Aromatherapy and the use of essential oils for pressure sores.

It's always interesting how you seem to meet people with similar concerns in cycles. When you're pregnant or you know someone who is pregnant, all you see are pregnant ladies. Well lately I seem to have met or spoken to a lot of people who have friends or relatives who are bedridden or wheelchair bound. These people face many challenges, one of which is the integrity of their skin. Being so immobile causes pressure sores and the breakdown of the skin's integrity. Essential oils have been shown to be wonderful in helping to cope with this ongoing problem. While we may not be able to reverse the reasons why someone is bedridden or wheelchair bound, how wonderful that we can offer them something that will at least improve their quality of life and their comfort.

You can read more about Bed Sores in an article I have on my website, as well as Articles Page you will also find links to mini profiles of many of the essential oils mentioned in both articles.

An interesting article was published in the Journal of Wound Care, Issue 11(8): 317-320, 2002, by Hartman D, Coetzee J C.

Two US practitioners’ experience of using essential oils for wound care.
The effects of essential oils on chronic ulcers (grade II or above) of three months duration or longer that had not responded to at least two conventional wound care treatments were evaluated. Eight patients were recruited who possessed a total of nine wounds of between three months to two years duration. The wounds, regardless of whether they were pressure or vascular-related, were assessed using the US NPUAP guidelines that are based on depth and visual characteristics. The treatment consisted of applying a 6% solution of Lavandula angustifolia and Matricaria recutita essential oils (2:1) in grapeseed oil directly onto the wound, around the wound border and to the primary wound dressing. This was applied twice daily and covered with a dressing and outer gauze wrapping. A visible improvement in the patients occurred each week, with their wounds healing more quickly than the controls. Two patients were fully healed after 77 and 79 days and another after 176 days. A patient who initially acted as his own control requested that the control wound be treated with essential oils after 56 days, since it was getting progressively worse. This healed 308 days later. His other wound, a grade IV ulcer, did not fully heal but reduced in size from 3.5 x 4 cm to 1.6 x 1.9 cm after 420 days. Of the remaining two control subjects, one did not heal whilst the second healed after 182 days. It was noted that all of the wounds treated with essential oils worsened for the first two weeks, with increased exudate and erythema, before they began to heal. None of these wounds became infected during the trial.

Thinking of making up a present in time for Father's Day? There is still time to do this and I have lots of easy and fun recipes in my e-Book Aromatic Gifts for all ages and for all seasons.


Blend for the day: Grapefruit 5 drops, Lavender 3 drops, Vetiver 1 drop.

Essential Oils and Weight Loss

Now that the weather is finally warming up and we're starting to wear lighter clothes people's minds often tend to turn to those extra pesky pounds accumulated during the cooler months.

We all know how big 'weight loss' products are here in North America and I'm not suggesting that we put essential oils into this category. What I am suggesting is that essential oils can be incorporated into your overall weight loss program to help one keep on track and achieve one's goals. For a successful weight loss program one will always need to incorporate the two key elements of good nutrition and exercise. However there are many different reasons why we put on weight, and when there is an emotional element underlying this weight gain, if we truly want to take the weight off and keep it off we need to address the emotions. Essential oils can certainly help us do that. You can read more in my little article on Essential Oils and Weight Loss on the website. You will also find a couple of blends for emotional eating and a couple of blends for appetite suppressants on the web site Blends for Weight Loss. You will find mini profiles for many of the oils mentions on the Articles Page on the web site.

My own challenges with weight gain can have an emotional component to them, but I find that once that has resolved if I'm not careful my extra eating becomes simply a habit. My occasional after dinner treat of a chocolate bar, doesn't always stay occasional. I find when I'm busy and not really paying attention it can become an every night routine, and then a habit which is more difficult to break. I'm no longer eating or snacking for comfort, simply because it's a habit. Sniffing my inhaler of peppermint can be enough to help me break the habit. If you don't have access to personal inhalers, just put a drop or two on a tissue or cotton ball and have it ready for sniffing as needed.

My diffuser blend for today: Lavender 3 drops, Bergamot 2 drops, Rosalina 1 drop.

