That’s the power of aromatherapy.
Simply inhaling and breathing in the aroma of a scent can help us feel rejuvenated, relaxed, or more connected to ourselves and the world. For centuries, aromatherapy has also helped people with various health concerns.
That’s why we’ve put together 15 amazing ways aromatherapy can help you!
Aromatherapy is the mindful and careful use of essential oils for physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being.
Many can vouch for the effectiveness of aromatherapy in centering your mind and helping with your well-being. And we all know that when we take time for self-care and self-improvement, we show up as better parents, partners, friends, and workers. It helps you do the inner work so that you can focus on the present moment.
Aromatherapy is primarily used through inhalation or is diluted and used topically on the skin. Internal use is only recommended under the guidance of an experienced and qualified aromatherapist.
It can be used on its own, or with proper knowledge and training from someone like Jennifer Langsdale M.S. here at Wild Nurturer Aromatherapy, where aromatherapy shines as a part of any integrative health program as a complement to other health practices.
There are many ways that aromatherapy can help physically, mentally, and spiritually. Here we break down 15 amazing benefits that aromatherapy provides.
With busy schedules and long to-do lists, it’s important that we take a moment for ourselves and enjoy the many benefits that aromatherapy brings.
Inhale a scent and feel more connected to the present moment and to ourselves. Aromatherapy can help us with colds and flus, give us energy, reduce stress, and spiritually connect us. It’s a powerful thing and even more so because it’s done naturally.
Want to get started on the benefits of aromatherapy? Check out the many available Aroma Collections.
Safety First:
Please note this is by no means a full or comprehensive guide to the use of these essential oils. The oils listed above do have research studies that have demonstrated the effects discussed. If you have a health concern consult your medical professional of choice, and when seeking aromatherapy advice seek out a well-educated professional. Always dilute your oils. Never ingest. Do not use on infants, small children, immune compromised, or if you’re pregnant, as many oils are considered unsafe for these groups.
Author bio:
Erin Hunter is a freelance health writer for hire, who lives on an acreage with her husband and son. With a passion for nature and wellness, she also has a natural living blog. When she’s not working on her latest project, you can find her outdoors exploring with her son.
After a hot, busy summer, the bugs are finally simmering down, the air is crisp, and nature is getting ready to rest. Take care of yourself and feel good this season with some options on how to use aromatherapy for your fall wellness.
Fall is a time of transition, and as spiritual beings, we are part of it. Aromatherapy can support us in wonderful ways this season, such as warding off sniffles, keeping our skin in top condition, giving us focus, and helping us relax.
Here are some important areas that aromatherapy can give us therapeutic benefits.
The fall season is notorious for colds and flu, so it’s important to ensure our immune system is in top shape. Have an aromatic experience while assisting your upper respiratory system to breathe freely, decrease inflammation, and soothe skin.
Here are four oils to start with:
Eucalyptus essential oil is good for upper respiratory infections, decongestion, and respiratory pathogens. This oil is anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory, and an expectorant (it helps clear mucus in the airways). Simply diffuse 4-6 drops in 100 ml of water or bathe/rub on the chest at 2-3% dilution.
Lavender essential oil is a very well-researched and documented oil, with benefits shown to help the body respond to infections, decrease stress and enhance immune function, and act as an anti-inflammatory making it great for skin care and topical first aid. It’s known as a topical pain reliever, for its calming and sedative properties.
Patchouli essential oil has many therapeutic benefits including aiding with inflammation, tension, skincare, reducing stress and anxiety, and even helping stomach cramps. A great oil for fall, diffuse for stress or dilute and use topically for skin healing or cramping.
Rosemary essential oil aids in many areas, such as muscle and joint pain, stress, memory, and mental tension. If you caught too many rays of sun this summer, use it for healing sun damage to the skin. This oil also helps with acne, acts as a decongestant, and can be used for better focus. It can be diffused or diluted for topical use.
Yoga can help to tone your body and challenge yourself, but ultimately, it will provide you with a deep relaxation that so many of us are craving. Incorporating aromatherapy with yoga can help you relax, focus, and set your mood.
“Aromatherapy and yoga can form an ideal climate for managing our central nervous system”, says Jennifer Langsdale, owner of Heaven & Earth Aromatherapy and the Wild Nurturer.
Jennifer explains, “Yoga therapists integrate a protocol of effective breathing techniques paired with a successful sequence of asanas (yoga postures), with a goal in mind, such as to reduce muscle tension, reduce mental tension, or build strength and stamina.
