I love essential oils! They are nature’s medicine, which seems to have vanished with the advent of today’s pill popping lifestyle. In my opinion, I do not think there is enough education on these oils, so this is the first in the series “Essential Oil Spotlight”. I will help you learn how to apply the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual healing properties of plants into your daily lives.
First up: Peppermint!
An important note: there is a HUGE difference in essential oils you buy at places like Whole Foods and Walgreens. There are so many additional additives and synthetic properties that what you are buying may not really be beneficial and in some instances can be harmful. The key is using high-quality therapeutic grade essential oils.
Peppermint is one of the oldest and most highly regarded herbs for soothing digestive issues, like indigestion and heartburn. This is one reason why restaurants have a bowl full when you leave. Unfortunately, the true benefits of peppermint are lost with the added chemicals and sugar used to make those yummy hard candies.
Did you know this wonderful oil could also be used on fevers, headaches, congestion, allergies, arthritis and sore muscles? There are so many uses for peppermint in your everyday life! Young Living shares the following examples and methods.
- Indigestion / Flatulence / Diarrhea: Rub 4 – 6 drops of Peppermint oil in the palm and rub over the stomach and around the naval to relieve digestive issues.
- Heartburn: Add a drop of Peppermint oil to herbal tea to aid in digestion and relieve heartburn.
- Inflammation (unbroken skin): Massage several drops of Peppermint oil on an area of injury or chronic inflammation.
- Injuries Bruise (unbroken skin): Apply Peppermint oil immediately to an injured area (unbroken skin) – bruised shin, hit on the foot or hand – to relieve pain. If there is a cut, apply the Peppermint oil around but not on the open wound.
- Fever. Rub several drops of Peppermint oil on the bottoms of the feet to reduce fever.
- Itching: Apply a drop of Peppermint oil topically on unbroken skin to stop itching.
- Poison Ivy / Poison Oak: Apply Peppermint oil on location full-strength or dilute with V-6 vegetable mixing oil.
- Working Out: Inhale Peppermint oil before and during a workout to boost your mood and reduce fatigue.
- Nausea: Massage several drops of Peppermint oil on the abdomen to relieve nausea.
- Headache: To relieve a headache, rub a drop of Peppermint oil on the temples, forehead, over the sinuses (stay away from the eyes) and on the back of the neck.
- Hiccups: To stop hiccups, apply a drop of Peppermint oil on each side of the fifth cervical vertebra (up three notches from the large vertebra at the base of the neck).
- Alertness/Concentration: Place 2 drops of Peppermint oil on the tongue and rub another drop under the nose to improve alertness and concentration.
- Concentration / Recall: Diffuse Peppermint oil in the room while studying to improve concentration and accuracy. Inhale Peppermint oil while taking a test to improve recall.
- Travel Sickness: Rub 4 drops of Peppermint oil on the chest and stomach to relieve travel sickness.
- Congestion: Place a drop of Peppermint oil on the tongue and inhale into the nose and sinuses to relieve congestion from a cold.
- Flavoring / Preservative: Add Peppermint oil to food as a flavoring and preservative.
- Rodents / Ants / Cockroaches: To deter rodents, ants or cockroaches, place two drops of Peppermint oil on a cotton ball and place along the path or point of entry for these pest.
Imagine reaching for a bottle of peppermint oil v.s. Advil. How would that impact your body? Let me tell you how it impacted me just last week.
- I had a bad headache, so I rubbed some of it on my temples and wrists. In about 30 minutes my headache was gone and I didn’t have to pop a pill.
- In that same week I was completely nauseous. I hate feeling sick to my stomach, but instead of reaching for Pepto, I put 1 drop of peppermint oil on my thumb and put it on the roof of my mouth for 30 seconds. After a few minutes I was fine. Bonus: Instant breath refresher!
If we are open to it, Mother Nature has given us a lot of different tools to help us for our every day needs. One such tool to help us in our journey of healing is therapeutic grade essential oils. I highly recommend incorporating these into your day-to-day lives. After much research, I trust and only use Young Living Essential Oils.
Young Living is the only company that has strict guidelines controlling the process from seed to seal because they own their farms instead of outsourcing. They are also in the process of being certified USDA organic and currently use their own essential oils as pesticide.
You don’t have to be an expert in aromatherapy or herbs to add them to your medicine cabinet. I have a reference guide that I use constantly. I can look up the oils and certain health issues and this guide tells me what oils to use and how! It’s so easy and I love it because the information makes me feel empowered.
Bottom line I love essential oils and anything peppermint! I want to hear from you though. Do you use oils? If so, what’s your favorite?