Respectful Vigilance HC

This article is about essential oils. These things really are awesome. The name is a bit confusing; I think. Are they really essential? A lot of people do not use them and get by. However, if you want to have easy access to high quality natural medicines, they are a great thing to stock up on.

For those that do not know already, essential oils are basically concentrated oils of specific plant materials like herbs, spices, woods, flowers, resins, etc. They come in very small bottles. But do not let that fool you. These things are very concentrated and can be quite powerful. There are oils of common kitchen herbs like basil, oregano, and rosemary. There are many wood-based oils which smell great like cedar, cypress, or sandalwood. There are spices like cinnamon, clove, nutmeg. There are even oils to enhance spirituality and meditation like myrrh and frankincense. If you have ever heard the term “aromatherapy,” this just means smelling or diffusing these oils. When inhaled these can have awesome benefits. Speaking of benefits, essential oils basically have all the benefits that using herbs and spices would be. These depend on what oil is being used. There can be cardiovascular benefits, stress related, sleep, digestive, mental health, etc. Essential oils can be great for those trying to transition out a lot of medications and into a more herbal way of doing things. Sure, right out of the garden is probably even better, but how many people are going to put the effort into making sure they have fresh garden herbs and spices most of the time? There are some different opinions out there on how you can or should take these oils, but I will share 3 ways that I believe in and find useful.

1. The simplest and cost-effective method to use essential oils is just to smell them! Open the bottle, take several whiffs, and close it up. I have found that anywhere between 5-10 direct inhalations is ideal. One breath will not get much and more than about 15 can be a bit much.

2. Taken internally via fluids or other methods. This is a topic of debate. There are people that oppose taking essential oils internally and those that believe it can be helpful. I am in the camp that believes it can be helpful and very beneficial if done in a smart way. There is nothing poisonous about high quality essential oils. They are just concentrated, and you have been watching the dose. My current favorite way of using them is in coffees and teas. For example, I may use a few drops of peppermint, cinnamon, or clove oil in my coffee. Teas would be more kitchen herbs like rosemary, basil, oregano. Would recommend using a little something like sugar, honey, or creamer to cut the oils a bit. You do not need much. 3-5 drops are usually enough. The reason I like using essential oils internally is because the medicine gets into the blood stream in a different way than when you simply smell them.

3. The third method that I can recommend when it comes to essential oils is to use them in massage therapy. You need a carrier oil for this because a lot of essential oils are too potent to be used directly on skin without this. There are a lot of premade oil blends for massage, or you can make your own. This step also requires that you do self-massage or go to a studio. The benefits of this method are that the essential oils are rubbed directly onto the skin and get into the muscles. So very helpful for these things. They also can absorb into other areas as well. This can be a highly relaxing and therapeutic way to use oils.

To summarize, I think that essential oils are pretty much awesome when used properly. They can be a bit pricey for high quality oils and need to be conserved. But a nice bottle can last quite a while as you only use a few drops at a time. Keeping essential oils is basically like keeping a natural medicine toolkit. They generally do not go bad as long as you keep the lid on them when not in use. They are also extremely convenient and travel well. The benefits are too numerous to list. The only cautions would be to watch for allergies, do not use more than necessary, and watch expenditures.

Hopefully this article helps explain to some people that do not know about oils as well as inspires and motivates those that do to get back to their practice.

-Joe