How To Use Essential Oils * Wild As The Wind Shop

How To Use Essential Oils

This is a comprehensive guide to using essential oils. It provides detailed instructions on how to use essential oils safely and effectively to restore and enhance your health and well being.

Inhaling Essential Oils – straight from the bottle
Diffusing Essential Oils
Bathing With Essential Oils
Local Topical Application Of Essential Oils
Taking Essential Oils Internally
Aromatherapy Massage
Steaming Essential Oils The Old Fashioned Way
Cooking With Essential Oils
Using Pre-Blended Essential Oil Products
Spotting Essential Oils On Your Pillow
Bonus: Applying Essential Oils To Your Clothes

Diluting Essential Oils
Essential Oil Usage Rules Of Thumb
Useful Guidelines For Essential Oil Use
Making Massage Oil
Making Face Oil
Ointments & Salves
Phototoxic Essential Oils
Essential Oils & Pregnancy
Common Emmenagogue Essential Oils
Abortifacient Essential Oils
Essential Oil Safety For Babies & Children

10 Different Ways Of Using Essential Oils

There are many different ways in which to effectively use essential oils, but the most common method is inhalation.

1. Inhaling Essential Oils

There is nothing like inhaling deeply from an open essential oil bottle for instant results. We can very quickly influence our emotional state by inhaling aromatherapy oils directly from the bottle.

Essential oils affect our mood in different ways. Some aromatherapy oils reduce anxiety and depression, some help balance our hormones, whilst others relieve tension and inflammation, restoring relaxation and focus.

There are many essential oils which can positively impact mood. Some of the most common essential oils for uplifting our spirits are:

*Please note, there are many varieties of the essential oils listed above in the Wild As The Wind Shop. As well as Organic, Ethically Sourced and Wildcrafted variations there’s also six different types of Lavender Essential Oil, five different types of Ylang Ylang Essential Oil, four different Mint Essential Oils, three Rosemary, two Vetivert, but only one, rather amazing Organic Sweet Orange Essential Oil!

Re-Sensitising Our Olfactory Nerves

There is even a scientific basis for inhaling essential oils directly from the bottle to recover a loss of smell, aka anosmia.

Research using the following essential oils determined that repetitive use, several times a day, will restore olfactory nerves to proper function in many cases.

As Organic Rose Otto Essential Oil is prohibitively expensive for many it is possible to use a small bottle of FACIAL OIL No. 2, which contains Organic Rose Otto Essential Oil, lending it it’s prevailing scent.

Keep your training kit easily accessible throughout the day.
Open one of the oils and hold it close to your nose. Sniff for about 20 seconds and focus on what you are doing. If you’re smelling lemon, try to recall your experience of lemon.
After finishing the first one, move onto the rest of the oils, repeating the process.
Repeat several times a day.

“Smell training is not a far-fetched notion,” explains Nancy Rawson, a cell biologist at the Monell Chemical Senses Center: “It is based on years of learning how the olfactory and nervous systems work, and specifically, how nerve cells — and especially olfactory nerve cells — are generated or maintained.”

When working with the Rose Otto aroma in FACIAL OIL No. 2, simply place one drop of face oil on your finger tips and rub them gently together, directly beneath your nose, and inhale deeply for 20 seconds. Then apply to your face.

2. Diffusing Essential Oils

Diffusing essential oils has grown in popularity immensely in recent years.

Hopefully this marks a permanent departure from such a strong reliance on harmful synthetic chemicals and fragrances to fumigate and scent our homes.

Caution is advised around pets, however. Cats are intolerant of essential oils owing to the absence of an enzyme needed to assimilate essential oils, and dogs have issues with certain essential oils as well. Please read Essential Oil Toxicity For Pets for more information.

Please be aware that, whilst certain essential oils are not suitable for use around cats and dogs, there are no synthetic fragrances which are suitable for use around your pets, your children, your partner, and yourself. They are toxic to everyone.

