Essential Oils and the Mind

HOW DO ESSENTIAL OILS AFFECT THE MIND?

Your sense of smell is much more accurate than any of your other senses. Your ability to smell comes from sensory cells called Olfactory Sensory Neurons, found in a small patch of tissue very high in your nose. Those cells connect to your brain.

Each of those sensory neurons has one odor receptor – and molecules released by substances around us stimulate these receptors. Once your neurons detect your molecules, they send messages to your limbic lobe of your brain.

Our sense of smell is 10,000 more sensitive than our other senses. Scent travels faster to the brain with smell than it does with sight, or even sound.

The limbic lobe is a group of brain structures that is below the cortex of the brain – it includes the amygdala and the hippocampus. Your limbic lobe (system of brain structures) is directly connected to the parts of your brain that control many aspects of your body – hormone levels, stress, memory, breathing, heart rate, and more.

The only way to stimulate the emotional brain is through your sense of smell – which is one of the reasons why Essential Oils can work so incredibly well. Feelings of depression, fear, anger, happiness, joy and even anxiety all originate from the limbic lobe of the brain.

Essential Oils can help alleviate symptoms at a cellular level through their therapeutic properties–because that stimulation of hormones and chemicals can drastically affect physiology and behavior.

Essential Oils can be stimulating (Peppermint), calming (Lavender), sedative (Cedarwood), balancing (Frankincense, and so much more.

My Top Five for Emotions:

?Roman Chamomile: Helps support feelings of peace, love and acceptance.

?Cedarwood: Helps support healthy focus and encouragement while also grounding.

?Lavender: Helps support relaxation and calming. This one also helps with communicating feelings.

?Bergamot: Uplifting and will help support healthy confidence levels. This one also helping foster self love and self worth.

?Frankincense: Powerful cleanser of the spirit – grounding and can help during times of negativity.

REFERENCES:
How do Essential Oils Affect our Mind and Our Emotions. Retrieved from http://www.biospiritual-energy-healing.com/essential-oils-affect-our-minds.html

Want to learn more? Check out this free guide!

Top Ten Oils

I’ve been using essential oils for about 17 years, but doTERRA for the last five. The quality and purity is above all others. (Even hospitals and clinics across the country only use doTERRA).

When I got started, I chose the top ten oils in the family kit. The versatility of these helped my family swap out toxins, address mood and sleep, immune boosting, belly aches, tension and pain, and so much more.

It’s so easy and when you get started, I will hook you up into my VIP tribe, support you as you learn how to use them and give you an awesome resource book.

Check out this free guide and how to order!

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Mermaid Hair

A couple weeks ago, I was at girls night and we were all obsessed with our friend’s hair! She looked amazing! She shared with us what her secret was…Mermaid Hair Spray!

So guess what I just made! ? I’ll be spraying it in my hair twice a day.

MERMAID HAIR

???? 10 drops Cedarwood

????? 10 drops Clary Sage

????? 10 drops Peppermint

????? 10 drops Geranium

????? 10 drops Rosemary

????? 1oz Witch Hazel

Add to a 4oz Spray bottle and fill to the top with distilled water.

The oils in this blend help with hair growth, healthy scalp, and shine.

Who else wants Mermaid Hair?

Read through this guide to essential oils and you can find my link to order your own essential oils!

Yoga and Waking Up

The misunderstood beliefs that yoga is about touching your toes, or contorting your body into seemingly impossible shapes, or even contradicting your faith can stop so many people from experiencing the goodness it has to offer.

When I started practicing yoga years and years ago, I too wanted to be more flexible and I was fascinated by the images I would see of beautiful bodies doing beautiful things. I was hungry for a physical challenge all the while being a hot mess emotionally, spiritually and in truth, physically. I had just lost about 80 pounds and I was all about my “new” body being able to be physically active. What I didn’t know was I was about to have a huge wake up and it would rock my world.

Yoga gave me the gift of presence. It showed me the power of breathing and being completely in sync with my very being. It invited me to open doors within myself that had been sealed shut most of my life.

I stopped living in the past and the what if’s. I let go of the anger and deep loss of having a daughter with a disability. I stopped the internal dialogue that was so incredibly harmful. I let go of the need to achieve and be perfect. I settled into the magnificence of who I am, right now.

I woke up.

It doesn’t mean that I don’t still have moments of pain, anger, grief, sadness, and even worry. Now, I can handle it with grace and not let myself get down the rabbit hole of blame and shame.

