Spotlight On: Purification

Purification is a blend oil. 

It includes Citronella, Lemongrass, Rosemary, Melaleuca (tea tree), Lavandin, and Myrtle oils.

As the name suggests, it is a purifying blend that helps to cleanse and disinfect the air and neutralises mildew, cigarette smoke, and disagreeable odours. It can help to disinfect and cleanse cuts, scrapes, insect bites and stings.

H O W  W E  U S E :
* 2 drops of Purification on a cotton ball placed in the ear can help with ear pain (remember NEVER drop the oils directly into your ear).

* Diffuse to clean the air. It helps neutralise those musty smells or bad food odours out of your room.

* Use 4-8 drops on cotton balls in the car (place them in the vents) to purify the air.

* Use as a natural bug repellent!

* Spray into your shoes for a natural shoe freshener! You’re welcome!

* Add 4-8 drops on a cotton ball and place in the bottom of a bin or nappy bucket to keep it smelling fresh.

* Add 1-2 drops to your laundry to freshen up stinky clothes without synthetic perfumes!
* Place a few drops onto the inside of the toilet paper roll to help purify the bathroom.

How do you use Purification?

How to get hold of this oil

If you would like to purchase a bottle at wholesale price or would like a free sample please do contact me. Alternatively, please see Wellness Toolkit for the best ways to join Young Living and the amazing Essential Families team with over 5000 members.

Promoting Healthy Hair

Since brushing my dreadlocks out at the beginning of January (2015), I've been looking for ways to help repair my damaged hair, assist in making it grow since I had to cut off so much and also not only make it look healthy but actually be healthy.

It's important to note first though that how our hair looks, feels and grows is affected by varying factors. These include

• What we eat and drink (what is good for body will be good for hair)
• What we do (swimming in chlorinated pools and the sea, using hair dryer, etc)
• Quality of our shower water (You can use a shower filter for the best way to remove fluoride, chlorine, iron oxides ("rust water"), reduce harmful VOCs and other contaminants.)
• Genetics
• How much sleep we have nightly
• Our stress level
• Thyroid function
• and lastly, what we put on it (synthetic shampoos, conditioners, gel, etc)

It is commonly known that even with our access to clean, fresh drinking water very few of us actually drink enough of it.

Are you in this category with me?

Whilst looking at the list above think about what things you may need to do to give your hair it's best chance. It may be quite simply to drink more water, it may be something bigger like a complete diet overhaul, whatever it is take control today and do it!

Whilst we need to be concerned with what goes in, we also need to consciously think about what goes on to.

Did you know that the body's largest organ is the skin? 

This means that what goes on, also goes in!

In January we made the decision to try and not put anything on our skin that we wouldn't also eat and I can honestly say I feel so much better for it, even though we haven't managed it 100%.

Did you know that most shampoos, hair and skincare products on the market contain synthetic materials that exasperate and even create many of our hair, scalp and skin challenges?

Here are a few examples -

• Propylene Glycol - may causes dry skin and skin irritation.
• Sodium Lauryl Sulfate or Laureth Sulfate - surfactant that may corrode hair follicles
• Oleyl betaine – may cause dry hair and scalp.
• Mineral oils - petroleum products clog your pores since the molecule is too big to be absorbed my the skin. With clogged pores your body cannot release it's vital nutrients and oils!

Go and check your labels!

If your shampoo has a pH between 4 and 6 and doesn't have synthetic compounds then you can be sure that it is supportive to healthy hair growth (and okay for the skin to absorb too!)

If you find that your shampoo contains some or all of the no-no's above, then you may want to do some research to find natural hair products.

The first thing to say about this is that thankfully the internet has made researching this so simple.

There are great natural hair products on the market that contain essential oils including the shampoo that Young Living make - Bath & Body Products.

I now only use these products since I know the company is ethical and I can trust the ingredients in it - you can read more about Young Living's unique 'Seed to Seal' guarantee here.