Using A Diffuser

Using an essential oil diffuser is very straightforward; simply add water and a few drops of your favourite essential oils and switch on.

Essential oil diffusers vaporise your essential oils after you have placed them with a good amount of water in the reservoir inside your diffuser. Essential oil diffusers also ionize the atmosphere.

The beauty of diffusers is that you can add several different aromatherapy oils at one time, making it preferable to inhalation if you want to work with more than one essential oil at a time.

Because essential oils can be antimicrobial, antibacterial, antifungal, and antiviral, diffusing them means that these properties are carried to the nooks and crannies of your home, helping to keep infectious elements under control.

3. Bathing With Essential Oils

Most people believe that adding ten or so drops of essential oil to your bath, as you are drawing it, will do the trick. This isn’t the case.

By the time you enter your bath most of the essential oil will have gone up in a puff of steam. This is why I advise people to add their essential oils to their bath once they are in it.

But that’s not all. You need a good organic base oil to anchor your aromatherapy oils to ensure they deliver their benefits to your skin. Plus, most essential oils are not suitable for topical use until they are properly diluted.

Please refer to Diluting Essential Oils below for more information.

4. Local Topical Application Of Essential Oils

Applying concentrated aromatherapy dilutions to small areas of the skin is a great way of remedying certain topical and internal conditions.

Using a 3% dilution of Peppermint Essential Oil, within a good carrier oil, to rub into your abdomen to help ease indigestion is ideal. Switch to Oregano if parasites or bacterial infection is suspected. Learn more here :: Organic Nigella Sativa Oil

A 5% dilution, of something like Thieves 2020 Essential Oil Blend, is ideal for use on smaller areas of skin, to disinfect a wound or help with a bacterial or fungal infection etc. Switch to Lavender Aromatherapy Oil for small cooking burns etc.

5. Taking Essential Oils Internally

A good number of essential oils can be taken internally, but some aromatherapy oils absolutely cannot! Do not use essential oils internally until you have a good working knowledge of essential oils.

Citrus essential oils are some of the safest for internal consumption. I advocate adding a drop of Organic Orange Essential Oil to your drinking water 20 minutes before a meal to aid your digestion. It tastes delicious too.

Some people prefer to address inflammatory issues by taking aromatherapy oils like Copaiba Balsam, Gurjum or Hemp Essential Oil internally.

But there are many conditions which benefit from the internal consumption of essential oils. Please refer to Essential Oils For Internal Consumption for more information.

6. Aromatherapy Massage

Using relaxing oil blends for full body massages, or partial body massages, are an ideal way to absorb the healing benefits of the essential oils used.

Because massage oils are used over broad areas of the body it is usual to restrict them to a 1% or 2% dilution.

7. Steaming Essential Oils The Old Fashioned Way

Adding 4 or 5 drops of essential oils to a near boiling bowl of water before placing your face about 12 inches / 25 centimeters above the bowl, with a towel over your head, is ideal if you have a cold or flu, a headache or sinusitis.

Thieves 2020 Essential Oil Blend would be ideal for most of the above, but switch to Frankincense Serata Essential Oil or German Chamomile Essential Oil for easing headaches.

8. Cooking With Essential Oils

Most people have used the odd citrus essential oil in their baking but many haven’t ventured further than this.

However, using a drop of Citronella Essential Oil or Lemongrass Essential Oil instead of the spice is a quick workaround which works really well.

The same is true of using Rosemary Essential Oil. However, when it comes to using Thyme Essential Oil and especially Oregano Essential Oil caution is advised. These oils are tremendously potent and can easily overpower a dish. Sometimes it’s a lot safer and, to be quite honest, better to use the actual herbs and spices rather than essential oils.

If you are determined to experiment, however, it pays to research your recipe well before reaching for your aromatherapy oils.