Yoga changed my life. It opened doors for me. It welcomed me into the space of unconditional love I never knew existed—for myself AND others.

Say yes. You’re worth it…

Purpose

I didn’t follow the traditional path when it comes to becoming a yoga teacher. I knew early on that my path would lead me to sharing yoga with those who are unable to easily access a traditional setting. I got many small certifications and began teaching before I even thought about getting a 200 hour accreditation. And to be really honest, I still cringe when someone asks me “where did you do your 200 hour?” I cringe because so many times our culture puts a focus on a title or a perceived standard. As my favorite poem the Invitation says—“it doesn’t interest me where or what or with who you studied, I want to know what sustains you on the inside when all else falls away”.

My path to becoming a yoga teacher was the same old monkey on my back that I carried because I didn’t take the common path and go to college. Instead, I got married and became a mom. I didn’t take a college class until I was 43 years old! Until I was able to see my own success I always felt less than others because I chose a different way.

What I have come to learn is that the path we take is OURS. There is no space for comparison when you are fully engaged with your purpose. I knew I was supposed to be a young mom and I also knew that I was supposed to teach yoga a certain way. I knew then and I know now that the paper certificate or who I studied with is irrelevant—it is how I show up on the world that matters. And that is with divine PURPOSE.

Let go of the distraction to compare and compete and instead step into who you really are. You’ll find a treasure within yourself that will change the world in many ways.

Steady and Grounded

Thick Naht Hahn writes,

I like to walk alone on country paths, rice plants and wild grasses on both sides, putting each foot down on the earth in mindfulness, knowing that I walk on the wondrous earth. In such moments, existence is a miraculous and mysterious reality. People consider walking on water or thin air a miracle. But I think the real miracle is to walk on earth…a miracle we don’t even recognize.

The earth in its powerful existence supports us no matter what happens; the tragedy of war or the beauty of acres of wildflowers. Whatever is happening on the surface of our planet, the earth lies firmly beneath us.

What is equally steadying is the practice of mindfulness, meditation or prayer. Regardless of what is showing up in our lives having the grounding experience of connection becomes our foundation for when the pull of uncertainty attempts to take us off balance.

Same goes for the practice of yoga. To feel our feet resting solidly beneath us is a great reminder to pause and to feel what lies under us. Similarly the steadiness that can come from a practice enables us to be able to withstand any storm or war that we experience in our daily lives. We so often think and talk a lot about our problems, but that prevents us from being present, and therefore there problem still remains and our mind is a mess.

This week we will explore the richness of a grounding and steady practice while also using some of my favorite tree and bark essentials oils; juniper berry, cedarwood, vetiver, Douglas fir, siberian Fir, sandalwood and cypress.

Take a few moments this week to breathe in the energy of the earth and to soak up its grounding nature into your life. Let me know if you feel a little more steady and grounded in life’s daily grind.

DIY Body Butter

Did you ever stop to think about what we put ON our skin? I mean think about this….if we know that the essential oils absorb into our bodies and touch every cell, wouldn’t we think that slathering on things we can’t even pronounce, chemicals and who knows what from store bought lotion would also hit every cell? Gah! ? (and the same goes for all the cleaning chemicals we touch) Take a peek at your lotion bottle and see what I mean.

I have been making my own body butter since I cleaned up my toxins and it’s amazing!!

•one cup shea butter

•half cup hard coconut oil

• three tablespoon beeswax pellets

• 1/4 cup almond oil

• splash of vegetable glycerin (optional)

• 20-30 drops of your fave essential oils

Watch this to see how easy it is!!

Wellness Wednesday

Wellness Wednesday!

I remember about 15 years ago I stumbled into a gemstone store and was drawn to have my first of many little goodies. I chose a carnelian—a gemstone that I still love and have many of them.

People tell me when they come into my house, it feels so peaceful. I believe having crystals and gemstones around have so much to do with that. They have become powerful tools in my life. I have them lining my windows, on my body, in my car, used during meditation and I add them to essential oil blends. When I choose one to work with, I set the intention of what I am needing or wanting to achieve (a state or peace, cleansing, energy etc). And I let it do the work.