Roman Chamomile - Chamaemelum nobile

What a wonderfully versatile oil Roman Chamomile is. It is safe and gentle and can be used on everyone from babies and those who fragile to those who are in excellent health.

Roman Chamomile is great for conditions affecting smooth muscle which can be attested to by its long tradition and history of being used for digestive complaints. It is a very effective analgesic as well. A mini profile on Chamomile can be found on the website.

On a subtle level it can help to promote feelings of being at peace with your self and can transform negative feelings of self-disgust, anger, loneliness, abandonment and grief. Chamomile can provide assistance to earth-bound beings afraid of going into the light. If one finds oneself in the presence of a ghost, Chamomile may be used to create a vibratory field of love around a deceased spirit. The call on the Angelic Realm to help open a pillar of light to help the Spirit make the transformation. Chamomile calms and balances the emotions. It promotes calm acceptance of one’s own limitations and eases the tensions associated with excessive ego such as frustration and resentment. It promotes patience. Roman Chamomile can assist one to find one’s spiritual path. It can be used when one is confused about one’s spiritual values and it will help one to speak to others about one’s spiritual perspective. It also helps one to become more patient with one’s mistakes and setbacks on one’s spiritual path. Chamomile can be used for its soothing quality of bringing harmony and peace to the spirit. It can be used when the spirit is sad.

It is best to avoid this during the first trimester of pregnancy.

My diffuser blend for the day: 1 drop Roman chamomile; 5 drops Lavender.

Essential Oils and Mother's Day

The ancient Greeks honored mothers in their annual spring festival dedicated to Rhea, the Mother of the Gods. They would pay tribute with honey-cakes, fine drinks and flowers at dawn. An earlier version of the present day Mother's Day tradition of breakfast in bed. Early Christians celebrated this festival on the fourth Sunday of Lent in honor of the Virgin Mary. In England this tradition expanded to include all mothers and was called Mothering Sunday. Servants were given the day off and were encouraged to spend it with their mothers. When the English settled in America, they brought with them many of their traditions but this one did not survive. In 1872 Julia Ward Howe, an American writer, organized a day in honor of mothers dedicated to peace. While this didn't become a tradition, it created the spark that inspired Anna Jarvis, a Philadelphia schoolteacher to petition to have a Mother's Day formally recognized. She chose the second Sunday in May as this was the anniversary of her mother's death. She wrote many letters and campaigned hard until 1914 Woodrow Wilson proclaimed Mother's Day a National Holiday. The tradition of wearing or the giving of carnations was also started by Anna Jarvis. Carnations where her mother's favorite flower and a white carnation was given to everyone at the service. Today white carnations are given to those whose mother's are deceased and colored carnations to those whose mothers are still alive.

A Mother's Day tradition that comes from Anna Jarvis is the wearing or giving of carnations. The carnation was her mother's favorite flower. A colored carnation is worn by those whose mothers are living, while a white one is worn by those whose mothers are deceased.

So which essential oils do we want to use to create a blend that captures all our mother's mean to us?

While there is an absolute available of carnation it is not freely available and it is pretty expensive so let's forget about that for now. What else can we use?

• We could try and approximate the aroma of a carnation by blending 2 drops ylang ylang and 3 drops black pepper or 3 drops ylang ylang, 1 drop rose, 6 drops black pepper.
• We could also put together a blend that is made up of our own or our mother's favorite aromas. This will be unique and different for each of us.
• We could put together a blend of essential oils that encompasses the 'essence' of the mother archetype. Oils one could consider include: cistus, fennel, frankincense, jasmine, marjoram, myrtle, neroli, patchouli, rose and ylang ylang .

Whatever you choose to do have fun with it and create something that is special for you and your family.

If you are looking for a nice gift to make for your mother for Mother's Day there is still time to do this and I have lots of easy and fun recipes in my e-Book Aromatic Gifts for all ages and for all seasons.

In my blender today is the mock carnation blend of : 3 drops ylang ylang, 1 drop rose and 6 drops black pepper. I'll try the other mock blend tomorrow and on Friday I'll play around with some of the oils from the 'essence' of the mother archetype. By Sunday I'll have my blend. Hope you all do too!