“When I wear my aromatherapist hat, I think the same way, deciding on what kind of goal I have for my students or clients. I can take a standard well-rounded yoga class and build in an aromatherapy protocol as well.
“This can mean I choose one oil, or a synergistic blend to achieve an experience I want my students to have. If you want a relaxing ambiance, choosing an essential oil, like the ever-popular lavender or anxiety-relieving patchouli paired with a soothing citrus, we can combine two holistic integrative health experiences to enhance your healing experience, safely and naturally.”
Now that the hot summer days are gone, it’s time to give our skin attention and provide some much-needed nourishment.
Prepare for the cooler climate with face washes, body lotions, and moisturizers that will give you healthy and vibrant skin.
While many skincare products promise to protect, nourish, and even give anti-aging results for our skin, they are often full of harmful chemicals and used without truly knowing what’s in them and how effective they really are.
Remember, it doesn’t need to be complicated. Using natural ingredients and organic essential oils, you can nourish your skin and uplift your senses without any harmful chemicals. Your skin will glow, and you will feel amazing.
There are many DIY skin care recipes online that are easy to create, cost-effective, and will give you results. It can be as simple as adding citrus and cedarwood essential oils to a homemade moisturizer recipe to give you all the fall feels.
Creating a bathing ritual with aromatherapy can be part of a healthy routine and a wonderful form of stress relief.
Your ritual may include a bath at the end of the day with some candles, a good book, music, maybe a glass of wine, and most importantly, an essential oil blend to quiet the mind and soothe your nervous system.
Adding essential oils can provide healing properties to your bath water while helping you relax. You’ll enjoy tension relief, improved circulation, and being present with yourself.
Carrier Oil:
1-2 tablespoons of carrier oil, preferably organic. Olive oil, coconut oil, avocado oil, sunflower oil, or a combination of two work well.
Essential Oil Blends:
Up to 9 drops are plenty, or 2-3% dilution.
(2-3 drops maximum for children over 2 years.)
Conduct a skin patch test to be sure you are not allergic to the oils you choose.
Run the bath first, then swish in your blended carrier oils and essential oils. Never use essential oils in the bath without diluting them into your carrier oil first to avoid skin irritation.
Choose one or all three of these combinations for a pleasant aromatic experience:
De-stress/Sleep Blend - Lavender (Lavendula agustifolia) /Chamomile (Anthemis nobilis) /Bergamont (Citrus aurantium bergamia)
Sore Muscle Blend - Peppermint (Mentha piperita)/ Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus globulus) /Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis ct cineole)
Lift Your Spirits - Grapefruit (Citrus paradisi) /Lime (Citrus aurantifolia) /Thyme (Thymus vulgaris ct linalool)
Fall is a wonderful season of change that reminds us to slow down and take care of ourselves.
Aromatherapy is a great support when it comes to our immune system, practicing yoga, keeping our skin healthy, and enjoying a good soak in the bath.
Want some cozy or uplifting essential oils this fall? Here’s a collection of Autumn Favorites.
Please note this is by no means a full or comprehensive guide to the use of these essential oils. The oils listed above do have research studies that have demonstrated the effects discussed. If you have a health concern consult your medical professional of choice, and when seeking aromatherapy advice seek out a well-educated professional. Always dilute your oils. Never ingest. Do not use on infants, small children, immune compromised, or if you’re pregnant, as many oils are considered unsafe for these groups.
Author bio:
Erin Hunter is a freelance health writer for hire, who lives on an acreage with her husband and son. With a passion for nature and wellness, she also has a natural living blog. When she’s not working on her latest project, you can find her outdoors with her son, feeding their little flock of chickens.
This is a cause for much confusion, even for me to this day. The Yoga Alliance (YA) is a private, non-profit organization created in or around 1999 to provide a standard of education for yoga teachers. However, they are NOT a certifying body like IAYT (The International Association of Yoga Therapists) or any fitness organizations that certify, say, personal trainers, and they do state this clearly on their website. They do not issue certificates of any kind. There are no local, state, or federal government sanctions held to the organization in order to avoid accountability to the registered yoga teacher - RYT or registered yoga school -RYS. They are, at best, a database or collection of yoga teachers and schools who pay membership fees to be a part of a worldwide directory that sent them a copy of a certificate of a school that is a part of their registry.
So why do professional organizations like gyms or corporate offices want you to have their seal? I mean, it is only membership. You are not audited or asked to take a test to join their directory, so why do yoga and non-yoga entities put so much weight on the value on their seal and not on the education coming from the school or teacher?
