Limes and Turtles......

I don't know about you, but life has been a little "over the top" here lately.  During the last few weeks my emotions have been comparable to a roller coaster ride at Six Flags!! Up, down, around, turn, repeat!  I thought I'd been handling it pretty well, until yesterday. Everything hit me like a boxer throwing his knockout punch. No one likes feeling down and out. I am not an exception to this. In the (recent) past, I would have eaten an entire chocolate cake and a half gallon of equally chocolaty ice cream. Instead (trying to break the emotional eating habit)  I reached for my Young Living Essential Oils. I didn't have my entire collection at my disposal, but fortunately I'd packed  few good ones. What am I saying, they are ALL good! 

The first oil I grabbed out of my "magic bag" was Stress Away. 

Stress Away is an Essential Oil Blend (made up of multiple single oils) that, well, helps with stress. 
This blend is made up of Lavender, Cedarwood, Lime, Vanilla, Copaiba and Ocotea.
Lavender is, as most people know, a very calming and soothing oil. It is often used when someone is looking for some help at bedtime.
Cedarwood is high in sesquiterpenes, which are calming and soothing to the nervous system.
Lime is an inspiring and uplifting essential oil.
Vanilla is another soothing and calming scent.
With it's warm, sweet aroma, Copaiba adds something special to this blend.
Ocotea is high in levels of alpha humulene, a compound that helps aid the body’s natural response to irritation and discomfort

Add all those essential oils powerhouses together and you have a warm, sweet, tropical aroma that will have your negative emotions and thoughts simply melting away.

The next oil I applied was Valor II



Valor II is also a  blend of many essential oils, including;  Northern Lights Black Spruce and Idaho Blue Spruce essential oils, along with Ylang Ylang, Frankincense, Vetiver, Cistus, Bergamot, Cassia,  and German Chamomile, among a few others.
This is a very uplifting, inspiring and empowering blend. It is difficult to explain how essential oils can have such a positive affect on your emotions. It truly is something you need to experience for yourself!

While these oils did not magically "make all my cares go away" they did make this emotional roller coaster I was on go from what felt like a runaway train to that of a slowly meandering turtle. Oils are a tool to help you support your body's natural healing process.
I'm simply here to share my essential oil journey with you.

*disclaimer - I am not a doctor. The information found here is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent disease. These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA.

LISTEN TO YOUR BODY

*disclaimer - I am not a medical professional. I am in no way, shape or form qualified to give you medical advice. I am just a person, sharing my experiences with others


A little while ago....a week and a half, maybe two, I got a couple funny spots on my left wrist. At first I didn't think much of them. They looked like ant bites. I couldn't remember getting bitten by any ants, but I didn't get too worked up about it. Then the bites started to itch. I tried not to itch them, but eventually gave in. After the scratching started, they seemed to spread. More bumps popped up along my arm, and then my right wrist and arm.

I was puzzled at this point. Ant bites don't spread without getting bitten again. Someone thought it might have been poison oak/poison ivy. I still didn't know what it was, but it sure itched like crazy and heat made it worse. 

Now, those of you who have been readying any of my blog posts (sorry for the lack there of, I didn't realize it had been so long since my last one) know that I've been on a journey of going as chemical and toxin free as possible. Cleaned out the nasty products from under the kitchen sink, cleaned out my portion of the medicine cabinet, replaced as many products as possible with safe, healthier ones. So, I wasn't about to go to the Dr. and let them prescribe some man made medications full of junk with nasty side effects. No thank you. 

So, I tried some home remedies. I tried swabbing the bites with alcohol and peroxide. I tried a few essential oils. I tried hot water, then I tried cold. The alcohol seemed to dry the "bites" up for a while, and the cool water seemed to sooth the pain some, but the "bites" remained. The "bites" not only remained, they were multiplying and weeping a clear water like substance. They continued to spread even after we bought new sheets for the bed, threw out the old shower scrubbies and washed everything I wore everyday, no wearing shirts/pants multiple days in a row.  I woke up last Sunday morning beyond frustrated and at a complete loss. The "bites" had spread even more, itched worse than ever and were constantly weeping. I now had them on both arms, my right shoulder, both hips, the top of my left thigh and the insides of both legs.

Feeling very defeated, I got in my truck and drove to one of the walk in clinics. You know the kind that your insurance company sees as a regular Dr. visit, not an ER visit. I was the only one there, and was seen right away. The Dr. couldn't tell me exactly what caused it. The official diagnosis was allergic contact dermatitis, cause unknown.  I got a steroid injection at the clinic, was prescribed 2 medications, and told to get an additional 2 over the counter. I got my medications, went home, and took a nap. When I woke up, I ate and took my first round of medication that had been prescribed to me. At this point, I only took the steroid pills. What I wasn't prepared for was my bodies reaction to the medications I was prescribed.

