✦ Essential Oils ✦
To use or not to use?
NOTE: This is an excerpt from Haven Making November, the Herbal Oils edition.
I began using essential oils (noted as e/o) in the late 90’s-early 00’s. Lavender was my favorite. At the time e/o weren’t as readily available and I’d spend lovely moments inhaling the tester scents at the local natural foods store. When I began to make salves, I utilized essential oils for their many benefits.
Cayenne+ Salve sans e/o
This writing from Shirley Price in Aromatherapy for Common Ailments sums it up beautifully:
“Like herbalism, aromatherapy draws on the healing powers of the plant world, but instead of using the whole or part of a plant, it employs only its essential oil. This potent, aromatic substance is housed in tiny glands on the outside or deep inside the roots, wood, leaves, flowers, or fruit of a plant. It is a dynamic, concentrated representation of the healing properties of the plant, and is believed by some to contain its life fore. Hence care must be taken to extract the oil in its pure state…. Once within your system, essential oils will work to re-establish harmony and revitalize those systems or organs where there is a malfunction or lack of balance. Their effects are many and varied, but they are noted in particular for their antiseptic properties and their ability to restore balance to both body and mind.”
This next story illustrates how powerful essential oils are and the importance of treating them with respect and care…
It was 2006, I was getting ready to meet my dad and step-mom in New Mexico for a week-long vacation. At the time, I was also working for Jewell Gardens and was starting seeds in the germination chamber, a small, well-insulated room in the basement where we overwintered Dahlia tubers and tender plants like Fuchsias and Begonias. After many hours of seeding in that super warm and moist room, I was getting stinky sweaty. I decided to use the Bergamot essential oil I had in my backpack as deodorant. Neat, not diluted.
Because I was visiting the sunny state of New Mexico from the decidedly not sunny seashore of Alaska, I had scheduled a few tanning appointments.
That afternoon I tanned in the bed for 15 minutes.
By early evening, my armpit area felt inflamed and tender. By nightfall I was in agony, and the next morning I had broken out in 3rd degree burn blisters…
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Turns out Bergamot essential oil can cause photosensitivity.
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Whoa Nellie, that’s the truth.
In fact, citrus essential oils in general are considered photosensitive…which means your skin reacts more intensely when exposed to light, whether sunlight or the rays emitted from a tanning bed. Think Lemon, Lime, Grapefruit, and Sweet Orange e/o. Cow Parsnip plants can do this with their sap; maybe internal use as well, not sure on that. Also, St. John’s Wort is one to be mindful of regarding photosensitivity.
It takes a ton of plant material to make all those essential oil bottles we now see lining grocery store shelves. It’s important to consider the source of the e/o (essential oils) you are buying and using.
One day when I was working at Jewell Gardens, a tour guide walked over with a guest who had a question. This man was well-dressed, and came off nice at first, but soon became rather sleezy. He asked about all the Birch trees that grew along the base of the rock wall to the west of the gardens. Said he was from Young Living (an MLM based e/o company) and wondered if we would sell those trees in order to make Birch essential oil…It was unsettling how it all came across. Hard no.
Companies can make big bucks selling essential oils these days. How much would he have offered for those trees? What’s one Birches life worth?
Is it worth cutting it down to make an essential oil blend that smells like the Boreal Forest in some living room in Florida?
AND. I think there is space for the careful utilization of essential oils. There are aromas that can relax, rejuvenate and help transform your state of mind, with just a few drops or even a deep inhale. A well-crafted essential oil can contain profound healing in just one droplet. Is helping produce calm and joyfulness a worthy endeavor using essential oils as the catalyst or gentle helper? I do think this is true. There’s a definite balance to their use/abuse and it’s crucial to name that.
As the quality of my infused oils has risen, my use of essential oils has lessened. I’m getting more ‘oomph’ from the herbs and don’t need as much help from another source.
Some of the recipes to come do contain essential oils. You can always omit if you want. If doing a substitution, make sure to check for contraindications.
I have owned and used these books for ages: Aromatherapy: A lifetime guide to healing with essential oils by Valerie Gennari Cooksley and The Complete Book of Essential Oils & Aromatherapy by Valerie Ann Worwood. There are probably many books on par, or better, than these, but you can still find them reasonably priced and they are decent on info—good for beginners.
Aromatherapist, Jade Schutes strikes me as very knowledgeable, her website has some beautiful book recommendations.
Favorite essential oils to keep on hand include:
Eucalyptus: great for stove-top inhalations for congestion; clear the air
Lavender: excellent e/o to use neat on a fresh burn after running cold water over; fragrant
Orange: nice in stove-top blends, room sprays, cleaning water
Peppermint: good for infusing when congested; in foot soaks, for livening up a space
Rosemary: cleansing, headaches, relaxation
Spruce: nice in stove-top blends, room spritzes, foot balms
Tea Tree: a good all purpose for cleansing out wounds
Vanilla: room sprays, nice aromatic
Ylang Ylang: makes me swoon
Thus far I’ve been purchasing e/o mostly from Mt. Rose Herbs or Aroma Borealis (Bev Gray’s Yukon herb shop). Essential oils last a loooong time, especially if stored in cool/dark, so invest in good quality. I’m sure there are other smaller retailers available—it may take some looking to find local or regional, but they do exist. Aura Cacia is a company that’s been around for a while, I use this brand for the e/o I use for cleaning or some stove-top blends/house spritzers.
Save the good, high quality ones for body care products!
If you like this read, check out Haven Making November for a deep dive guide into Herbal Oils!