To be honest, I don’t know, other than they think it is something that guarantees good education, which it most certainly does not. Again, I will repeat if you missed what I said, that they are a directory or membership organization, and the quality of education is not something they are not taking responsibility for. This would all be ok if people did not rely upon it as a way to set up their schools or feel it is a seal of approval. When you get certified, you might think it is important for you to have, like, another badge of honor, but really it is a membership, a club, or something to join with like-minded people. Again, not a bad thing if people were not losing a teaching job because they choose not to register.
I stopped carrying the seal for my school last year; the other teachers in my school and I all agreed it was time. They have over 100,000 registered yoga teachers, at over $100 a pop to get registered, and over $600 for a school to register. Do you know how much money that is a year? Where is all of that money going? Certainly not to the average yoga teacher who has to pay gas, insurance, buy props, rent and then pay pricey membership fees on top of whatever other expenses you pay as an independent contractor for most teachers. Again, for a membership. A membership for yoga! (insert throwing hands up emoji here if I could :( )
There is nothing to say you have to have a 200, 300, or 500 structure to be an effective yoga teacher.
In reality, how you teach is a result of how you were taught and how much work you put into it outside of your training. I am not saying train less. Usually, I am on the side of students needing a little more education than a 200-hour program, so I make sure they get that. In my humble yoga professional opinion, 200 hours is only a drop in a bucket. It is like taking one college course in reality. Do you think school teachers can teach a semester at college on that? No. You have to keep learning, growing, and going. Most yoga classes are an hour, so students get the bare-bones basics on philosophy, anatomy, energetics, history, and sequencing to be able to teach those one-hour classes at local studios, gyms, homes, or wherever else they throw yoga into these days.
Graduates will find out quickly they are on their own to decide to continue their education and personal approach to teaching and practice. Really, it would be wonderful if all those taking yoga training had yoga experience before their programs or a pre-requisite of some kind, but I would say 50% of the students I have trained really don’t. While it is up to the school to come up with their application process, you are competing with all the other schools who want to just get you in the door, so you cannot make it too tricky. Training is a big commitment, and it should be, so my advice is you take your time, breath, and do not rush the process. Enjoy it, whether you are a seasoned student or not!
It can be a good idea to take training just to learn more, but the whole idea of yoga training is not really the approach to learning yogic studies. It is really about getting you ready to teach a class that takes up most of the program’s time. I have found in my programs many students are overwhelmed with the amount of outside work they need to do to effectively teach a class, what they need to do for reading assignments, and of course, setting up and getting people to try their student classes. You have to be well prepared to hold space and know your stuff to teach on your own, and it is my job to prepare you for that. YA & IAYT are not going to do that. That rests on my shoulders. You have to be driven as a student and the teacher; a lot of material is coming at you fast.
Sadly, our culture is built on instant gratification and getting things done fast, and yoga is, if nothing, not that. Students usually pick a program: close to home, within their schedule, and within their budget without ever even meeting their teacher or visiting their studio. I am writing this with fifteen years of experience in yoga, yoga therapy, and being in the contemporary alternative medicine world, so I am giving myself permission to speak candidly from my experience, but I feel I should always put that disclaimer out there that these are my opinions, experiences, and insights, so do with them as you will.
So to conclude with how I feel about the Yoga Alliance. While pronouncing their integrity to back up yoga and make their seal of approval a mark of confidence in schools and teachers, really, they hit the go-ahead button on so many schools and training programs without looking into them beyond their application that I cannot confidently say at all their seal means anything to me 15 years into my yoga career. They are a registry, which is the same thing as a database of people paying to be a member into something that they all have in common, which at YA is teaching yoga. They do not require an audit or check on schools to make sure they are doing their job or really require anything beyond filling out an application and paying a fee to “register” you. Now that is all good if you are just really pronouncing the fact that you are a membership. Having that tribal connection is nice when you specialize in something, but say that clearly.
I say this because businesses, studios, and other places of work are now requiring the yoga alliance registry mark for them to hire you, regardless of your training and schooling background; according to some of my recent graduates, this was not the case not too long ago. So let’s say a school that is only one year old and registered with the Yoga Alliance will get more of their students hired because of their registry, and more students taking their training, over a school like me with over 100 graduates that were trained by someone who is a Certified Yoga Therapist with 15 years of experience and a Master’s of Science degree. How does that make sense? All because I don’t want to pay $640 to be a part of their club.