The range that Young Living have is really good, particularly the Lavender & Mint shampoo and conditioner. However, if you really want to make the most of using essential oils for promoting healthy hair then the very best thing to do is to use a base shampoo or conditioner and add the oils that are right for your hair type. I usually add a total of twenty drops to the bottle directly.

W H A T  I S  M Y  H A I R  T Y P E  A N D  W H A T  O I L S  A R E

B E S T ?

The list below contains information for all the hair types and the corresponding oils. Remember that your hair type can change over time. This may be because of environmental factors like some of the ones at the beginning of this post but pregnancy and ageing will inevitably change your hair type.

N O R M A L  H A I R

Normal hair is neither greasy nor dry; it has not been permed, coloured or damaged; it holds its style and is usually shiny. This is the optimum hair type. The oils in this section will promote growth and help to maintain shine.

These oils are best for normal hair:

• Lavender Essential Oil
• Rosemary Essential Oil
• Lemon Essential Oil
• Geranium Essential Oil
• Cedarwood Essential Oil
• Thyme Essential Oil
• Clary Sage Essential Oil

As with any essential oil combination it is best to try one or two at a time to see if they work for you. Essential oils work differently for different people so make sure you keep a note in your oily journal of what works and what doesn't work for you.

D R Y  H A I R

Dry hair looks dull, tangles easily and can become easily split at the ends. Using essential oils that stimulate the sebaceous glands so that more natural oils are secreted is important for this hair type.

Use these oils:

• Lavender Essential Oil
• Rosemary Essential Oil
• Sandalwood Essential Oil
• Geranium Essential Oil

O I L S  F O R  O I L Y  H A I R

Oily hair is caused by over production of sebum by the sebaceous glands, this makes the air appear greasy. The essential oils needed for this hair type will help normalise and balance the glands and as a result the hair.

Try these oils:

• Lavender Essential Oil
• Rosemary Essential Oil
• Lemon Essential Oil
• Peppermint Essential Oil
• Cypress Essential Oil

C L E A N S I N G  T H E  H A I R

Cleansing the hair and scalp is a great way to kick-start your journey to healthier hair. If you currently have 'normal' type hair then skip straight to step 6.

Remember though that your hair type can change and so you ma need to do a cleanse in the future.

1. Use a base shampoo without essential oils. Wash the hair only ONCE; wash, rinse, repeat is not necessary! Using this will help to remove the buildup of chlorine, grease, chemicals and other secretions on and in your hair and scalp.
2. Pick several essential oils from your hair type category to use for shampooing. REMEMBER: You may need to experiment with several oils until you find what you like. It is better for this beginning phase to add the base shampoo and oils to a small pot instead of putting them straight in to the bottle.
3. Continue to use until you feel there is improvement. You do not need to wash your every day. If your hair is used to this then you may feel it needs it, this is because when using synthetic shampoos the hair and scalp are stripped so the body works harder to produce more oils, this then leads to you wanting to wash it more. Two to three times is the optimal recommended times. If you are a prolific hair washer work your way slowly to this optimal recommendation by starting with every other day.
4. Brushing is an important part of promoting healthy hair. Brushing helps to take the oils produced from the scalp to the very ends of the hair. A natural bristle brush is the best type of brush to use - my personal favourite is a boar hair brush.
5. Keep this routine going even after you see improvement.
6. Now you can add oils to promote hair growth - these are the oils in the 'normal' category. I do this with a D.I.Y. leave-in conditioner. Here's my recipe:

F L A K Y  S C A L P ?

As we know essential oils are useful for so many ailments so it is no surprise that may be very effective in minimising occasional flakiness.

It is best to add these to the leave-in conditioner above and ensure you massage them well in to the scalp. This can be repeated daily until the flakiness disappears. To maintain a flake-free scalp add the oils that work best for you to your leave-in conditioner for promoting healthy hair growth - you may notice that some of them appear in both categories...

• Basil
• Cedarwood
• Cypress
• Lemon
• Lavender
• Rosemary
• Sage
• Thyme
• Melaleuca Alternifolia - A.K.A. Tea Tree

Don't forget to go on over to the Facebook Page and let me know how you get on with these.

