essential oil remedy for itching

I know I risk sounding like an old lady by admitting this (and I am only on the brink of 30, I promise!) but during the winter months in my COLD and ARID climate, I experience serious ITCHING!!!! My legs itch so bad I literally tear them apart with my fingernails, just trying to get relief! I've tried all kinds of lotions and creams and even humidifiers, but nothing changes the intense itching. So I read this article on a great blog....onegoodthingbyjillee.com. She stated how she uses a combination of PEPPERMINT, LAVENDER, AND LEMON essential oil to ease her itching. She uses capsules and takes the oils internally. She said it worked wonders. I don't know why, but I am not a big fan of taking oils internally because of the lack of study that has been done on them. I really do agree they work in their own applications and they do wonderful things for my family. However, I choose not to take them orally, and I do not judge those who do.
ANYWAY......since these are all common oils that I already have, (I have a basic supply--nothing hard core herbalist or anything.) I thought I would use the oils in my own application. I mix 3 drops of sweet almond oil (the carrier oil) with 2 drops lemon, 2 drops lavender, and 1 drop peppermint. I put that on my foot, rubbing them in very well all over the foot. (I've just heard its a good place to put oils because it absorbs so well. And it's kinda nice to give my self a mini-foot massage in the morning!)  I repeat the mix and put it on my other foot. I'm sure it would be easy to make a larger batch and store it in another container, but I am basically experimenting at this point and don't want to commit my oils to a batch of stuff I might never use--THERE NOT SUPER CHEAP!
And now......for the results!

 

It has worked pretty good! I wont say the results have been amazing, it didn't stop the itching immediately or anything. I have only been doing this for about a week, and YES I have had an ease in the itching. Just writing about the itch is starting to make me itchy again......but I do think it would be beneficial to keep at it to maintain and possibly improve.
Just thought I'd share! I'm glad I heard that piece of advice! Thanks Jillee!!!!

LESSON LEARNED: I need to be creative with my oils! It reminds me that there are so many wonderful things we can use them for!!! If my ails are cured in the mean time.....ITS A WIN WIN!

My new GO-TO medicine for coughing kids!!!

So I read this silly article on Facebook about the benefits of HONEY AND CINNAMON.  Of course I try to give my kids natural remedies before I go for the hard stuff. But when it comes to cold and flu season, I sometimes think, "hmmmm. Should I give this herbal remedy an hour before I decide that it didn't work, then give my kid the over-the-counter cough medicine.....Or just save an hour of coughing and give them the medicine straight away?????" As you can guess I usually go for the second option. But this weekend when two of my kids started with a really killer rattle of a cough, I thought it couldn't hurt to try a quick tincture recommended by Facebook, right?

So first thing in the morning when the cough was at it's worst, I gave each of my little hackers a tablespoon of local honey mixed with 1/2 tsp. of cinnamon. I heated the honey in the microwave for about 5 seconds before I added the cinnamon. (For my own curiosity I tasted it.....not too bad!)  Because it was incredibly sweet compared to their regular diet, my kids LOVED it! That was just a bonus though, because I couldn't believe how great it worked!!! It seriously cured the cough for the ENTIRE DAY!!! I gave them each another little bit of the mixture (about half as much this time) right before bed to soothe those "just laid down" coughs and the results spoke for themselves as my husband and I got an entire nights rest!

I am CONVERTED! No over the counter cough medicine needed! As all moms do, I hope my little ones don't come down with another germ of sickness for the rest of their lives, but I am curious to see how the mix works on dry barky coughs.......I'll update!!!

LESSON LEARNED: people might make you feel like a bad parent for giving your kids "chemical medicines" from "DRUG STORES!". But sometimes, we just want to do what is right to help our kids ASAP! However, my inner EARTH MOTHER has been satisfied knowing that I used LOCAL HONEY and NATURAL CINNAMON as a cure for my kids' coughs!!! (My pocket book was happy too cuz these were things I already had in the pantry and didn't need to purchase!)

ABOUT ME!

I'm Brandi and I am starting this blog to share with family and friends some of the lessons I've learned in my profession--HOMEMAKING. I never planned on being a homemaker, but the first time I held my first baby in my arms, I knew I would give up anything to be with him every second that I could. I enjoy parenting my young children, making delicious Mediterranean Style dishes, using essential oils for many household purposes, and living frugally. I am not succeeding 100% at any of these things, but I enjoy the ride and look forward to sharing with you!!