So why are businesses, studios, and gyms requiring this seal for people to teach yoga? I think the one thing the YA did right was they cornered the market and got their mark to feel meaningful for a yoga teacher who just becomes certified to then go and join the YA after. You feel that your certificate really has power to it, or to be a part of something good. They themselves, if you do some digging, do pronounce this clearly on their website (here is the link). If you feel your school that you took training in, or other schools or teachers in the area are not doing their job, they will tell you just that they cannot help you, they are just a directory and turn you away. That happened to me when I tried to get support from them. Somewhere in the 2010’s they took away our right to use yoga therapy on our membership profiles, which turned me to IAYT. IAYT offers solid education, research, and the science behind yoga. They endorse yoga as therapy, which it is, but they do not have a school mark beyond their accredited schools, which are hundreds of hours, way beyond the YA’s 200 hour format. So that excludes someone like me who runs most of my program with the support of a handful of other teachers to fill in my non-expertise, leaving me sort of standing alone, like the other schools who are not electing to carry the YA seal.
My final thoughts are if you want the expert opinion of someone who has been in the business, teaching, and practice of yoga for a decade and a half, do your research before you use terms loosely about your education, and know what you are putting value in. Educate employers on this too. That seal really is nothing more than you giving your money annually to be a part of a membership. I always think of my cartoon watching after elementary school and how I wanted so badly to be a member of the kids club. Well, now, that is how childlike the YA feels to me, like a kids club for yoga teachers, and trust me, being a part of a kids club never got me a job. A good education, lots of experience, and good reviews from students and teachers got me the small amount of success I have had in my yoga career, and I am grateful.
Certificate: Certificate programs usually take months rather than years and are achieved after completing classes and training in a specific area or skill. Certificates are nice if you have a skill already and wish to build on your knowledge. A certificate is evidence of education. Think Certificate in Accounting or Certificate in Reiki
Diploma: Diploma programs offer a more in-depth curriculum than a certificate, but they are more along the line of a certificate than a degree and are usually completed in under a year. It cuts time from having to commit to a degree program, but still, you come out with a skill.
Degree: Associates, Bachelor’s, Master’s are all degrees, and they all take years of study to achieve and are usually focused on a certain area of study and considered advanced education.
Certification: A Certification is an evidence of passing an exam and meeting some type of standard. Despite their similar-sounding names, certifications and certificates are not the same. Awarded by professional associations, companies, and independent organizations, certifications are standardized credentials that are intended to certify someone for work in a particular industry. Certifications may include both education and exam requirements. Think a CPA.
Note - ***Certifications and licenses both come after certificates and degrees.***
License: To receive a professional license, they are most likely issued through a state government and are individuals working with professions that need to guarantee public safety by taking an exam.
Registry/Registration: This is tricky. I had to really search to figure out what a registry is in regards to the purpose of this post. I did find this definition:
“As nouns the difference between directory and registry is that directory is a list of names, addresses etc, of specific classes of people or organizations, often in alphabetical order or in some classification while registry is a building in which things are registered or where registers are kept.” So an official record keeping institution.
Membership: Membership organizations typically have a particular purpose, which involves connecting people together around a particular activity, geographical location, industry, activity, interest, mission, or profession.
Accredited or Accreditation: Accreditation is a recognized means of promoting quality and continuous improvement. It means a lot of people worked hard to set up their program and got it approved by some board that means something to that industry. They might issue a certificate, certification, diploma or degree.
What is a credential: a qualification, achievement, personal quality, or aspect of a person’s background, typically when used to indicate that they are suitable for something. It is giving credit for something you did, usually by a third party. Does this mean much? Depends on the source, so be careful when you use or hear this word.
What is the Yoga Alliance?
What is the International Association of Yoga Therapy (IAYT)? Website: https://www.iayt.org/
Other certification bodies:
So, after all of this, what do I need to be cautious of when talking about my certificate? Know you are not accredited, that you do not have a degree or license. A certificate is something that says you took a short period of time to focus on learning something. It means something, yes, but it is a starting point. So, why are places requiring me to join the Yoga Alliance specifically? – Because it is their belief that the seal means something, and they think it is the certifying body when your school is the certifying body and they should look into them for a seal of approval, or your teaching experience references, not the YA sticker on your studio door. Continue your education. Research. Be curious. Good luck!
Other fun reads:
]]>Stress comes at us in many different angles, job, family, pressure on ourselves to do or not do, all the shoulds, woulds, and cants. I can only tell you how I have educated and practiced these ways to reduce stress or the onset of anxiety, and they have been proven tools that have helped my many clients over the last fifteen years.
