Essential Oils 101 [ft. Simply Earth]

It’s about time.

I’ve been using essential oils for a few months now and I’m hooked. Essential oils can provide so many natural benefits for our bodies, our moods and our homes. The possibilities are endless – I’m learning new ways to use my oils every single day!

Before I bought my first oils, I contemplated whether or not to start using them for months. They seemed like something I really wanted to try but I had two main hesitations: knowledge and cost. First, I had NO clue how to safely use oils. I wasn’t going to dive into something without having a basic understanding of how to incorporate them into my life in a safe, yet effective way. Second, the big essential oil companies are not super friendly to a college girl’s budget. I would stare at the websites for hours, planning what oils I wanted to get but I could never get past spending nearly $90 on a bottle of Frankincense oil. But I didn’t want to sacrifice quality for a cheaper oil. You can see how I felt stuck.

In writing today’s post, I hope that I can give you the push you need to stop contemplating whether or not essential oils are right for you and finally start using them!

*Before I get started with some of the many uses, I wanted to note that I am not a licensed or registered aromatherapist. All information has been gathered from various resources over time. *

Processed with VSCO with hb1 preset

WHAT ARE ESSENTIAL OILS?

Essential oils are what makes plants have an aroma. When you breathe in the scent of a flower, you’re actually smelling the “essence”! The essence can be found in glands of a lot of plants and serve different purposes for each plant – some plants may use the essence to draw in bees for pollination and others may use it to deter predators.

The bottles of essential oils that we buy are highly concentrated versions of the plant essence. The plant goes through the process of distillation to extract the essence. It takes thousands of plants to make a single bottle of oil and drop of oil goes a very long way.

Processed with VSCO with hb2 preset

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF ESSENTIAL OILS?

Essential oils can provide so many benefits to our health. Some common things oils are used for include:

  • Air purification
  • Balancing hormones
  • Improving immune systems
  • Healing skin issues such as eczema or acne
  • Sanitizing
  • Lightening mood
  • Helping with anxiety and depression
  • Focus and concentration
  • Energy and revitalization
  • Relaxation

There are so many benefits that come with each oil. I’ve personally used oils to help my family and myself with sunburn, bug bites, snoring, arthritis, headaches, sleep and mood improvement.

Processed with VSCO with hb2 preset

HOW CAN I USE ESSENTIAL OILS?

Essential oils can be used for virtually anything – the possibilities are endless. They can be added to various products such as massage oils, shampoos, lotions or used to create homemade products like body butters, perfumes, cleaning supplies and soaps.

Essential oils can be used for purely aromatic purposes, to relieve discomfort, to sanitize and so much more. The safest, and most common way to use oils is topically. There are some oils that you can get away with applying them neat (directly) to the skin such as lavender but it’s best to dilute most oils before applying them to the skin because the oils are so potent.

Some oils can be used internally, such as adding lemon to your water, oregano to your cooking or some oils to veggie capsules but I only advise this if you’ve spoken to a licensed aromatherapist first. Essential oils are extremely potent and having excess of these potent oils in your body can cause damage to your liver and kidneys as they have to work harder to dilute the oils in your body.

For more information, reference the Aromahead Institute’s safety guidelines.

Processed with VSCO with hb2 preset

WHAT BRAND DO I USE?

When choosing your essential oils, make sure they’re 100% Pure Therapeutic Grade and that the only ingredient is the plant. You don’t want any oils that have any fillers or chemicals in them. I did months worth of research before deciding which company was for me.

I use Simply Earth essential oils. Simply Earth is a small start up business that has blown me away. Here are some of the many reasons why I love Simply Earth:

  1. It’s a small company – I love supporting smaller businesses – they usually have a “by the people, for the people” attitude and this could not be more true about Simply Earth. The founders of this company are genuinely interested in helping other people create a more natural lifestyle.
  2. They provide quality oils – Simply Earth’s oils are 100% Pure, Therapeutic Grade. Basically, this means that the only thing in the bottle is the essential oil. No chemicals, no fillers, nothing but the oil!
  3. They’re inexpensive – for how incredible the quality is, these oils are surprisingly affordable. They’re only a fraction of the cost of some other companies in the industry.
  4. It’s geared toward a good cause – Simply Earth donates 13% of their profit to helping victims of human trafficking. I don’t know about you but it makes me feel better when I buy a product that gives back.
  5. Their customer service is phenomenal – Every single time I’ve ever had a question, they’ve answered it within a few hours. They really care about their customers.
  6. They make it easy on you – Simply Earth just started offering a monthly subscription service. It’s the first of it’s kind in the essential oil industry. They send recipes, oils, containers and extra ingredients to your door each month. For those who are beginners, who have run out of ideas, and even those who just really enjoy essential oils, this box is perfect.

I’ve yet to have a poor experience or read of someone else having a bad experience with this company. They are truly incredible and I would recommend this feel-good company to every single person.

I hope you now feel a little more prepared to start a more natural lifestyle with essential oils. It’s definitely a change I’m glad that I made.

Naturally,

Ari

 

*Disclaimer: I was not asked to write this post and it is not directly sponsored by Simply Earth or any other company but the link provided is an affiliate link. All thoughts on the company are genuinely my own.*

 

Resources:
Aromahead Institute
Simply Earth
Wellness Mama
Huffington Post

You may also like

26 comments

  1. I love this! I’ve been using essential oils since I was little. Lavender for stress and sleep and menthol oils for colds. There’s something comforting about the smell of essential oils

  2. My friend sold me some DoTerra oils for sore muscles but the smell was so strong I got a headache. I’m very sensitive to smell so oils don’t work so well for me. It did help my muscles though so if I was in enough pain I might take the headache to get rid of the sore muscles!

    1. Oils are definitely very fragrant so I can see how it’s bothersome for someone so sensitive to smell. A little oil goes a long way though! I’m sure if they interested you enough, you would be able to find a scent category that you could work with!

    1. If you’re new (and even if you’re not) the Simply Earth subscription box is a great place to start! Oils are so versatile and the more you seek out information, the more comfortable you’ll feel using them!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Skip to toolbar