DIY: Essential Oil First Aid Kit

Written by Karen Morris

I see it on Facebook.  I hear it at our local library or when I sit down and talk with other moms.  Unnecessary use of pharmaceuticals has begun to be discussed, if not questioned.  At the same time, we want to cure the ailment and bring relief from uncomfortable symptoms. How do we reconcile the two?  Do we medicate, or do we suffer through?

There is a third alternative to drugs or discomfort.  We can safely and effectively manage ailments and their uncomfortable symptoms with essential oils.  Essential oils are volatile liquids distilled from plants.  These oils are fifty to seventy times more powerful than herbs themselves.  Essential oils have therapeutic properties that can relieve symptoms.

When I open my medicine cabinet, I see several different categories of remedies.  These categories included stomach medications, pain relievers, fever reducers, cough medicines, and skin remedies. Let’s look at these one by one.

Stomach Medications

Recently, while at a family camp, one of my sons approached me with an upset stomach. I rubbed two drops of peppermint essential oil on his stomach.  It was only a few minutes before he felt better.  That same son came to me a different time at camp with heartburn.  Again, I removed peppermint essential oil and rubbed one drop on his sternum.  His heartburn was gone quickly.  Minutes later, when I asked him how he felt, he responded, “Great!”

Pain Relievers

The next time you are looking for a pain reliever, try an essential oil blend called PanAway or a 1 to 1 blend of Vetiver and valerian instead of reaching for the Tylenol.  My father suffers from diabetic neuropathy in his feet, causing him a great deal of pain.  One time, when he came over, he complained of foot pain.  I offered him some PanAway.  He left not long after, but my mom told me later that the pain was gone within fifteen minutes.  It worked very well when regular pain relievers didn’t.

Fever Reducers

Essential oils also work well as fever reducers.  Recently, my husband came down with a virus that gave him a fairly high fever.  Peppermint essential oil on the bottoms of his feet broke his fever and allowed him to rest peacefully that night where he had not been able to before when he tried to “tough it out.”  One to two drops of lemon or lime essential oil mixed with eight ounces of water, taken internally, also reduces fever.

Coughs Medicines

Coughs seem to be rampant this year for some reason.  Almost everyone in my house has had a cough over the last two months.  We use frankincense for our coughs.  Two drops rubbed on the chest of the coughing culprit help calm coughs amazingly!

Skin Remedies

Skin problems are just as easily dealt with by using essential oils.  I recently burned my hand on a pan with which I was cooking.  Several drops of lavender essential oil rubbed on the area I hurt kept my hand from burning or scarring.  Lavender also works well on sunburns.  For scrapes, you can use either lavender or myrtle.  For healing infected spots on the skin, you can use melaleuca (also known as tea tree oil).  I had a friend whose husband had MRSA.  Since he had no improvement with antibiotics,  he began to use tea tree oil on the infected spot.  The infection cleared up.  We use an essential oil blend called purification to reduce the pain and itching for insect bites or stings.  Purification also works with ticks.  If you find a tick embedded in your skin, a drop of purification on it will cause it to back out immediately.

I need to close with one very important note.  Any essential oils that you use must be therapeutic grade.  Even essential oils simply labeled “100% pure” can be diluted to five percent of their original strength.  95 to 98% of essential oils on the market are either perfume or food grade.  Non-therapeutic grade essential oils can be grown using pesticides and non-organic fertilizers or extracted by unnecessary chemical solvents.  I never use essential oils which are not marked “100% pure therapeutic grade.”

While antibiotics and other medications are occasionally necessary, using essential oils makes a great deal of sense for both the healthd of your body’s health and your pocketbook.

Disclaimer: This post is not intended as medical advice. These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA, and nothing in this post is intended to diagnose, treat, or cure anything.  If you have questions, please do your own research or seek advice from a health professional.

How about you?  Do you already use essential oils?  Which ones do you use medicinally for your own family?