Lemon

UPDATED: 2/24/14


I've heard really good things about this one when it comes to cleaning and healing, but have only tried it a couple times.

1: Joe gets really bad ulcers, and heard this would help heal them.  I probably didn't give it enough of a try, but i did nothing.  sad.

2: Used it on acne on my face and prefer Frankincense.

3: I read that Lemon can be good for reflux.  I have taken reflux medicine for years and years, and am hoping that this could be a possible solution, that would be amazing!  The suggestion i saw was to place a drop or two in my mouth, swish it around with saliva and swallow.  I tried it tonight, but i know the best time to try it is in the morning.  So far it's working well, i'll omit my meds in the morning and see if i can use the lemon in it's place.  Oh snap that would be amazing.

4: Attempted the Lemon as a reflux med (and omitted my Rx).  I put 2-3 drops on my tongue and swished around with my saliva for a couple seconds and swallowed.  I was shocked at how well it worked throughout the day, and i threw some common reflux problems at it.  Ate spicy, cheese, chocolate, and acidic. Which normally would bother me, especially if i hadn't taken my prescription Protonix.  SO, i would say that it was a very successful trial.  BUT, the weird lemony taste that it left in my mouth, first thing in the morning, was nothing to desire, actually kinda gross.  Because of that i won't use it on a regular basis, however, i've seen that you can put the oils in a capsule, which i will probably try.  First, i'll try a couple other oils that can be used as reflux meds and see if i like anything better.

5: For months i've been using a high-ish end cream for my face, and although lots of people have had great results, i haven't felt like it's done enough to make it worth the money.  So i started using lemon oil on a cotton pad morning and night, and i also put it on my three inch scar on my neck from a partial thyroidectomy (from almost 2 years ago).  The other day my mom said how all of a sudden my scar was looking really good and the color was lightening.  I hadn't told her i had been doing anything differently, so the comment was completely random! It's working!!  I feel like it is also lightening the acne scars i have on my face.  I'll give it a couple more days/weeks and see if i can get a good before/after photo. I take a daily acid reflux medication, whenever i feel like it's not working, i'll put 2-4 drops of lemon into a small glass of water and i'll down it.  The heartburn goes away, not kidding! I'm still doing more research on whether it's wise to ingest the lemon daily. 

Peace and Calming

1: I've only diffused this one and really liked the smell and feeling it gave me.  But i would prefer Lavender over this one.  But will continue trying it in new ways.

Joy

Okay honestly, i don't really like the smell of this one and don't know how to use it....soooooo there's no info on this one yet. :-)

Purification

1: Since it's been warmer recently, the air in the house hasn't been ciruclating like it normally would with the heat running (and i refused to turn the AC on).  It had gotten a little "stale" and mildly stinky, especially around Peter's room.  I ran Purification in a diffuser for 30 minutes and was amazed at how well the house smelled.  It smelled fresh and clean and didn't smell like the stink was just being masked (like sometimes sprays, candles and other good smelly things can do).  I'm excited about this one!

Frankincense

It was really cool smelling an oil that was used in scripture, it felt like part of the Bible came to life in a different way, through a different sense.  Very cool.

1: I've only used it in one way so far, and that was on pimples.  It seemed to dry up a zit a lot faster than a normal acne cream or just washing would have done.  But i've only had one major zit (and a bunch of little guys) since i've gotten the oils, but i will continue to try it on new ones.

Thieves

THIEVES

Updated: April 1st

This one is one of the most versatile oils, but i have a lot to learn about this one.  HERE are the supposed uses for Thieves.

1: Diffused with lavender at bedtime, relaxing but woke up with a headache, not sure if it's related.  Stuck with lavender along to diffuse at bedtime.

2: Put a drop on my finger and rubbed on my gums for a bad toothache, felt really good but didn't last too long.  By the end of the day the pain was gone (I also took ibuprofen, which normally only takes the edge off and doesn't "heal it").

3: So I've had the oils for just about 2 months.  I'm really not sure if it's coincidence or the oils, but neither Joe or I have gotten sick in that time.  I spent, pretty much the entire month of December with sinus infection after sinus infection (Joe as well), finally got well after several rounds of antibiotics.  Neither of us (including Pete) got flu shots this year either.  So any time we've felt like we were getting something, sore throat, congestion, whatever, I would diffuse thieves during the day or during the night.   SO, again i'm not sure if it's coincidence, but hey, i'll keep trying it and see if it works. 

Lavender

Updated: 4.22.14

LAVENDER

So far my favorite oil.  I'm already out of my first bottle and am about to order more, it's pretty wonderful for relaxation and smells awesome.  This one can be used without diluting, can be diffused and "sniffed", i don't know yet if it can be ingested.  I haven't ingested any yet because i'm nursing and don't know enough about the safety through breastmilk.