First of all, I was wired. I couldn't sleep, couldn't sit still. My mind wouldn't stop either, it was constantly going, I couldn't get any peace.  Secondly, I was hungry. All the time. Not just normal hungry, the hungry you get when you haven't eaten in a few hours. I constantly felt like I hadn't eaten in weeks, and could eat more than an entire high school football team in one sitting, even though I had just eaten. Not good for someone who struggles to make good food choices already. Thirdly, even though I was wired, at the same time I felt exhausted, blah. I had no energy, but I couldn't sleep either. I was miserable for almost 48 hours.

 I didn't take another dose of medication. I began researching other ways of supporting my body through this ordeal. If one does of medication made me feel that bad, I could only imagine what continuing them would do.

I sought out other options, and supported my body with some more natural choices instead of man-made ones. I started to feel like my old self again after a few days. I'm still using some essential oils to support my various body systems that took a hard hit from the medications. Word to the wise - if something doesn't feel right, it probably isn't right! Go with your gut, trust your instincts, find people who have experience with alternative therapies and let them guide you. Don't be afraid to think "outside the box" my friends!! I'm glad I did!

This & That!

            A little bit of this, and a little bit of that! I've been up to many oily things lately.....but none that I've been using enough to devote an entire blog post to. So, I'm going to give you a little preview of  a few of the things I'm working on.

            About 3 weeks ago one of my puppies (ok, he's almost 6, but to me he is still a puppy!) got a horrid infection. On his NOSE! Yes, his NOSE of all places.  Poor fella. His nose got dry and cracked and it bled. Poor boy. I felt so bad. So, off to the vet we went. Two different types of medicines and two weeks later, the infection is cleared up. His poor little nose, however, isn't back to normal. So, I started giving him coconut oil in his food while he was sick. It didn't really help. I then tried putting some on his nose. That worked a little bit, until it dried up, but then once the oil soaked in it was back to dry. I reached out to an "oily" friend of mine, and her reply was simple. Add Lavender oil to the coconut oil. Seemed easy enough, since I had Lavender oil on hand already! So, for the past 5 days I've been adding Lavender oil to the coconut oil. I'm happy to report that his nose is getting much softer and much more like that cold, wet nose I've grown to love!

            I have very sensitive skin. I'm allergic to all sorts of Laundry soaps and lotions and sun screens and any other thing you can think of that most people are ok putting on their bodies. My skin gets red and gets bumps on it. So, to take care of one of the issues, I've started using coconut oil with some essential oil added in for a nice aroma, in place of lotions.  :)  The coconut oil by it self moisturizes my skin and doesn't make it red and bumpy. Adding any essential oil has also not bothered my skin, and makes my skin smell wonderful! I actually applied some coconut oil and essential oil not too long after I used a "regular" lotion, and it took the redness and bumps away not too long after I put it on.

            So, in my "quest" to rid my house (and life, in general) from as many chemicals as possible, I'm changing how a do a lot of things.  I believe the is a correlation between the chemicals in our lives and some of the sicknesses and diseases that are harming us. I've already cleaned out all the nasty, chemical ridden cleaners from under my kitchen sink and have replaced them with one, all natural cleaning product. Thieves Household Cleaner. See my post about that here. Along those lines, I'm changing my laundry soap, and dryer sheets. I ordered some wool dryer balls. You use them instead of chemical and fragrance laden dryer sheets. To give them a pleasant aroma, simply add a few drops of essential oil to each one and you are good to go. They are reusable, and supposedly last quite a while. I'm waiting until I replace my current laundry soap to try them out. This should happen soon, just a few more loads worth of detergent in that jug I think.  Once I've used both the new laundry detergent and the wool dryer balls for a little while I will be making an entire post about my opinion of both products.

            So, those are just a few of the "oily" things I've been up to lately! Questions? Feel free to email me directly!  Ready to start your own oily journey? Sign up here! Our team is full of positive, helpful fellow oilers who are ready to guide you each step of the way!

DH graduated.......FINALLY!!!

Tuesday AM Meds

Ok.....this is a test

A test to see what Skeletor learned yesterday

I got up at 6:15 and said...well...I might as well get out there....this way if he's bad I've got almost an hour to work with him before I have to get ready to leave for work.....

I gathered up my stuff.....meds....water spray bottle.....grain with mushed up meds...and headed to the round pen...

I opened the gate.....i set the bucket down...I closed the gate.....I turned around.......I set the bucket in his food bucket.....I turned around......I walked up to Skeletor and he.....

Stood still......let me catch him.....and attach his lead rope.....

Lots of head scratching and licking and chewing......

We pulled his blanket off......

I started spraying......

Robert sprayed the medicine with only a slight sideways step....

He put the baking powder over it with only a slight flinch....

Blankets went back on

neck cover went back on...with lots of Velcro noise

he stood nice and still

pressure behind ears lowered head and got some licking and chewing

on both sides

we backed up....walked forward...backed up....walked forward....

scratches on the head...licking and chewing....

and then I let him go to eat his breakfast.

What a good Skelly, good boy.