When choosing a crystal either go to a local metaphysical shop or browse a crystal website online. Scan the shop (or the page) and see what catches your eye. What crystal stands out to you? Which one are you drawn to? Then, read the meaning and properties of that crystal. Nine times out of 10 you will find that the meaning of that crystal correlates to your life in some way, shape, or form. And at this time, that is the crystal for you!

The reason that crystals are so effective in energy work, is the same reason that cleansing them is essential—crystals pick up energy. Cleansing your crystals resets their energy, so that every time you work with them, you are starting from an energetically clean slate. If you never clean your crystals, they will continue to store energy they’ve picked up from their environment or people they’ve come into contact with. Think of it like this: A towel can wipe a mess clean, but if you never wash the towel, it will begin to add to the mess. Crystals are similar.

There are a few different ways that you can set about purifying the energy of your crystals:

Moonlight Spa: Let your crystals bathe outside in light of full moon (or sun) for at least 4 hours.

Couple Your Crystal With Selenite or Quartz: Act as a crystal matchmaker and pair your crystal with either a selenite or quartz crystal! Both of these crystals have the ability to charge and purify other crystals, without ever losing any of their own energy. Lay your crystal on a piece of quartz or selenite for six hours.

Smoke It Out: Not only will burning sage and palo santo clear the energy of your space, they’ll also have your crystals feeling great. Immerse your crystal with the sacred smoke until you feel its energy and vibrancy return.

Return to Nature: We could all use the energetic reset that comes with a return to nature. To give your crystal that revitalizing pleasure, place it on the Earth or in the branches/soil of a healthy houseplant for 24 hours.

The Failure

I want to know if you can live with failure, 

yours and mine, 

and still stand on the edge of the lake

and shout to the silver of the moon, 

“YES”.

The author of the Invitation says that real mistakes are genuine errors in judgment, and choices that can seen, with the knowledge of hindsight, not to have been the best.  We have all made them.  Not the kind of mistakes where we were misinformed or lacking of enough information.  The real ones where we screw up, despite our better knowing.

The real work of failures is to not deny them, or insist that there are no mistakes.  You may have heard people say that everything happens for a reason, or that good things come from the struggles. I wholeheartedly agree with this…up to a point. I do believe that the Divine works in mysterious ways with a purpose, but I also believe that we are fully responsible for our choices and what we do with what life offers.

We cannot live fully and at the same time avoid mistakes. Sometimes it may seem so much easier to overlook the failures and instead to hide them in some form. Refusing to acknowledge our failures is often an attempt to avoid shame.  That awful feeling we might get when we realize that at our core, we have failed and screwed up.  Ownership means that we do not blame others for our faults and screw ups. It means that we do not justify them as a result of my upbringing or story.  Instead to truly to own them.

The big question related to failure that I ask myself is can I live with my failures and still say “YES” to life, still feel worthy of love all that surrounds me.  The answer for me comes from the space of forgiveness. To allow love to move through me.

I know that many times I failed when my kids were little.  There we things that I did out of being clueless and then there were things that I did that were just mistakes. I am not going to justify them by saying I was a young mom with three little kids, or that I was overwhelmed, or that my marriage was empty, or that we were poor, or that I was burdened.  Instead I am going to love myself enough to say that I screwed up. At times I made choices that failed them, and failed me. But we all overcame them and despite the failures my kids turned out to be amazing people.  And I turned out amazing, too.  I came out of the failures so willing to say yes to life and to keep forging a path that brings me joy and contentment.

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My Daily Regimen

What is your daily oil routine?

These are some of my most common—though I have added tumeric and pink pepper to my morning regimen.

?Peace Reassuring Blend is my go-to for a daily swipe up my arms. It keeps me level, steady and calm.

?Balance Grounding Blend is the oil I add to my lotion each day and apply along my shoulders and neck. It’s earthiness keeps me super grounded during hectic days.

?cedarwood is my favorite nighttime diffusing oil. I love the aroma and I sleep super sound.

?Copiaba is one I take internally 2x a day. The list of benefits is long but for me I am looking for cellular support and overall well-being.

?On Guard Protective Blend goes along my neck and lymph nodes to keep my body healthy. I also diffuse this one in my car and use it as a natural hand sanitizer.

?Zendocrine is in a 10ml roller (25 drops) and I apply this to my liver every morning. The oils in this blend help support a healthy liver and provides a natural detox to your body.

Tell me your regimen—I would love to know!

If you are brand new to essential oils, check out this handy guide that can introduce you to the world of natural solutions.