, so storing and handling these products correctly is essential. A few of them can also be quite dangerous if not handled correctly. Basic procedures should therefore be taken in order to make sure of the safety issues and also the value of the oils in storage. Some aromatherapy oils are also highly flammable.

Observing these points will ensure the safe and pleasurable enjoyment of aromatherapy oils.

All of us will like to see ourselves well groomed and fit enough to look great and flaunt those athletic physiques among friends and relatives.

Unfortunately, it is not always possible for the most obvious reasons; we simply can not maintain our body weight. For some people the dilemma of being overweight starts first in the mind: It is all psychological and once the mind is healthy, the slimmer body will automatically follow. Mentally, aromatherapy can help you to fight stress and lift your mood.

The connection between smell and emotion are thought to be extremely close. Taking a deep breath of pleasant smells triggers positive reactions in the brain, resulting in a sense of wellbeing and goodness. We are all very unique. If oil works well for one person it doesn’t necessarily mean it will work the same for the next person. The way the oils are used could also make a difference; one person might benefit more by using the oils in the bath, rather than inhalation, massage or burning the oils.

The same theory holds good in case of human weight; more you feel good and hale, the more will be the care towards your physical well being. A regular aromatherapy session may help you achieve weight loss campaign, by increasing your sense of well-being and relaxation. However, aromatherapy cannot produce desired weight loss without you creating your own calorie deficit regime, either by eating a calorie-reduced weight loss diet, or by increasing calories burned through rigorous exercise, or more ideally by a combination of diet and exercise. Aromatherapy has proven to be very useful for this weight loss. This natural way of treating has no side effect at all as compared to other treatments.

Certain essential oils are very useful in weight loss trial, like Birch, Grapefruit, Juniper, Lemon, Orange, Tangerine, and Fennel. Massage is probably the best method and oils must be used with base oils like sweet almond, which makes oil less strong and easy to use. Applying oil to those places were fatty tissues are more, will really help to reduce the fat level and make your physique well shaped.

Essential oils used here are not only sweet smelling but have also the capacity to make your digestive system good, that in turn also helps in weight reduction. How ever, one must see that the oils used should be in moderate amount and mixed with carrier oil before using.

A calculated dosage, rigorous exercise-workout and a strict diet will go a long way in achieving a significant weight loss.