It's happening, y'all.
I'm getting oily. And crunchy.
And I'm getting oilier and crunchier by the second and there is no end in sight.
Essential oils have intrigued me for a few years. I've had friends and family members who have used them and loved them and sung their praises. I always listened intently to their testimonials and silently wondered if they could really be that phenomenal. I debated in my mind if oils really could be all they were cracked up to be or if the users were just crunchy, granola people who didn't use deodorant and and only bathed under the light of the full moon at winter solstice.
I've written before about how my youngest, Nathan, struggles with eczema. He's my Irish baby for sure and he's got the fair skin and red hair to prove it. Nathan's skin flared up last year and after a visit to our pediatrician, we got a prescription for some steriod creams that cleared it right up. His skin stayed clear for a week or so, then I noticed that his rashes were coming back. I hesitated to slather him up again with the prescription steroid, so I started looking for more natural alternatives to help his symptoms. I found an all natural baby cream made with lavender and chamomille that worked beautifully.
His skin stayed clear and I was relived to find that up until a few months ago, his eczema had stayed under control. But during the cold, wet Florida winter that we've had this year, his skin condition flared up. AGAIN. And that's when I decided to dip my toe into the essential oil pool and see if these things really were all they were cracked up to be.
And, SPOILER ALERT: They're awesome. I love them and love using them and love slathering myself and my kids and my family with them. Any time a new symptom presents itself, my gut reaction is: "Oooh, wait! I bet there's an oil for that!"
I've been fielding a lot of questions from my friends and family about my newfound oily disposition, so I figured I could take a minute to put (hopefully) all the answers in one place.
I'm getting oily. And crunchy.
And I'm getting oilier and crunchier by the second and there is no end in sight.
Essential oils have intrigued me for a few years. I've had friends and family members who have used them and loved them and sung their praises. I always listened intently to their testimonials and silently wondered if they could really be that phenomenal. I debated in my mind if oils really could be all they were cracked up to be or if the users were just crunchy, granola people who didn't use deodorant and and only bathed under the light of the full moon at winter solstice.
I've written before about how my youngest, Nathan, struggles with eczema. He's my Irish baby for sure and he's got the fair skin and red hair to prove it. Nathan's skin flared up last year and after a visit to our pediatrician, we got a prescription for some steriod creams that cleared it right up. His skin stayed clear for a week or so, then I noticed that his rashes were coming back. I hesitated to slather him up again with the prescription steroid, so I started looking for more natural alternatives to help his symptoms. I found an all natural baby cream made with lavender and chamomille that worked beautifully.
His skin stayed clear and I was relived to find that up until a few months ago, his eczema had stayed under control. But during the cold, wet Florida winter that we've had this year, his skin condition flared up. AGAIN. And that's when I decided to dip my toe into the essential oil pool and see if these things really were all they were cracked up to be.
And, SPOILER ALERT: They're awesome. I love them and love using them and love slathering myself and my kids and my family with them. Any time a new symptom presents itself, my gut reaction is: "Oooh, wait! I bet there's an oil for that!"
I've been fielding a lot of questions from my friends and family about my newfound oily disposition, so I figured I could take a minute to put (hopefully) all the answers in one place.
- Where'd you get them? I asked around and got several good recommendations. I decided to go with the line of essential oils put out by Eden's Garden. Not because the other suggestions weren't good ones, but because EG was available for immediate purchase online and because their line of oils fit better into my budget.
- Are they expensive? It depends on what you buy. I spent around $75 for everything I purchased, and that included shipping. You can pick and choose different sets and blends depending on your budget and your symptom treatment needs.
- Which ones did you buy? I got a starter oil set, a few lagniappe oils, and some organic, cold pressed coconut oil when I was getting started.
- Which ones should I buy? If you wanted to just buy one bottle of essential oil to try- I'd have to say, HANDS DOWN, to start with lavender. It.is.awesome. I use it at bedtime with my 3 year old and it helps settle her down like nobody's business. It's uses and treatments don't end there, either. Google it and find out for yourself!
- What do you use them for? Anything and everything. My initial aim was to treat Nathan's eczema. His skin cleared up so well that I started to look into other symptoms that essential oils could help treat. So far, I've treated eczema, sinus headaches, growing pains, restless sleep, migraines, runny noses, teething and a whole slew of other things with my oils.
- How do you know how to use them? I ask a lot of questions. I Google everything. I'm addicted to Pinterest. And it's a lot of trial and error. Before I've given anything to my kids, I've tried it on myself first. I've had some really good experiences with my oils and I've had some miserable failures. (I'll have to write one day about how NOT to use Peppermint oil. Tip: It doesn't take much. A little dab'll do ya.) I'm excited to see the benefits that are coming from switching out some of our traditional medicinal treatments to these natural alternatives. Especially if it'll be able to keep me from having to slather my baby in steroids for the next 17 years.
- Are you still wearing deodorant? YES. While I've come across several EO recipes for homemade, natural deodorant, I think I'll be sticking to my Dove for the time being. I'm getting crunchy sure, but just not that crunchy. Yet.
- Do you bathe under the light of a full moon? Ha! Well, the only thing I have planned to do underneath the light of a full moon is TO SLEEP. Because, behind oiling my family with all the things for all the reasons, sleeping is right there at the top of my favorite hobbies list.
Thanks for stopping by, y'all!
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