This post is all about essential oils for beginners. If you’re new to the essential oil world then start here to understand the basics. Make sure you also check out the series with: How to Store Essential Oils, Using a Diffuser for Essential Oils, and DIY All Natural Toy Cleaner.

Essential Oils for Beginners

What you need to know about using essential oils!

You may have heard about essential oils, especially if you look up natural remedies for physical and mental ailments…or if one of your friends has recently started selling Young Living or DoTerra…but you’re are not sure exactly what they are. Don’t worry….I was where you are for a long time. My friends were selling oils but I wasn’t really sure about them and I’d heard conflicting theories on how they work and how you can use them. Today I’m going to provide a brief summary of essential oils, how they are made, and what they can do for you. Over the next few weeks we’ll be diving deeper to learn more about essential oils so make sure you follow along if you want to learn more!

What is an essential oil?

Knowing the basics of essential oils can help you understand more about how they are able to help you and encourage you to use them more often as a natural remedy. Essential oils are oils that are extracted from parts of flowers, plants, and trees. The oils come from the flower petals, bark, leaves, seeds, roots, and fruits. Even a single drop of oil from these parts of a plant or tree can have drastic positive impacts on mental and physical ailments. The way they are extracted is usually by steaming the plant to separate the oil from water, which is a type of distillation process. They are highly concentrated and many are too strong for direct contact on your skin.

Why are essential oils used?

Essential oils are used as a natural or holistic remedy for various ailments. There is a long list of things they can help with. While they are not meant to replace medical treatment, they can help complement and are used with everything from migraines to skin conditions. Here is a short list of the many ways essential oils are used:

* Insomnia
* Headaches and migraines
* Joint aches and pains
* Chronic pain
* Menstrual irregularities
* Cups, scrapes and burns
* Signs of aging and wrinkles
* Anxiety, stress, and depression

How do you use essential oils?

You have a few different options for using your essential oils. A common way is through aromatherapy, where you get the benefits from having the scent in the air, such as with a diffuser or by placing it in your bathtub. You can ingest oils if they are diluted properly, which is often done when you make rose water or have it in your tea. Then you can use it topically on your skin when you want to get rid of acne, treat a bug or insect bite, or get a natural glow on your skin. HINT– Be VERY careful when using essential oils.

Some oils are considered ‘hot’ oils because they can actually burn the skin. You always want to follow any directions with essential oils and know everything you can about the oil you plan on using. And NEVER use an essential oil directly on your skin…you always want to dilute it with a carrier oil first…we’ll talk about carrier oils next week.

With essential oils, you have the option of using just one for its main benefit, such as lavender to relieve stress, chamomile for insomnia, or Frankincense for allergy symptoms. You can also make blends to have a different scent and help with more ailments at one time.

Do Essential Oils Work?

I’ve been using essential oils topically and in a diffuser for the last year and can say that I see a huge difference in our home since I started using essential oils. Not only do they smell good but they produce a calming vibe throughout the house….probably because I feel like I’m living in a spa with the scents I have going!

Last winter I started diffusing the essential oil blend FluTime in our diffuser on a daily basis and the kids were sick less than ever before. It’s quite astonishing…Little Miss Kenzie started to get a croupy sounding cough a few weeks ago and I put some Immune Strength in the diffuser…within hours her cough was much better. I believe the essential oils do work….and I’m one of the biggest skeptics you will ever meet!

Can I Use Any Brand of Essential Oil?

No! Please be very diligent in choosing the brand of essential oils that you use. I don’t say this because I sell essential oils but I say it because of experience. When I started using essential oils I thought what my friend was charging for Young Living Essential Oils was insane….I mean there’s a single oil that’s over $100! Most Young Living Essential Oils aren’t that expensive but still….I thought “Why should I pay 4 times as much for an essential oil when I can buy a generic from the store down the street?”.

So, I used several different brands over the last year and I can honestly say none of them compared to the quality of Rocky Mountain Oils. I’ve ordered some off of Amazon and they smelled horrible….almost like melted plastic. I’ve bought some at Walmart and Whole Foods that caused an adverse reaction on my skin. I’ve even ordered from a few competitors and none of them have produced the same effects that Rocky Mountain Oils produce for us.

After reading essential oils for beginners I hope you feel like less of a newbie and are on the way to embracing essential oils in a new way!