1. The first tip I can share to reduce stress is to start with the most constant thing in your life, your breath. This advice is not new, but it is free and sure way to reduce your stress. Since we all breathe, we all have control over our breath. There are a million breathing apps, articles, videos, audio, and more. Find something that works for you. All you need is 5 minutes or more.
2. Along the lines of breathing, aromatherapy is the simplest form of stress relief I can offer you since you can carry it on your person wherever you go.
I caution you that a little goes a long way. The other day I was feeling very anxious from a stressful event earlier in the week. Feeling the onset of an anxiety attack coming (throat closing off, sensitive to light, slightly nauseous), I can tell you what I did to quickly and effectively reduce that anxiety. First, I breathed. Then, I grabbed my stress relief blend and took 5 deep breaths right from the bottle. I needed a little more effect, so then I rubbed some on my hands and cupped my hands over my nose and mouth, and breathed in for several deep breaths. I realized my computer and the bright screen were also increasing this sensation, bringing me to…
I hope you found these stress-relieving tips a good reminder to getting yourself stress relief and stress free. Be well and be kind to yourself. A little goes a looooooonng way!
This can bring up with a lot of questions, like:
These are all great questions to ask, and I tried to cover them for you here as well my own needs, with as little to carry as possible.
When I think about summer, I think about bugs, the sun, and kids crying after they had a fall. I am a yoga gal by nature, so I rarely wear footwear unless I have to. That makes me think about refreshing foot baths, on my little patio with a cold drink of some kind, a book, and watching the fireflies rise up. Then I think about swatting the other bugs away, and here we are again, back at insect repellents.
When it comes down to it, I wanted to create something small enough to fit in a cooler, mini-backpack, and beach bag. Summer is problematic because it gets hot, and we want things that won't melt or feel sticky.
Insect repellents are an alternative to insecticides and are presumed safer for human/animal use. Up North, we are nervous about ticks and have been warned about the diseases they spread. As far as the usual summer bugs, I get eaten alive, but my daughter barely gets touched. I am not sure why that happens, but I apply as needed, sometimes every 20 minutes, for it to be effective.
I find mists will only last on top of the skin for a very short period of time, so I find spraying my clothing, outdoor blankets, or camping gear works a bit better. Using the salve and roll-on will give longer-lasting results, especially around the ankles and temples. It is hard to say how long, due to skin absorption rates being different, fabrics, and even the outdoor temperature, what will work best for you, so you will need to experiment. Essential oil-based insect repellents have only been researched to a certain amount. We are not 100% sure what stage of insect maturity (i.e. insect larvae or adult stages) these essential oils work the research is limited.
Lastly, in the summer, I retain a lot of water, so I want a cooling foot bath outside with a big glass of iced tea or a nice summer beverage. If I do this with COLD COLD water from the hose and massage my legs a little too with a scrub, I see results in my "cankles" and a massage with my Waning Moon blend to aid with bloating and water retention.
OKAY! Let's chat about what it takes to create a recipe that will repel insects, so I start with what the research shows. Research shows the effectiveness of essential oils in repelling and killing mosquito (species usually not stated) larvae and repelling adult bugs. There is research that demonstrates the efficacy of certain oils against ticks. The problem is the research is really not done out in the environment where we are exposed, and a lot of time, we don't know what species of insect there is showing effectiveness.
The other problem I find is since you know that essential oils are volatile plant molecules, they are very lightweight, so unlike synthetic chemical sprays or fragrances, they do not last long when dispersed in the air or to our skin. It will be helpful then when applying to our skin, our let's say our bedding in a tent, or to the inside of our shoes if we are going hiking that we find a way to bind it to ourselves properly, but know we will have to apply it more than the over the counter dangerous synthetics.
There is research connected to geraniol, a constituent found in palmarosa and geranium that is effective in repelling ticks. Cedral is a constituent associated with repelling insects, found in Virginia Cedarwood, which makes sense because the old pack it up in a cedar box so the moths don't eat your clothes advice. When formulating my tick blend, I had to research my essential oil distributors' GC/MS paperwork to ensure that there was a high enough percentage to be effective in the blend of these constituents. Since the research is slim and not usually conducted on humans, usually in a lab under a microscope, or from animals, like on cows, we are making scientific assumptions of what will work.
In conclusion, your blends from Heaven & Earth are formulated to be safe topically on your skin and clothing for healthy older children and adults. Always conduct a skin patch test first to make sure you do not have any irritation. Apply as needed, but do not put this on your pet as they may lick it off, and that may not be safe for them. Look to special sprays for your animals that use herbs rather than essential oils. Placing the spray on the collar and not directly on their fur or skin might be an alternative if you are in a pinch, but I still recommend animal-created products from the experts.