1: Rubbed on bottoms of feet before bed, felt good but didn't notice a difference in sleep.

2: Diffused at bedtime (diffuser runs 3 hours, then automatically shuts off), seemed to be relaxing.

3: Diffused a lot probably 8 drops and both me and Joe slept SO well.

4: Diffused 10 drops, too strong.  And rubbed 1 or 2 drops on bottoms of feet, slept incredibly well, woke up more relaxed.

5: DIDN'T diffuse and woke up more tight and unrested.

6: I still diffuse 5-10 drops every night while we sleep, i recently have added 1-2 drops to the tops of our pillows, LOVE it.  I don't feel like the lavender is a fix all, we still have nights of restlessness, but the frequency of those nights are much more rare, i need to remember to add lavender to our feet when that happens!  A few weeks ago i was having some ingrown toenail issue (sorry, tmi). I did what i was supposed to and "dug it out", the next day it was hurting like crap, so i dropped a few drops of lavender into that toenail, the next morning it felt SO much better and by that night there was no pain.  HELLO!  Awesomeness.

Peppermint

Updated on:  4.22.14

PEPPERMINT
(can be used on skin, ingested, diffused and "sniffed")

This is considered a "hot oil", which means it needs to be diluted with another natural oil, like coconut or olive oil.  YL has an oil to mix with it called "V6", but i want to try oils i already have before i buy into more stuff.

1: Mixed olive oil in palm of my hand with a couple drops of Peppermint, rubbed on temples, back of ears, and neck for headache. Felt amazing, like a cooling effect, for a few hours then felt back to normal.

2: Sniffed peppermint and diffused for nausea and headache, nausea got better quickly, headache and neck stress still lingered.

3: Diffused P, relaxed me and got rid of minor nausea and headache. Overall made me feel really good.

4: Diffused and rubbed on temples, back of neck and behind ears, felt wonderful and helped me relax the tension in my neck but didn't take the pressure away in my sinuses, but made me more comfortable.

5: Had a very exciting moment today. Woke up with a stiff neck, nausea, tight sinuses, headache, the works (that's not the exciting moment). Rubbed undiluted Peppermint on the back of my neck, behind my ears, and on my toes, yes toes (then put socks on). Within minutes I felt better, and I mean a lot better after hours of feeling on the verge of up-chucking and throbbing headache. I'm excited about this, because I desperately want to get rid of chemically ridden drugs. Thanks to Lauren Johnson for showing me the vita flex foot chart and suggesting undiluted peppermint.

6: It struck me the other day that I have been feeling pretty good recently when it came to headaches, taking very little to no medication.  What i realized is that i have been putting Peppermint on, neat (undiluted) at the very first early sign of a headache.  I'll put it across my forehead, temples, around my ear (jaw line), behind my ear and across the back of my neck.  Yeah, i kinda feel like i'm tacking a bath in it, but it's incredibly relieving.  I've started carrying it with me every where i go too.  Guys, this one is legit.

7: as soon as i'm feeling headache-y, nauseous or generally "bleh", i'll rub peppermint across my forehead, behind my ears, across the back of my hairline on my neck and on my temples.  It feels incredible and easily calms, if not takes away any poor feelings i was having.  I now carry peppermint everywhere i go with a little rollerball on the bottle for easy application, also, it smells amazing.  Last night i had an upset stomach, I put the oils every where i normally do, then added some to the top of my stomach and in my belly button.  I know, sounds crazy but i easily went to sleep without needing pepto or anything else.  Boom, awesome.

Young Living Essential Oils

I'm generally a sceptic when it comes to most pyramid companies, but I really do like trying different things to either jump on the bandwagon or write them off.  I've heard about essential oils for a while and wanted to try them.

A friend of a friend was/is a Young Living distributor and i was constantly seeing her post about what the oils were doing for her and her family.  I contacted her and ordered a sample pack to try about ten different oils.

I've had a couple people ask me to tell them what my unbiased findings were on the oils.  So i will begin to journal what i find here.  If you want to try some yourself, let me know.  To be candid, I did sign up to be a "distributor" but only because it'll be cheaper for me to buy the oils for myself.  Of course if anyone wants to sign up under me, it's beneficial for me, and i guess everyone because of the discount.  Just want to be transparent!  But i promise to be honest about what i find!


The pack that i ordered had ten different oils (plus a few tiny samples of others).  The links will direct you to my "journaling" of that particular oil.

1: Joy (which is a YL blend of oils)
2: Frankincense (Yeah, like the one from the Bible)
3: Lemon
4: Lavender
5: Peppermint
6: Purification (YL blend)
7: Panaway (YL blend)
8: Peace and Calming (YL blend)
9: Thieves (Ancient blend, click here for the background)
10: Valor (YL blend)

I will begin a new page for every different oil i try. Let me know if you have questions about a specific one, and i can try it!