Do you have any tips or tricks for using essential oils to promote healthy hair growth?

If you are interested in starting your oily then check out WELLNESS TOOLKIT and CONTACT ME with any questions.

You can also see the new hair growth I have had from using essential oils in this video (Please subscribe to the All in a Drop channel to see new content uploaded)

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HK2hE-T3vGw[/embed]

How To Create A Toxin-Free Home Without Breaking The Bank (Or Using Much Effort)

I appear to have broken my internet with this post - I've tried to post it four times now !

I am SO excited to be hosting a new online event very soon that will help anyone who's looking to create a toxin-free home whilst saving money and with little effort.

If you want to be kept in the loop use this link to reserve your seat now - https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/867231378424982787

This webinar will not be available for replay and space is limited, so be sure to mark your calendar once you've registered and show up at least ten minutes early on Wednesday 9th November !

See you there.

Naturally Battling Hormones

**This post first appeared on the All in a Drop website in 2015**

Anyone that follows my instagram feed will know that eight months ago I was diagnosed with PCOS - Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), also called hyper-androgenic anovulation (HA), or Stein-Leventhal syndrome. It is one of the most common endocrine disorders among females. PCOS has a diverse range of causes that are not entirely understood, but there is evidence that it is largely a genetic disease. For me, this has provided answers to my continual struggle with weightloss and erratic hormones.

We have been trying to conceive for almost 18 months now and this diagnosis helped to provide answers to the 'why can't we?' However, it has certainly not been plain sailing. Knowing the cause is one thing, but sorting the effects of it is completely different. As I've said one of my problems is that I really struggle to lose weight, but this situation is exasperated by my PCOS. Needless to say it has really brought me down but this post is not all doom and gloom. 

A friend introduced me to Young Living Essential Oils a few months back and I can't tell you how much they have changed my family's life. We have taken a big leap forward with one of our kids bed wetting, I've managed to get better sleep due to stopping Tom's snoring and I've started to change all the harsh cleaning chemicals over to oils without worrying about the kids getting hold of them.

But here's a change that I can actually measure:

Back in March my hormones were tested through a blood test and my LH and FSH were recorded at 13 and 26. The 'normal' range is between 1&9 and 1&12. As you can see these results were far from normal - typical of someone with PCOS. I had another blood test at the beginning of this month and  got the results yesterday - they are at 6 and 7 respectively!!!!! I can't tell you how AMAZING this is, I've basically got normal hormones level again!

Now you're reading this thinking that's all well and good but how did you get there?

My answer is extremely simple. I changed my diet, cut out gluten and refined sugar, basically a primal diet, I started to lose weight, overall about 1.5st in three months. That sounds good, right ? but my weight loss really tailed off after about 7 weeks, with minimal weight loss since. I decided in August that something else needed to changed, so I switched to full-on Paleo. This has been tough, a complete mind over matter daily challenge. I used to be a prolific tea drinker, luckily no sugar but plenty of milk. This was and still is the hardest thing not to have. It doesn't help that we still have tea in the house for when people come round and also Tom still drinks tea, so it's not 'out of sight out of mind'.

I haven't succumbed to the temptation yet.

If you know of any good paleo friendly alternatives, please do shout!!

These changes have led to a further weight loss of 1.5 stone in 8 weeks - brilliant. I'm so pleased with myself. However, weight-loss alone like this would not bring my hormones back to normal so quickly. I mentioned essential oils earlier and I have found two that I believe have truly helped to balance my hormones. They are Endoflex and Progessence Plus. The first is for help with the endocrine system and the second is a form of progesterone derived from wild yam. I've used these each day for the last seven weeks (ish) and have seen changes to other horrible PCOS symptoms, including  facial hair !

I used to be plucking every 3-5 days, terribly self conscious of my face.

However, I have now not taken a set of tweezers to my face in almost 4 weeks...I'd say that's bloody brilliant!