9. Pre-Blended Essential Oil Products

Much of what is written in point 4, re the local topical application of essential oils, applies here. The only difference is you don’t have to worry about getting the dilutions of essential oils right. Plus pre-blended essential oil products come with usage instructions and so there’s less scope for misusing them than with your own blends.

the drawback is that pre-blended oils tend to be more expensive than the cost of the ingredients, and you may only need a small amount of the product which can lead to waste and unnecessary expense,

On balance, it is far better to blend your own essential oils as and when you need them, but a good solid basic understanding of blending oils is vital. But don’t worry, it’s all pretty straightforward. It really isn’t rocket science!

10. Spotting Essential Oils On Your Pillow

This is one of the quickest and easiest ways of working with essential oils. And, it’s great for kids.

Dropping a single drop of Lavender Essential Oil onto a child’s pillow at bedtime will really help them relax and fall asleep.

Pure Lavender Essential Oil will not stain your pillowcases. Because aromatherapy oils are made up of volatile oils many of them evaporate leaving no trace. This is certainly true of a pure Organic Lavender Essential Oil.

However, another aromatherapy oil which is very popular for aiding relaxation and sleep, Vetivert Essential Oil, is viscous and very dark in colour. This resinous oil will stain if you use it on your bed linen. It always pays to check which essential oils will stain and which ones won’t prior to applying them to pillows and clothing.

11. Bonus: Applying Essential Oils To Your Clothes

Patchouli Essential oil is as popular as ever for it’s seductive aroma. Many of us remember that ‘Bikers’ used to put Patchouli Essential Oil on their leather jackets back in the 70’s and 80’s, but this practice still continues to this day… And, it’s not just bikers… many woman apply this oil to their handbags, and men add it to their wallets and the lining of jackets made of fabric. (Patchouli Essential Oil stains.)

Other essential oils with a lingering aroma are the very alluring Sandalwood Mysore Essential Oil and Myrrh Essential Oil.

Diluting Essential Oils

Essential oils can seem a little pricey until we realise that all we need is a 1% to 5% essential oil dilution to achieve the health giving benefits of any essential oil.

But, what is diluting essential oils all about?

Aromatherapy oils need to be diluted in a good Organic Carrier Oil before they can safely be applied topically. Some pure essential oils will actually burn our skin if applied undiluted, and others cause sensitivities and allergic reactions.

Using undiluted essential oils on our skin can sensitise us to these essential oils over time. Sensitisation means that we become intolerant to these essential oils and cannot safely use them in any form after sensitisation has taken place. This must be avoided at all costs!

Some essential oils are so antibacterial that they will kill antibiotic-resistant bacterial strains. For this reason alone it is important to use aromatherapy oils with respect, and avoid sensitisation… one day you may need them to save your life!

Besides… essential oils are costly. The making of essential oils requires the use of a lot of plant matter, and so there’s an environmental cost to making aromatherapy oils. Why would we want to waste our money, as well as potentially cause negative environmental consequences, by using excessive amounts of essential oil, even if it were safe to do so?

Using a sparing amount will do the job perfectly!

What Carrier Oils Should I use To Dilute Essential Oils?

The most commonly used carrier oil for diluting essential oils is Organic Sweet Almond Essential Oil, Sweet Almond is ideal for dilutions for general use.

If you are making a facial cleanser/ makeup remover the bast base oil for this purpose is Organic Jojoba Oil.

Read how to make the best Makeup Remover ever.

Some of the most nourishing base oils to use for diluting essential oils are:

**You only need a 10% dilution of Sea Buckthorn Oil or Organic Rosehip Oil for optimal benefit.

*** Sea Buckthorn Oil is a deep amber colour and will stain your skin if used at more than a 20% concentration..

How To Dilute Essential Oils

Diluting essential oils couldn’t be simpler. Just measure out your base oil, (aka carrier oil), and then add your essential oils at the correct dilution for the specific application you require them for.

Follow the advice in the general rule of thumb section directly below as well as the individual sections beneath this:

Making Massage Oil
Making Facial Oil
Making Ointments & Salves

Essential Oil Usage Rules Of Thumb

It is always best to follow the instructions on your essential oil bottles as directions can vary from one essential oil to another. However, it also pays to refer to a trusted reference book or website for additional information on blending specific essential oils.

