Essential Oils - A Love Affair

Oh essential oils.  How I love thee.

Here’s some irony for you.

A year ago, I thought essential oils were complete hokum.  I mean really, I can rub some sort of weird smelling oil on me and poof, headache gone?  Anxiety quelled?  Nausea eased?

Complete.  Hokum.

And then I moved to a new school building.  And I found out something painful - I was wrong.

Most of the teachers I work with are, as one put it, “all oiled up.”  It didn’t take long before I started asking things like, “Hey, is there an oil that would help with my allergies?”  Or, “Are there any oils that could help control my OCD?”

The next thing you know, I’m a doTERRA wellness advocate, I have a plethora of DIY recipes, and enough homemade oil concoction supplies (glass bottles, jars, labels, carrier oils, shea butter, cocoa butter, etc.) to open up my own health and wellness store.

In fact, just last week, the girls and I made our own diffuser bracelets with elastic string, colorful beads, and lava (volcanic) beads that I bought half off at Hobby Lobby.

Since M and I both have OCD, we need something that we can keep on us when we are away from home to diffuse relaxation oils.  Direct application to skin is awesome, but the oil and smell is quickly absorbed, and sometimes all I need is a whiff to give me the instant calm down my overworked brain is craving.

Towards the end of last school year, I started diffusing oils in my classroom for various purposes – germ-busting, focusing, calming, energizing, and so on, avoiding smells that students didn’t like.  But I also had a student who began using one of doTERRA’s products, In Tune to help with ADHD symptoms.  With parent permission, the student used it twice a day, in the morning, and right after lunch.  The adults who worked with this child (including the parent) could tell a difference.  There were less distractible moments, fewer angry outbursts, a calmer demeanor - the change was noticeable.

Since my collection of oils has literally tripled over the summer, I’m excited to find new ways to use them in my room, without directly applying them to my students.  Here are some of my favorite doTERRA oils that I diffused last year:
*Balance - helps promote a calm atmosphere
*Peppermint - provides focus, especially useful during testing
*Wild Orange - gives uplifted, energized feelings (great on Mondays)
*Serenity - calms emotions, provides relaxation
*Lemon - promotes a positive mood
*On Guard - supports a healthy immune system

And no EO teacher collection is complete without Past Tense and Deep Blue rub.  Perfect for those rare occasions when you experience muscle tension, especially in the shoulders, neck and head.

What about you?  Do you use essential oils in the classroom?  Are you interested in learning more about specific oils that both you and your class could benefit from?  What is your school policy (if any) on using EOs in the classroom?  Or are you like I was a year ago, and believe this is all complete hokum?

See ya soon!

Allison