A while back, I mentioned that I had signed up to be a distributor with Young Living Essential Oils. This was not a decision that I entered into lightly. In fact, if you had told me two years ago that I would eschew synthetic drugs one day in favour of those "new-age, hokey" essential oils, I may have looked at you like you had an apple tree sprouting out your ears.

So why the change in heart? Well, I find that in so many ways, I am like Thomas the Doubter--I need to experience something and see it and touch it to believe it. In other words, I actually tried them.

The first oil I used was peppermint. My friend Dawn gave it to me when I was pregnant with Noah. Since that pregnancy began when Jude was only six months old, my body had not had sufficient time to recover, my liver began to get overloaded, and I suffered from nearly a cold a month (7 in all), as well as the flu and food poisoning, having to be hospitalized to be re-hydrated for the last two. Of course, when you are pregnant, you are not allowed to take drugs. I hadn't much cared to take them if I could help it even before that, but I would occasionally take an antihistamine to clear my sinuses at night so I could go to sleep. (I cannot fall asleep while breathing through my mouth. I have tried and failed many times.)

After a few months of misery, trying to sleep in the recliner, among other things, Dawn gave me the peppermint oil. Oh, gift from God! I would rub a few drops on my chest before bed, and if it was really bad, on my sinuses, too, and within ten minutes my head was clear and I was able to go to sleep like a baby. (In my case, my baby was sleeping pretty good, so that's actually saying something!)

After reading The Maker's Diet, I began to realize that there could be a wide range of applications for essential oils. It made sense to me--one of my favourite book series' as a kid was set in "prehistoric" times. What fascinated me the most was the author's obvious knowledge of plant properties, and how her characters used them for everything from easing an upset stomach, to anesthetic, to birth control. It was this series that awakened an interest in me in all things botanical. (If I had decided to pursue science instead of the arts for post-secondary education, I would have become a botanist.)

Of course, there was still that part of me that thought that a good chunk of the hoopla surrounding aromatherapy was just that, and that the oils could be of no real benefit besides mood alteration, if that.

Before I say anything else, I must tell you that the FDA has decreed that only a drug can "cure, prevent, or treat a disease." (This is ridiculous, but it's their decree.) As a distributor bound by contract to Young Living, who is under the legislation of the the United States Government, I am not allowed to make any claims that these oils can do any of these things, either. As soon as you say something natural can prevent disease, the FDA says it must be classified as a drug, be regulated, and likely have the price jacked way up since Big Pharma will then be able to patent it and take over its manufacture and distribution. (I'm surprised the FDA hasn't tried to regulate oranges because they can prevent and treat scurvy. Oh, wait. They are trying that right now.) This is why it is so difficult to find information on the practical applications of essential oils. I am, however, allowed to tell you how I've used them, and what the results have been.

I hope that reading this helps you to see that they may have a benefit for you and your family, as well. But buyer beware! Many oils on the market today are no more than perfume-grade oils, and are not suited for topical or internal use. Read your packaging wisely. If you become as frustrated as I was in trying to find high-quality essential oils locally, let me know, and I will assist you in receiving Young Living Essential Oils, right to your doorstep.

Ø Peppermint:

I am continually finding new uses for the oils. While I may not have time to post everything I use them for, in the few short months I have used them on a full-time basis, they have already proved to be of more benefit than I can describe. I would encourage you to look at ways that you can work with your body's immune system, by harnessing the natural properties of plants, instead of inundating yourself and your family with more toxins that your body must flush out.

Have a great Sunday, friends.