For example, it is only safe to use Organic Rose Otto Essential Oil in very small amounts owing to it’s Eugenol content, but other essential oils, like Tea Tree Essential Oil and Lavender Essential Oil are much safer to use in higher amounts.

Useful Guidelines For Essential Oil Use

1 ml of essential oil = 20 drops of essential oil

The maximum safe dilution of essential oils to carrier oil is a dilution of 7%

The following measurements are based on the teachings of Jen O’Sullivan, who always makes it clear her measurements are not treatment advice, and are simply a statement of safe usage of essential oils.

It is safe to use 12 drops or less of any combination of essential oils per day.

Up to 40 or 50 drops of any combination of essential oils can be used acutely for one or two days without adverse effects, but then must be stopped.

One drop is usually considered a single serving of essential oils.

What works for one person may not work for another… so, it’s important to experiment within the bounds of safety, as detailed above.

Making Massage Oil

When blending an oil for topical use on a large area of your body it’s important to aim for a 1% dilution or less. This means that the resultant massage oil will be maximally 1% essential oil to 99% carrier oil.

Making Face Oil

When blending an oil for the exclusive use on your face you should aim for a 2% dilution or less.

However, the Wild As The Wind FACIAL OILS are blended using some very healing, but very expensive essential oils, as well as several nutrient dense expensive base oils. Buying the ingredients separately would cost you several hundred pounds, and would leave you with ingredients which you wouldn’t be able to fully use before their ‘use by’ date was reached.

My advice where face oils are concerned is this:

It’s great to make your own massage and treatment oils, but it’s best leaving the making of your face oil to the experts.

Making Treatment Oils

When treating a small area of your skin, or finger and toenails etc, you can mix an oil blend containing up to 5% essential oil content.

No oil blend should exceed a 7% dilution, meaning no more than a 7% essential oil concentration within the base oil, for example, if you have a 100ml bottle of treatment oil, the maximum dilution of essential oil within this blend would be 7ml.

However most treatment oils and preparations for using on a small area of the body are diluted at 5%.

This means that a 100ml bottle of blended oil would be 95ml carrier oil and 5% essential oil. For example, Thieves Oil 2020 is 95% Organic Nigella Sativa Oil and the essential oil content is as follows:

Organic Rosemary Essential Oil : 1%
Organic Thyme Red Essential Oil : 1%
Organic Clove Bud Essential Oil : 1%
Organic Cinnamon Leaf Essential Oil : 1%
Organic Oregano Essential Oil : 1%

1ml of essential oil is equivalent to approximately 20 drops of essential oil

Please refer to the disclaimer in the footer for more information about the purpose of this article. Thank you.

Phototoxic Essential Oils

There are a number of phototoxic essential oils which can cause severe burns if your skin is exposed to the sun after use. For example, many of the citrus essential oils, including Lemon Essential Oil, Lime Essential Oil and Grapefruit Essential Oil are all Phototoxic.

Organic Sweet Orange Essential Oil is not naturally photooxic, however. This is why it has been added to FACIAL OIL No. 2, as it is excellent at reducing oxidative stress and very healing for our skin, like many of the citrus essential oils.

Another essential oil which is safe to use regardless of sun exposure is Organic Bergamot FCF Essential Oil. But, Bergamot Essential Oil in it’s natural state IS phototoxic. It’s only Bergamot FCF Essential Oil which has had the phototxic furocoumarin constituent removed via steam distillation; known as bergaptene

Bergaptene free Bergamot Essential Oil is known as Bergamot FCF Essential Oil.