Remember, just because it is natural doesn't mean it is safe, dosage/dilution is imperative for what is safe AND effective. If you notice you are using a product and it is not working, many factors go into that. Your body type and scent that you give off, your clothing color, detergents and fabrics, and overall insect population and space you are in, sometimes there are just too many! Time to head inside if needed! I found a study that stated Vanilla "essential oil" may help deter mosquitoes, but it was done on their larvae and not on adult insects. I use a CO2 extract for blending, and I do not know what the research used. Vanilla does have a great aroma and is a fixative, so it may help keep the aroma on your skin longer. So I did add a little to this blend, but it is costly, so I would not say there is enough to produce a practical addition to this blend. The vetiver is long-lasting and more affordable to add to a bug spray, which people will want to spray often.
Further Reading: https://tisserandinstitute.org/tick-talk-2/
Myth Busting? I enjoyed this little blog because so many homemade items go viral without evidence to support it. https://relaximanentomologist.tumblr.com/post/53355432550/a-new-homemade-mosquito-repellent-has-gone-viral
]]>Here in the Northern Midwest, Spring takes her time. The weather becomes welcoming and then slips back into winter from March through late May at times. Regardless, we all reach towards the sun by getting in the spirit with yard work, starting seeds, prepping the garden. You hear the mowers and big machines roll in, and you know winter is breaking.
As I write this, we are close to Beltane, or May Day, May 1st or 2nd, depending on the calendar you use. Traditionally, celebrated as a fertility day, with bonfires, dancing, and celebrations. Today one might plant a little fairy garden, leave an offering of some sorts for our wee’ friends, share in some May wine, and plant seeds. Beltane is in Taurus season, so lady Venus (the planet) is happy in her most favorite sign and feeling lusty. She wants to go for a ride, so let the lovefest begin. Even today, you may (no pun intended) see dressing the May Pole with a festive dance of ribbons bright. Spiral dancing, drumming, singing, drinking, weddings. Herbs are strewn around for love and loyalty like rosemary, thyme for truth.
The power of Beltane thrums through us, telling us to get outside, telling us to prepare for the energy and build-up of Spring. Heavy planting is needed to obtain all of our goals for survival. This resonates metaphorically as well. There is also the presence of the mysterious figure of Greenman. Usually depicted as a face of gorgeous foliage of oak and other leaves, branches, berries, and other bits of forest, sometimes smirking, smiling, or looking a bit grumpy. He is the keeper of the forest, of woodland mystery, and guardian of the earth. Also known as the Jack in the Green, among other names, the common theme to his folklore is life, death, and rebirth.
The Romans might be celebrating Flora, goddess of, you guessed it, flowers and of course spring, growth, and new beginnings, making it a suitable topic for an aromatherapy blog. Garlands of flowers flowing from her fingers, that reminder of all the blossoming yet to come. It is important to be reminded of this. Modern culture restricts this absolute need to spend more time outdoors—the absolute need for clean air and water. We must put ourselves back into the rhythm of seasonal cycles, as we reduce important populations of insects, animals, and plants, we are harming nature, which is harming ourselves.
Let a little magic enter your life this Flower Moon, which is always the May full moon. Celebrate by planting, reducing your carbon footprint, losing the screentime, planting something, celebrating something without creating so much waste… really, just do something. Beltane is a day to take action, in a fun way, an exciting time. Make merry, make happiness however you like, but if it is to celebrate the new growth cycle, let it be without waste.
I am clearly inspired by plants. When I blend, I have many intentions or approaches to a blend. My latest creation was in honor of Spring, in honor of her beautiful wildness. To send a message of earth, trees, herbs and sacred plant energy vibrating through us. Sacred Rosemary, primitive Black Spruce, Wild Thyme, quiet and cool Juniper, and sweet rich Tangerine.
Hence, the birth of Wild Nurturer aromatic essence, to support the earthy wildness within you. Take it outdoors with you and find a quiet grove, roll it on before you head out for a gathering, or run it in the diffuser with some fantastic Celtic or Irish music with bold drumming, piping or whatever lights your fancy like Cullann’s Hounds, Loreena McKennitt, or Laboratorium Piensi as you work a loaf of bread with your bare hands. Feel the pages of an old book between your fingers, play in the dirt, make a mess with flower… ok now get on with it!
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Essential oils require a certain amount of care to maintain their potency. If you are a why person, I will explain the science simply. If you are not, skip to the end for easy storage tips to keep your EO’s going for a long time.
