You don’t need to be an aromatherapy expert to use essential oils! This simple guide on how to use essential oils will give you the information you need to feel comfortable using oils in your home! We use essential oil products in our household for everything from getting a better night’s sleep to cleaning our home safely with no nasty chemicals!
Estimated reading time: 14 minutes
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Table of Contents
What are essential oils?
Essential oils are compounds extracted from plants (or other natural sources). Raw materials like flowers, leaves, wood, bark, roots, seeds or peel are subjected to a distillation process, cold pressing, or resin tapping. These methods extract the potent “essence” of the plant! Some examples of common essential oils include Lavender, Peppermint, Frankincense, Eucalyptus, Tea Tree, Rosemary and Lemon!
Essential oils can be used individually or mixed into blends and used in so many ways! Some of my favourite blends are Stress Away, Citrus Fresh, Purification and Peace & Calming!
How do you use essential oils?
There are three main ways to use essential oils:
1. Topically – applying the oils to your skin
2. Aromatically – inhaling the oils
3. Ingesting – internalizing the oils
Topically
This means applying oils directly to the body. It’s recommended that you dilute your essential oils with a “carrier oil” (e.g. coconut oil) to do this. A common method of topical application is making a roller bottle with a few drops of oil topped up with the carrier oil to roll on to your skin.
Tips for applying oils topically:
- Some essential oils are “hot” and should be diluted with a carrier oil (ex. Thieves, Pan Away or Peppermint).
- Always dilute using a carrier oil when applying oils topically to children.
- Apply oils like a perfume behind the ears, on the chest or on the wrists.
- Roll oils down your spine or on the bottoms of your feet before bed.
- Apply oils on your stomach, near your belly button, for super-fast absorption.
- Put a drop of oil onto your scalp for a calming effect.
Aromatically
This means breathing in the oils. You can use a diffuser to expel the oils into the air in a fine mist. Diffusing is the most common way essential oils are used.
I have my diffuser running when we are in the room, pretty much 24/7! In large, open areas we don’t keep track of how long we diffuse. At bedtime, we use the intermittent setting on our diffusers and let them run all night long! And if we are diffusing in a room where doors are closed, like the kids’ bedrooms, we simply add less oil and use the intermittent setting.
You can also simply put a drop or two of oil in your hands, then cup them over your nose and mouth and breathe deeply!
Ingesting
This means taking your oils internally, by adding them into food or drink or by filling a vegetable capsule and swallowing them. I love adding a drop of Lemon Vitality Essential Oil to my water glass in the mornings! You could also add Peppermint Vitality Oil to brownies, or a drop of Cilantro to your summer salsa recipe! The options are endless!
Disclaimer: Not all oils are made to be ingested, so please refer to the label of each oil for proper usage instructions. Do your research and if in doubt consult an appropriate medical professional.
I personally tend to be very cautious with ingestion. I don’t frequently ingest oils and if I do it’s in very small quantities (a single drop).
Why are essential oils effective?
“Inhaling the aromas from essential oils has been proven to stimulate areas of your limbic system, which is a part of your brain that plays a role in emotions, behaviors, sense of smell and long-term memory. “
Source
“Interestingly the limbic system also plays a role in controlling several unconscious physiological functions, such as breathing, heart rate, and blood pressure. Therefore, some people claim that essential oils can exert a physical effect on your body”
Source
Your sense of smell is strongly linked to memory as well as unconscious physiological functions. The same part of your brain that is responsible for memory creation is also responsible for your sense of smell.
Whenever I smell the ocean, I’m immediately and vividly immersed in memories of growing up in Southern England near the sea! Whenever I inhale Lavender essential oil I can immediately feel my body relax. So Cool!
If I am stressed or sad I can take my “Unicorn” oil blend and rub it on my palms and inhale or apply it with a roller. Within seconds I will feel more peaceful, calm and safe!
It really is amazing what these incredible and natural compounds can do for our minds and bodies.
Where should you get essential oils?
It’s important to buy natural & 100% pure oils in order for them to be effective. Not all essential oils are created equally. Some oils sold in health food or grocery stores and online contain chemicals and fillers
I choose to buy my oils from Young Living because of their “Seed to Seal” promise. Young Living rigorously controls its production process to avoid contaminants and to meet the highest quality standards. Products are sourced from carefully vetted corporate-owned farms, partner farms, and Seed to Seal-certified suppliers and tested extensively. They strive to produce ethically, sustainably and transparently …You can even visit their farms and see the process for yourself! They are also the original essential oil company and have been in business for over 25 years!
How to use essential oils in your home
If you aren’t familiar with essential oils you might think that they are just a way of making your house smell nice. But essential oils and oil-infused products can be used in so many ways! Here are some of the ways that my family uses essential oils daily!
Wellness
Essential oils can be used to support wellness & immunity. They can be used to combat everything from seasonal allergies to hormonal imbalances! Each member of our family has our own wellness roller that we keep by our beds and apply at night!
Sleep
It’s become a nightly ritual to clean our rooms, turn down the covers and put a sleepy blend into our diffusers. The girls each have their own diffuser in their room and we have one in our master bedroom as well. The girls love choosing their blends for the night and we’ve noticed that they fall asleep more quickly and seem to sleep more soundly through the night.
Hormonal Support
I’ve personally always struggled with hormonal issues. From mood swings to hormonal acne to issues with food, it’s been a constant battle! A few oils that have helped me with hormonal issues include: Clary Sage, Progessence Plus, Endoflex and Dragon Time blends.