These oils are truly amazing and the fact that they're entirely natural makes me all the more confident to use them.

UPDATE: They did come back after five weeks of no plucking, not as many as before and five weeks is amazing! 

Now, I haven't got the baby to show for all this hard work my body and I have been doing, but I am confident with the results I've seen both at home and from medical professionals that I'm totally on the road to having one soon! If I was drinking alcohol I would totally be raising a glass to my oils right now!

*UPDATE: In February 2015 my husband was diagnosed with a chromosomal abnormality, which has led to us not being able to conceive.*

I have written an eBook 'Balancing Hormones: Ten Natural Ways'. You can get this by joining our free Facebook community.

If you're interested in using essential oils for you and/or your family then read 'this, to start your Wellness Toolkit or feel free to contact me and start your journey to cleaner living.

What are your natural ways of dealing with your symptoms of PCOS?

You can also watch my Essential Oil and PCOS video here:

Thieves

W H Y  T H E  N A M E  T H I E V E S ?

It is rumoured that during the 15th century, a band of robbers stole from the dead and those dying from the plague without contracting the disease. When captured, they were asked to reveal their secret for staying healthy in exchange for a more lenient punishment. The thieves had been slathering themselves with a blend of these oils, hence the creation of Thieves oil. Fascinating!

Thieves is a blend consisting of Clove, Cinnamon Bark, Lemon, Rosemary and Eucalyptus oils; because of the Cinnamon and Clove, Thieves is considered a "hot" oil & should be diluted with a carrier such as coconut, olive oil, v-6, grapes, etc.

Thieves should be your number one go to oil in the fight against germs, while working to support healthy immune function too. This is an exceptional oil to use at any time of year, but particularly at the change of seasons.

Diffusing for thirty minutes each day is recommended during the 'germy' season since when tested at Weber State University, Ogden, Utah, thieves was found to have a 99.96 percent effective rate against airborne bacteria.

Diffusing daily will help to keep the house germ-free, but it doesn't mean you'll never get ill (unfortunately!).

Another great preventative is to make a Thieves roller and apply to the family's feet before putting socks on in the morning. This will help them remain germ-free during the day.

When someone's immune system is compromised remember consistency is vital to boosting it with essential oils. Up the amount of drops of thieves in the diffuser to around ten and diffuse around the clock.

This week on All in a Drop is thieves week so we'll be discussing the full range of thieves products which are great for becoming a chemical-free home and keeping everywhere and everyone as healthy as possible.

Have you got Thieves in your Wellness Toolkit yet ?

WHY BE GREEN (in our homes and environments, not with envy !) ?

There are so many pollutants and toxic chemicals in our world today.  Most of which we have no control over.  However, we can control what is used in our homes!

Did you know that:

    •    Fumes from some cleaning products may induce asthma in otherwise healthy individuals. A large and growing body of evidence links frequent use of many ordinary cleaning supplies at home or on the job with development of asthma and other respiratory problems. It is already known that cleaning product fumes may trigger attacks in persons previously diagnosed with asthma.

    •    Common cleaning ingredients can be laced with the carcinogenic impurity 1,4-dioxane. Independent tests have detected the presence of 1,4-dioxane in numerous name-brand cleaning supplies. Other products contain preservatives that release low levels of cancer-causing formaldehyde.

    •    Children born to women who held cleaning jobs while pregnant have an elevated risk of birth defects, according to a 2010 study by the New York State Department of Health.

    •    Some cleaners can cause chemical burns and poisonings as well as less severe irritations and allergies. Severe physical reactions signal that consumers should take care anytime they use these products.

    •    Despite these health concerns, cleaning product labels often do not give consumers enough information about their ingredients to allow people to make informed decisions on which ones are safer and which ones might harm their health.

    •    Although government scientific and regulatory agencies have focused considerable attention on chemicals suspected of causing cancer, they have devoted far fewer resources to evaluating substances that may be toxic to the brain and nervous system, the hormone system and other organs. Investigating the full range of risks of cleaning products to public health and the environment should be an urgent priority. Yet the problem remains largely hidden from the view of the American consumer.