Essential oils are volatile plant molecules, really chemicals from the plant. The extraction process takes a lot of plant material to produce a small amount of oil, which means certain oils are more expensive and due to their chemical makeup, and a bit fragile on their potency timeline. With special care, your essential oils can last many months to many years.
Simply put, think of these plant molecules that make up your essential oils as ingredients to make a fancy cocktail or mocktail. When we mix all the ingredients together, we know it will have a certain effect on us. Depending on what those ingredients are will influence how it makes you feel and how much it costs to buy. The ingredients, in this case, are molecules (don’t let the chemistry scare you), and they have mass and weight just like anything else on our planet.
The lighter these molecules weigh, the more likely they begin to oxidize when we open the bottle and meet our air (O2). Some people think it means they go rancid or spoil, but that is not really the case. To oxidize means the molecules are taking on a chemical change, so if those “ingredients” I told you about were sitting out in the hot sun for example, like say in your car or purse, they just might suddenly take a turn for the worse. You can think of your 7-11 Slurpee melting blue stuff everywhere on a hot day, take a drink, and bleckkkkk.
Citrus essential oils are especially vulnerable to this due to their high volatility or easy to evaporate nature. In a blend, you will smell them first, most likely, but they will also be the first to be gone from your diffuser or perfumery blend. There is not a lot of staying power to weigh them down. Suppose we do not store our oils properly, and this process occurs. In that case, we can encounter adverse reactions to our skin or formulas we are using.
I store our shop oils in a beverage cooler just for them year round in my lab, as well as my carrier oils. They are all stored in glass, and my inventory sheet reflects their purchase date so you are guaranteed the best oil quality I can offer. When I feel the oils are getting up in age, I will add them to my wash machine, or use them when I clean (stay tuned for cleaning tips later in the blog series!), and stock up on fresh!
Want to get really curious? Check out the Tisserand Institute’s blog post: https://roberttisserand.com/2013/07/lemon-on-the-rockskeep-your-essential-oils-cool/
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Lunar Awareness practice helps the yogini (female yoga student) to connect to higher awareness. Our lives are significantly impacted by technology and de-sensitized environments from screen use, temperature control, transportation, and sterilization. With the demands for perfection in our food, the disconnection from our food by the plastic barrier, our bodies needing to LOOK a certain way, we lose touch with the feeling mind and body.
Lady Luna has been our guide since the beginning of mankind. Ever present, she ebbs and flows with the tidal rhythms that our bodies are synced to. It would be silly to think that we have to update and sync our devices, but we do not need that same download time with mother nature. Most of the names from our solar system have Greek or Roman names.
The word Luna is Latin for the Moon but was also referred to as a goddess in mythology synonymous with Artemis, Diana, or Selene. The Moon has been associated with women, goddesses, and femininity for an indefinite amount of time because the female menstrual cycles can coincide with the Moon's phases. If you have ever charted your cycle, you may notice you are on a new moon or full moon cycle.
Menses meaning month in Latin was a part of 16th-century nomenclature describing blood flow that flowed from a women's body each month. "The word "moon" can be traced back to Old English, where it is said to have derived from the Proto-Germanic word "menon," which in turn derived from the Proto-Indo-European "*menses," meaning "month, moon." This highlights how far back the association between the Moon and the passage of time goes." (todayifoundout.com, n.d.).
Within modern yoga practice, women were the receivers of centuries-old practices passed down from mostly males in India. It was not until the 1940s when Eugenie Peterson, later taking Indra Devi's name, approached the "father" of modern yoga, Krishnamacharya, to take her on as a student. Before then, the practice was passed down from man to man. Women need to note this because the practice of asana was highly connected to Indian wrestling or gymnastics.
While the health and vigor achieved through many of the asanas, some of these asanas' physical demands are really not so female-friendly. One example is the old tradition of beginning in Tadasana (mountain pose) with the feet together. Women's hips are wider than men's. Think childbirth necessity, so simply standing with the feet hip-width has become a normal offering in asana classes. After teaching for over fifteen years, I can safely say, 80-90% of the students I have trained and taught were women. Surya Namaskara A & B's standard sequence in the popular Ashtanga Vinyasa yoga sequence seemed to have originated from classical male-oriented Indian Gymnastics.