Cleaning
One of the unexpected effects of starting to use essential oils in our house was that I became aware of just how many toxic substances I had allowed into our home. If you have ever watched the documentary “Stink” on Netflix you’ll know exactly what I mean when I say that it is shocking how little regulation exists to protect consumers from toxic substances in North America.
You can check out the trailer for the documentary here:
I started reading the labels on my cleaning products, makeup, even food and was horrified at what I found. I’d challenge you to download the App “Think Dirty” and check just one cupboard of products in your bathroom or pantry and see what’s lurking in your “safe” or “green” products.
The good news is that it’s actually really easy to get rid of those nasty chemical products. Young Living has an entire line of cleaning products made with natural ingredients that are actually safe for you and your family!
The Thieves Household Cleaning Concentrate is one of my absolute favourite products from Young Living! One bottle of concentrate will make 30 bottles of cleaner so it’s cost-efficient as well.
Supplementation
When I first started using oils, I didn’t realize just how many amazing products Young Living carried! There is an entire line of Supplements from multivitamins to joint health supplements to protein powders and sports supplements!
My current favourite is NingXia Red, a super antioxidant drink made from Wolfberries and it has been an absolute game-changer for me!!
I’m a shift worker with a stressful job, a mom of 2 and I have several business side-hustles. Sleep is hard for me! I was finding that I was relying on coffee to make it through the day and I would drink one or two cups each morning. My body didn’t react well to it and I would feel shaky and nervous, but more awake. By the afternoon though I would crash and sometimes feelings of anxiety and depression would arise. I finally made the connection between these feelings and the caffeine when I stopped drinking it for a month last year, but I was SOO tired.
I found NingXia Red through recommendations from my oily community and started taking 2 oz in the morning instead of coffee. It gives me a more even energy boost without the jitters and the highs and lows!! It’s literally changed my life!!
Personal Care
When I checked the labels of products in my house, one of the places I found the most toxicity was in my bathroom! My makeup, personal care products etc.. were all full of chemicals and most of the products were meant to be applied daily to my skin!!
I overhauled my entire daily routine and it actually made everything much more simple. Using fewer products, as well as knowing they are safe has been a relief! I currently use the Savvy Minerals makeup line, natural deodorant, body wash, whitening toothpaste, hair oil and so much more!
I also use Young Living shampoo, conditioner and body wash on my kids. My oldest, who has slightly oily skin, has started a simple nightly cleansing routine for her face just using orange-infused charcoal bar soap and rose ointment. She loves it, her skin is healthy and clean and I love that I can provide her with safe beauty options!
Kids & Pets
Oils can be used for kids and pets too. Young Living has lines of oils designed specifically for our minis and fur babies!! Click on the links below to find more information! It’s important to read the labels and follow instructions to make sure you are using oils safely with your family’s most vulnerable members! I love that Young Living makes things easy and clear so that I can feel confident that I am being safe.
Ollie, our beagle, has his own oils that we use to make doggy fresh spray, put on his paws if they are rough and sore, or soothe bug bites! There are so many uses!
We do make sure that we diffuse in open areas and that he can always leave the area if a diffuser is running just to be extra safe!
Our girls have their own diffusers in their rooms and a collection of special recipes that they use daily like “Mermaid Hair spray”, “Bug Off Spray” and “Owie rollers”
We love the KidScents Oils as well. These are pre-diluted and safe to use for little ones. T-GIZE is probably our most used of these oils. We will pop a roller top right onto the bottle and rub on sore tummies for immediate relief!
As a Mom, having essential oils in the house has really made me feel empowered! When they come to me with scraped knees or hurt feelings, I have some tools to help them! I really realized how much I am thankful for essential oils when we all got stomach flu last winter. You can read about how I used essential oils to make the situation so much more bearable in 7 Ways to Use Essential Oils for Stomach Flu.
I want to try oils! How do I get started?
Young Living makes getting started easy! They offer Premium Starter Bundles at incredible value (more than 50% off the regular cost of the included products). The kits come with a selection of most loved oils, a diffuser and lots of information and samples.
There are also NingXia Red, Thieves Household Cleaning and Kids Oil starter bundles to choose from or you can curate your own order.
When you sign up with Young Living you are always assigned a “sponsor” to help you with your oils!
Who you sign up with is so important! You want a sponsor who actively uses oils themselves and who can support you in your oily journey! Our Nesting Well community has active Facebook groups where you can educate yourself on essential oils, find awesome recipes, get questions answered and even win prizes!! We send out cute cards with tons of recipes and tips in your welcome package. And when you sign up with me I will personally help you figure out your oils, ordering etc… so that you never feel lost!
The links to order on this page will automatically sign you up with me, but you can verify that 19017226 is entered in the Sponsor and Enroller fields when you create your account to make sure! As a thankyou, I always send out a pretty welcome package to my new members!
I can’t wait for you to see the results of using oils in your everyday life! If you need help or have questions just send me a message on Facebook, Instagram or Contact Me.
Thank you so much for reading this beginner’s guide on how to use essential oils! I hope you found it informative! It really is easy to get started with essential oils and there are so many benefits!! Stay Well friends!
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Thank you, Amanda, for sharing this comprehensive beginners guide to essential oils! I’ve always loved using essential oils and your post shed some light on the many different ways to use them around the home. I totally agree that it’s worth it to buy the higher quality oils. You can tell the difference between the cheaper oils and the real stuff. Thanks again for the information!
Thanks for reading! Glad you found it helful!
Essenial oils are awesome. Thanks for sharing so many great ideas for using them as well. I react very poorly to many medications, chemicals, and fragrances. I’m so thankful for alternatives!
Same! Very thankful for oils!