**Wild As The Wind does not sell the phototoxic forms of Bergamot Essential Oil.

Phototoxic Aromatherapy Oils List

Angelica Root Essential Oil
Bergamot Essential Oil when cold pressed
Bitter Orange Essential Oil when cold pressed
Cumin Essential Oil
Grapefruit Essential Oil when cold pressed
Lemon Essential Oil when cold pressed
Lime Essential Oil when cold pressed
Mandarin Leaf Essential Oil
Opopanax Essential Oil
Rue Essential Oil
Tagetes Essential Oil

***The steam distillation of the the peel / rind of citrus fruits removes the phototoxic constituents from these oils. However, citrus oils are normally extracted via a process of cold pressing.

Essential Oils & Pregnancy

Certain essential oils are not suitable for use during pregnancy and breast feeding.

This is often due to there being insufficient research to support the safe use of these essential oils during pregnancy and lactation. However, in most cases there is also no evidence to suggest that the essential oils are in any way detrimental to the health of mother and baby.

General Essential Oils To Be Avoided During Pregnancy

This list is comprised of essential oils that may cause issues for a foetus or embryo, or that have been insufficiently studied to know whether they are safe during pregnancy or not.

This list is NOT exhaustive

Common Emmenagogue Essential Oils

Emmenagogues are substances which increase pelvic bleeding. Emmenagogic essential oils are excellent for difficult periods and menstrual pain as they help with the expulsion of blood.

A lot of period pain is caused by clotted blood trying to make it’s way out of the Uterus. The Cervix is the exit point. But the Cervix is only the size of a pin prick, and so clotted blood causes pain.

However, Emmenagogues MUST be avoided during pregnancy.

Abortifacient Essential Oils

KEY:

* toxic

** high in apiol and toxic

*** convulsant

**** carcinogenic

***** neurotoxin

Mugwort Essential Oil*
Parsley Seed Essential Oil**
Pennyroyal Essential Oil*
Rue Essential Oil*
Sage Essential Oil***
Sassafras Essential Oil* ****
Savin Essential Oil*
Thuja Essential Oil* *****
Tansy Essential Oil* *****
Wormwood Essential Oil* *** *****

Essential Oil Safety For Babies & Children

Essential oil safety for the under 14’s is a very important consideration. It is not wise to expose young children to any substances and traumas that will interfere with their normal development.

There are many substances which will interfere with the proper development of a child’s natural immune system.

Many household chemicals, found in household cleaners etc, and prescription medicines, such as antibiotics, severely interfere with the normal development of a child’s natural immune system. Essential oils will be less disruptive, but any disruption to normal development should be avoided wherever possible.

Over use and over-exposure to essential oils is also to be avoided as too much of a good thing is always bad for us.

The recommended usage amounts of essential oils varies considerably within different age bands among the under 14’s.

I have written a separate article dedicated to this subject.

Essential Oil Safety For Babies & Children

Disclaimer

The information provided is not intended to replace the medical directives of your healthcare provider. This information is not meant for the diagnosis of health issues. If you are pregnant, have serious or multiple health concerns, consult with your healthcare provider before using essential oils or associated products. If you experience any complications or adverse reactions contact your healthcare provider.

Deepen your knowledge by using the Wild As The Wind Recommended Resources

Another resource you may find useful is :: Best Healthcare and Skincare Information Sources.

Wild As The Wind use a number of resources when deciding which essential oil formulas to put together for optimal healing and efficacy, as well as to support any health claims we may make.

We use the industry ‘bible’ on essential oil safety: Essential Oil Safety: A Guide for Health Care Professionals [2nd Edition] by Robert Tisserand and Rodney Young, to establish the safety of the Wild As The Wind formulations.

We owe a particular debt to GreenMedInfo, and, of course, the teachings of Valerie Ann Worwood, Julia Lawless, Shirley Price and Patricia Davis et al.

Many of the scientific studies used to inform the claims made on this website are via GreenMedInfo, as well as via Dr. Josh Axe as well as, on the odd occasion, Dr. Eric Zielinski

Other resources include:

PubMed
WebMD
Robert Tisserand & Rodney Young
Dr. Robert Pappas
Dr. Maria Lis-Balchin
Robbi Zeck

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How To Use Essential Oils