This sequence makes demands the shoulders and upper body, which can be too tasking on female shoulders, so we modify by dropping the knees and taking the time to cultivate that strength needed to practice a slow lowering from high plank, to the hovering in-between plank and the floor. Is it necessary we do this? NO! There are plenty of other options in yoga that will safely strengthen our shoulders and core. Our yoga practice can be what we want it to be, some days we are the tigress stalking our prey through the jungle, other days we are the quiet butterfly fluttering and flying, others a playful dolphin. The rules of yoga really lie in the mind, seek truth, release self-absorption for self-realization, whether you are male or female.
Iyengar yoga was the first time I was ever offered menstrual modifications for asanas. I had never even considered that might be important. I always had relatively calm menstrual cycles, but after children found that my girlfriends' complaints were justifiable: cramps, back pain, fatigue, constipation or stomach ache, and of course, moodiness. I discovered that yoga could soothe my menstruation issues, something I really had not experienced before having children. I also understood that the yoga practice I had before childbirth was not healthy for me. I had to modify many things about my practice, especially in the lower back, sacrum, knees, and feet. I injured myself many times with crazy workouts and vigorous practice after having two humongous babies natural. Needless to say, we must understand modification and timeliness in our practice of yoga.
I listened to a wise teacher who once said, if you are tired, then take a nap, don't force your practice, or push yourself. If your body needs sleep, give it sleep, even just fifteen minutes, and then try again. I liked this. This offering was from Geeta Iyengar, Mr. Iyengar's daughter. I had always thought, push, push, push, it is the American way, not just in yoga but in life. Now, I understand the true aspect of Ahimsa and Satya. By practicing what my body needs are, I treat it kindly. By being honest with myself, I practice Satya.
Before my yoga training, I was already a moon goddess child, studying earth-based and spiritual paths. With my study background in Art History and European art, I was deeply inspired by the lunar phases and goddesses. I understood the full Moon's symbolism and was familiar with the esbats or days of honor for full and new moon cycles. I paid attention to the seasonal influence of the lunar rhythm. I had my personal devotional practices of beginning new ideas and initiating changes during the new moons and celebrating the fruition, wildness, and accomplishments of the full moons.
It was not until after childbirth that I truly felt the power of the lunar rhythm within me and the impact of how I could translate that through movement and mediation practice for myself and my students. Offering prompts of self-awareness and introspection for the lunar phase, season, and symbolism was a delight to my students. I saw them move so naturally with the sequences I designed to tap them into their primitive roots. To honor their liberation and freedom of soul and self to express themselves. All they had to do was to consider what I was offering and make it their own.
The Moon has her symbolism of fertility, water, emotion, tidal rhythm, fullness, void, shadow work all rolled into one, among many other things. Sometimes we would pull an oracle card, sometimes they would write little intentions on slips of paper and toss them into a pile to be burned later; other times I would have them fiercely speak out loud that they loved themselves. It all depended on the element or energy we were working with. One can see the psychology and spiritual connection in all this if they allow it. In closing, the lunar aspect of yoga, women, and the Moon comes to giving the space to channel our right to primitive connection, old ways of the wise women, and just to feel ourselves again. The approach is really in the hands of the yogini.
I would love to hear your lunar comments below, how do you celebrate lunar influence in your life?
Learn more about my lunar practices at www.womenyogamoon.com
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You know how April Showers bring May Flowers? Well Winter Blues bring hot baths. I know, it does not rhyme, but what a year!
This week in December of 2020, my son called me from his father's house not feeling well... you know when you hear your own mom's voice and you just start to cry when you don't feel good? Yes, I still do that from time to time. I am a 40 year old baby at times! Turns out when I got the call my son had Covid, which I did not know, but kinda figured. He of course wanted his mama, so then I had it for ten days, all kinds of weird symptoms, and I lost my taste and smell!
I put my Immune Support line and many of my Winter Collection of Bath Retreats to use for myself and my son. I diffused in my living area and in my bedroom/office space. At night I used it in his room to help him sleep and to aid with his discomfort. With children, remember you do not need to use as much, although he is a strong, and very tall 100lb, 9 year old, I still do not give him adult dosages at all, as his little immune system is still developing.
This morning I was under the weather, and woke up wide awake at 2am, so I drew a hot bath and made a salt scrub from my Breathe Bath Retreat Blend. I allowed the aromas of eucalyptus, black spruce, sweet orange and peppermint fold over me as I did a quick scrub and immersed into the hot water. With a good book and a few clementine's to boost my spirits, I did feel so much better after. It turned out my daily and sometimes two times a day bath was relieving during my Covid experience for aches, pains and overall wellbeing.
What self-care rituals do you do? What can I do to help?
Take care, only 9 days until Christmas, so stay positive and hopeful for the New Year.
Big Hugs,
Jennifer
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