Chemicals used in pesticides and in synthetic veterinary drugs - including antibiotics and growth hormones - are prohibited under ORGANIC regulations, but not for non-organic meats. These then enter our own bodies and effect us without us really knowing how.

On average women will use or come into contact with 168 potentially dangerous chemicals, daily and men 85 !

You can find more information on the Environmental Working Group website. 

SO, WHAT CAN WE DO ABOUT IT?

CLEANING TIPS

Our tips and safety guidelines do not include any dangerous or harmful warnings.  However, there are a few things to keep in mind when cleaning with YL products, including essential oils:

    •    Shake products before use.

    •    Test cleaners in small areas first.

    •    Spray nozzles fit perfectly onto old vinegar bottles.  Use these to create cleaning sprays.

    •    Store products in airtight glass or stainless steel containers.

    •    Keep away from eyes.

 It’s really important to say here too, that this journey does not need to be overwhelming. Take small steps. My best piece of advice, and one that I followed myself, is to change out one product at a time. Whether that’s your hand wash, your shampoo, your beauty products or your cleaners, it doesn’t matter. Just start somewhere.

Check out the RECIPES page for a growing list of tried and tested recipes.

BALANCING HORMONES

Are you a woman?

Do you suffer with irregular cycles?

Do you have to get rid of unsightly facial and/or body hair?

Do you have thinning hair?

Do you struggle to lose weight despite a healthy diet and exercise?

If you answered 'Yes' to any of these questions, even just the first one without any of the others, then you may have hormonal imbalance. 

It is incredibly common in women, often left undiagnosed as women are made to feel really crap about going to the GP with women's ishoos. I'm here to tell you that you are not alone. You do not have to suffer. There IS a better way.

What are Hormones ?

Hormones are messengers in the body that generally travel through the bloodstream to convey a message that regulates various body functions, such as: growth, reproduction, immune response, emotions, hunger, metabolism and tissue regeneration. Different hormones control different things and illicit different reactions. These reactions can be positive or negative. For example, I have PolyCystic Ovarian Syndrome, this affects each sufferer differently, but tests have shown that mine creates an abnormally high level of Testosterone (the male hormone). Testosterone controls things like muscle and hair growth, so I have a tash, a treasure trail line and a great set of 'mum-guns' ! 

I say 'have' but it should really read 'had'. As with lots of things, treating the symptoms of something, whether that be obesity or PCOS, does nothing to help to the root cause. If we focus on the root cause, then the symptoms disappear. So, instead of dealing with heart disease (for the obese person), let's look at why they are obese and sort that. For me, addressing the imbalance of hormones has regulated my cycles, given me healthy nails and a full head of hair, amongst many other things.

So, What Can You Do About It?

The honest answer, lots. So much so it can be overwhelming. I have compiled the ten best ways to re-Balance hormones in my eBook - leave your email here to receive your copy

However, we'll go through a few things here too:

1. Reduce Stress

​Although stress is a natural mechanism, to help keep us prepared for 'normal' challenges, most modern lifestyles add more daily stress than our bodies were made to handle. In fact, studies have shown that modern, everyday stresses, if left unchecked, can negatively impact our health; chronic stress uses the progesterone needed to balance oestrogen and converts it to adrenalin and cortisol (the death hormone), which can lead to oestrogen dominance. 

I know that it is not always possible to eliminate stress (heck ,did you read my bio - I had three kids under three y'all !), even little changes can have a massive impact.

Mindfulness, meditation and Yoga are things that I have found helpful, not necessarily to get rid of the daily stress but to be less stressed about it.

The website name gives this next bit away, but I can't write a post about balancing hormones without talking about the big player in my wellness toolkit - essential oils. 

Now, you're probably thinking, "oh yeah ! I smell something nice (or not so nice) and voila all my problems disappear". But i'm here to tell you that they are so much than scents - Google "essential oils blood-brain barrier". 

