Confession: I Love Essential Oils

I'm almost embarrassed to post this...  For a number of reasons, really, but mainly because I was SUCH a skeptic for so many years.  I will even admit that I made fun of people who liked/used/sold essential oils.

My initial distaste for essential oils came from a number of places.  I am a nurse.  I believe in medications, and I believe they work.  A lot of people tout essential oils as a cure-all; I saw them as modern-day snake oil salesmen.  I even saw the mother of one of my dialysis patients crying one day because she said an acquaintance told her that her child wouldn't have been born with kidney disease if she had cleaned up her life and used essential oils. Grrrr!  I was infuriated.  The ignorance of that statement and the hurt that she inflicted on a wonderful mother made me even more resentful towards the idea of essential oils.

Then, my point of view started to change a bit.  Another patient's mother told me that she'd used lavender essential oil to clear up a terrible diaper rash on her baby.  We'd been trying to clear it up for a long time and nothing else had worked, but the lavender did.  I was impressed.  My chiropractor also diffused essential oils in her office and they smelled AMAZING.  Even if they didn't do anything else at all they smelled good, right?  I am frugal at heart.  I did some research into Young Living because they were the brand I'd heard people talk about the most.  When I saw the price of the Premium Starter Kit I balked.  I could buy a looootttt of Yankee Candles for the price of the starter kit and they smelled nice, too.

For some reason I was really drawn to the idea of essential oils.  I kept feeling like I was meant to use them.  I read about them.  I pinned essential oil DIY recipes on Pinterest.  I looked at them on Young Living's website and on Amazon.  Finally, I decided to try some oils on Amazon that were MUCH cheaper than Young Living's oils and had pretty good reviews.  I bought a variety pack of oils and a cheap-y diffuser.  I diffused them and they smelled pretty good to me, but that was it.  Max and Aidan got a bit of a cold and I decided I was going to make a chest rub for them with lavender to see if it helped.  I rubbed them down and waited.  Nothing happened except that they both broke out in a rash all over their chests where I'd put the oils.  I was discouraged.  What a waste of money.

I started talking to my friend Lisa about oils.  She had recently started as a distributor with Young Living and I asked for advice.  After a long talk about Young Living and how high-quality their oils are, I decided to take a leap and purchase the Premium Starter Kit with some leftover Christmas money.  The older I get, the more I'm realizing you get what you pay for.  Yes, Young Living oils are more expensive than the ones I bought on Amazon, but MAN that was for a reason.  Not only do the Young Living oils smell better, they actually WORK.

Let me stop here and say this: Yes, I'm still a nurse.  Yes, I still take medications as needed.  I don't even hesitate to give my kids Tylenol and/or Motrin if they're sick or teething and need it.  No, I don't think you need to throw away everything in your house and buy all Young Living products.  No, I don't plan to use essential oils in place of adequate healthcare.

Photo courtesy of Lisa Hand of Anchored by Oils

But, let me tell you what... I rarely feel the need to take dive into my medicine cabinet anymore.  I've had neck and shoulder problems from carrying around my kids and being a nurse for years.  If I feel pressure building up in my head, I have an oil blend for that.  If I'm feeling stressed, there's an oil for that.  Aidan struggled with chronic ear infections since infancy, and I'm so thankful that Max hasn't needed all the interventions that Aidan did.  If my kids are having trouble winding down and bedtime is approaching, I have oils to help them settle.  If they're a little "backed up" and need some digestive support, I have an oily solution before resorting to the prescription medication we were using on an almost daily basis before.  I was breaking out on rashes all over my hands from cleaning with bleach wipes before; now I use Thieves Cleaner and the rashes are gone (and my house smells like Christmas).

All of this to say, I LOVE MY OILS!  They've given me options to try before taking medications.  They've eliminated lots of different cleaning products from my house; now I just use one cleaner for EVERYTHING.  I use them to DIY all sorts of things - face serum, body wash, hand purifier, lash growth booster, air freshener, stove cleaner, bath salts, and on and on and on.  I even use them in cooking.  I've stopped buying lemon and lime juice; I just use a drop of oil in its place.

Photo courtesy of Lisa Hand of Anchored by Oils

If you've ever been interested in trying essential oils, I totally encourage you to try Young Living! Young Living products have become completely irreplaceable in our household.  If you live close by, I'd love to meet up so you can check out my YL products and maybe even sample some.  I'd love to use this post as a place to start a discussion.  Are you a skeptic or do you love oils like me?  What questions do you have about essential oils or Young Living? 

If you're interested in ordering a Starter Kit of becoming a member, click here.