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Essential Oils

Sleep Better Series – What’s the Big Deal?

L.R.’s and my first class at Face & Body Southeast Spa Expo and Conference in Atlanta was on sleep and understanding how critically important it is to get a good night’s rest. Trish Green was the presenter and gave a very informative presentation. L.R. loved this class as well.

Anxious about sleepThe items I took from this presentation will be broken down into a series of Sleep Better posts because there was just so much information given. Trish is a Board Certified Aromatherapist (yes in Europe the use of essential oils is more strictly governed than in the US), she is also a Doctor of Homeopathy, a distributer of Eve Taylor for over 25 years, a Cidesco Certified Esthetician, and a Bach Flower Therapist.

This doesn’t technically have to do with sleep BUT one of the first things she talked about was NOT DIGESTING ESSENTIAL OILS!! Essential oils are not something to play with. I have noticed a difference in the strength of her more clinical grade essential oils (in Europe Aromatherapy is looked at much differently than in the US) than even the high quality of essential oils I usually use. I use about half of Eve Taylor Essential Oils than my other oils. For some great resources on Essential Oils and Aromatherapy, you can check out my blog post on New Essential Oil Tips.

The Sleepless Epidemic

Anxiety and sleep issues are an epidemic among Millenials. I was talking with a client about this and she agrees. There are just so many things going on every day and we let ourselves get so busy that we forget to rest. Or feel like we don’t have time to rest.

I am also always shocked at really how many kids have anxiety issues and are on meds for anxiety, depression, and sleep issues.  It’s not just the Millenials that are affected, but they are being affected even more than my age group.

Why is sleep so important?

How did it get to be that so many young people are having anxiety and depression?

What can we all do to help achieve better, more restful sleep?

These questions and more will be answered in this series of blog posts on sleep.

So why is sleep so important?

Lack of sleep has affected us all for one reason or another. I think it is safe to say that we all realize that lack of sleep makes everything else just harder to deal with. But why else is sleep important? Well for starters, your body works to heal itself while you are sleeping. Your taxed adrenals have a chance to rest and repair between 10pm and 2 am (I am sure my poor adrenals don’t appreciate salsa nights!).

Increased cortisol suppresses serotonin, the hormone important for sleep and mood. Increased cortisol does not allow the body to shut down and sleep.

Sleep is your best anti-inflammatory! When you don’t get enough sleep, your cortisol increases which suppresses your serotonin and with the increased cortisol, it never really allows the body to rest. “Increased cortisol suppresses serotonin, the hormone important for sleep and mood. Increased cortisol does not allow the body to shut down and sleep.” When your serotonin is suppressed, sleep problems, depression and negative mood sinks in. All of these contribute to anxiety, agitation, and irritability, creates neurologial disorders, impairs memory and learning.

And of course the better sleep you get the more likely you are to have a better day or to be able to handle the stressors of the day better. I don’t ever remember being a person that just jumps out of bed refreshed and ready to start the day. It is pretty much always a struggle for me. I have had serious bouts of sleepless nights and they really take a toll on me. Luckily, I don’t have those nights very often any more.

According to Trish’s presentation, Depression is one of the most serious and costly health problems in the world today and anxiety is 800% more common than all forms of cancer. That is pretty drastic! How do we correct this epidemic amongst ourselves and the younger generations?

It starts with better sleep, and our next blog post will cover the basics of a good night’s sleep.

 

This information was given by Trish Greene of Balnea Spa Products. She is a Board Certified Aromatherapist, Dr of Homeopathy and a Cidesco trained Esthetician. She practices in Canada and has been an Eve Taylor rep for 25 years.

All the crazy legalize stuff I need to say. Consult your physician before taking anything suggested in this informational piece. I am not a Doctor, I am simply sharing the interesting information that I learned at a recent class. Do anything at your own risk, use common sense, and try to get some healthy sleep. No one is responsible for the choices you make except for yourself. None of us are responsible for anything you choose to do on your own accord. 

The Power & History of Eucalyptus!

I was reading an article in September 2016 DaySpa issue called “Eucalyptus, Lift Us!” There were all sorts of interesting bits of info that I thought I would share with you!

  • The 1st botanical record of eucalyptus was recorded in the 1770s off the coast of Tasmania.eucalyptus
  • There are 750 different species and 25 of them are used for medicinal purposes.
  • The Aboriginals used the gum like sap to make their spears and fishing sticks and to treat wounds and burns.
  • The Australians introduced eucalyptus to California during the Gold Rush in 1850 and is an invasive species overtaking native plants.
  • Well cultivated trees can yield 100lbs or leaves per year and 1 acre can produce 35,000lbs of leaf material which yields 800lbs of eucalyptus oil!
  • It was widely used during infection outbreaks.
  • In the 1880s scientist planted groves of eucalyptus trees in the marshlands to stop the spread of malaria, the groves later turned the marshlands to dry land and took away the mosquito’s habitat.
  • In 1865 Dr Joseph Lister (yep the man that started Listerine) had the brilliant idea to use eucalyptus oil vapor to disinfect surgical rooms which drastically decreased the number of people dying from infection.
  • WWI used it to control the spread of meningitis and the influenza outbreak of 1919.
  • WWII French surgeon Jean Valnet used eucalyptus oil spray to reduce staph infection by 70%!
  • The National Center for Biotechnology Information says the waste after distillation of the oil is very effective at warding off mosquitoes.
  • India Pharmacopoeia has deemed it a mild expectorant and counter irritant.
  • Chinese Pharmacopoeia has said that it can help soothe nerve pain.
  • Ayurveda recommends its use for headaches and colds.
  • Germany recommends a eucalyptus tea to help sooth bronchitis and throat inflammation.

You have to be careful with the use of this oil or dried leaves as too much can cause drowsiness, severe diarrhea, hypertension, compromised kidney function, coma or even death. This oil should be used very carefully with children, seniors or people with a compromised immune system.

Here is a quick article on ways you can use Eucalyptus.

This is merely an information piece meant to share the info I learned that I found interesting. So remember to consult your Doctor; this use of this oil can hurt you; and all that other legal crap that no one reads and really you should just use some common sense but either way consider yourself warned and you are on your own.