I'm not going to go in to how the oils work in this post. Just trust me when I say they do and if that's not enough, try them for yourself ! 

• Roman Chamomile essential oil - has calming and relaxing properties.
• Royal Hawaiian™ Sandalwood essential oil - encourages deeper meditation.
• Neroli essential oil - encourages confidence, hopefulness, and peace.
• Lavender Essential Oil - calms the mind and body.
• Cedarwood Essential Oil - promotes relaxation, balance, and increased mental focus.
• Valerian Essential Oil - was historically regarded for its calming properties.
• Ylang Ylang Essential Oil - relaxes the mind and uplifts emotions.
• Peace & Calming II essential oil blend - contains a mix of oils all renowned for their calming effects
• Stress-Away essential oils blend - this just does what it says on the tin !

There are SO many more, but these are some of my favourites. Find one that works for you and USE it.

2. Eliminate Toxins

The sad truth is that we live in a toxic world. Everything from the food we eat to the things we clean with are toxic. 

Our endocrine system is delicate; the littlest things upset it and yet it is VITAL to keep it at its best.

So, what can we do about it?

Well, first things first remember that whatever you put on your skin goes in to your body. I set myself a goal at the beginning of the year that I wouldn't put anything on my body that I couldn't eat. Bold move, Ally !  We're now in September I can say there is only one occasion when I slipped - I was away at a conference and forgot my normal hair washing products and i didn't have the ingredients to make a dry shampoo to hand, so I had to buy something. Now, I purchased something natural and organic. Was it still full of crap ? Almost definitely. But hey, if that's my only slip up, i'm happy. My body is thanking me.

This may sound like a drastic step, but is it really ?

The amount of chemicals in our homes in scary. On average, it is said that women come in to contact with approximately 168 chemicals and men 83  in any one day. Eurgh ! I hate that figure. 

I am proud that we are now a chemical free home. We'll talk about that in a later post.

My best tip for eliminating toxins is to start with area. It may be personal care products or cleaning green, it may be switching to organic foods - which I promise makes a huge difference ! Whatever your first area is choose one product to switch out. Start small. It may be that you switch your deodorant for Purification essential oil or change the bleach to Thieves household cleaner. Whatever it is, change that one thing, get used to it. See what happens and then change another. It doesn't have to be overwhelming, it can take you as long as you need, just please, start somewhere !

3. Support Progesterone Production

We've spoken about reducing stress and eliminating toxins already. By doing 1. and 2. you're already aiding in 3. Because as we've already noted, toxins and stress use up much needed progesterone. 

• Eat more anti-oxidants. The very best thing for this is to eat more fruit and veg. I  know, you hear this all the time and it's proffered as the miracle cure for almost everything these days, but organic fruit and veg is the very best way to maintain a healthy body.
• Use Progessence Plus. This is a serum derived from wild Yams. I read a study many moons ago about a tribe in Africa that had the highest rate of twin pregnancies in the world. Anthropologists and scientists studies this tribe and the only thing they could find in their lifestyle that was different to any where else was the high percentage of Yam in their diets. Yams contain natural progesterone, which aids ovulation. Amazing ! 
• Frankincense essential oil - this oil is amazing for reducing stress particularly in meditation so kill two birds by adding this in to your daily regime. Apply to the inner ankles (female reproductive vita flex point) to help balance the endocrine system.
• Thyme essential oil - thought to help the body absorb progesterone better

There are so many other things that I could write about here, but I don't want to pummel you with more information than you can take in !

So, if you remember nothing about what I've written just integrate  the following tips into your daily routines for better hormonal balance and whole body wellness:

• Eat Organic
• Drink more water
• Avoid plastic or coated cookware
• Relax more
• Get hold of my eBook
• Find support

I am not an expert on hormone therapy, just somebody who has been there, trying to help others along the way. 

I hope and pray that this helps you take steps to Whole Body Wellness, whether they be big or small.

​