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Pamper Your Feet Imagine holding a small, smooth jar in your hand made of blown glass in your favorite color. As you open the lid, you smell a tantalizing scent that causes you to take a deep breath and relax your shoulders as you let it out. That felt so wonderful you hold the jar closer to your nose and sniff again, finding that you take another deep breath and feel your shoulders drop even further. By now, it’s all you can do to keep your fingers out of the cream that has extended you an invitation. With anticipation, you gently disturb the contents of the jar to lift out a bit of the cream and place it in the palm of your hand. The aroma once again teases you, and this time you catch a hint of the sun, the grasses and yerba buena. Eagerly now, you rub the cream together in your palms. Already you begin to feel refreshed as the coolness and gentle tingles ease out the stiffness you didn’t realize had taken up residence in your hands. You remove one foot from its woolen slipper, savoring that first, gentle, loving caress you give your own foot with the aromatic cream. With each stroke you find yourself giving your foot many messages of gratitude for how well it supported and carried you through your day. When you notice that your worn-out foot feels brand new again, you tuck it back into its woolen slipper with great love and care to repeat the same attention to your other foot. When both feet are back in their woolen slippers, you realize you have nurtured yourself into a different frame of mind, a different perspective of gratitude and appreciation for yourself. Putting yourself in a receptive attitude allowed you to receive all the therapeutic healing qualities of every element of the experience. Don’t you sometimes just wish for the luxury of a relaxing foot rub? When you’ve been on your feet all day long, whether it’s for work, shopping, or something fun, pampering your feet is one of the best things you can do for yourself. Touch is something most of us don’t get enough of to nurture our inner being. Interestingly, we tend to think it doesn’t count to touch ourselves; but self-massage is extremely therapeutic. Self-massage with essential oils is even more effective as a way to nurture yourself, restore balance, ease those aching feet, and put a spring back into your step. Here are some reasons why this is true: 1. Your skin is the largest organ in your body, so there is lots of area for receiving. 2. Your feet have the most number of pores per square inch than anywhere else on your body. 3. Essential oils are organic volatile molecules that have the ability to travel through the skin and enter the blood stream 4. Essential oils come from natural plants that interact with their environment and are the process of photosynthesis. They embody the qualities that give them the ability to sustain life, resist disease, and be in harmony with their environment. 5. The sense of smell is the only sense organ that has a direct connection to the brain from the outside world and can instantly affect memory, mood and accessing the release of neurotransmitters that begins the relaxation response cascade. 2|Page
Our little story puts all those principles together. If you are someone who has very little time to spend creating, the following is a quick way to make an awesome foot cream designed to your own taste: Quick and Easy Foot Rub Formula Base:
Unscented cream – (Purchased)
Essential Oil Choices:
Rosemary Lemongrass Peppermint Instructions: Use the essential oils in any combination, or singly, according to your preference. Ratio: Do not exceed 30 drops of essential oil in 1 ounce (30 ml)
If you want to take a little more time and create something a bit more elaborate, the following formula may suit your fancy: Relaxing Foot Butter
Lemongrass
Base:
2 Tablespoons coconut oil (not fractionated) (If allergic, substitute grated cocoa butter chunk) 2 Tablespoons shea butter 1 teaspoon grated beeswax or beeswax pearls IF using coconut oil; omit if using grated cocoa butter
Essential Oil Choices:
Lavender Geranium Rosemary Lemongrass
Instructions: Melt coconut oil, shea butter and beeswax on stovetop in a double-boiler or bain-marie. Remove from heat and stir in your blend of essential oils with a popsicle stick until well mixed. Pour into a prepared jar (clean and dry). Allow to sit undisturbed until hardened enough to spread (may need to be refrigerated in order to set up). The shea butter solidifies into a granular-type texture, but quickly melts upon application. Ratio: Do not exceed 30 drops of essential oil in 1 ounce (30 ml). This formula will make approx. 2 ounces (60 ml). 3|Page
Rosemary If you just don’t have time to create either of these blends and you’d just rather purchase deonne’s blend already made, you may go to deonne’s website for further information: http://deonnesaromablends.com/products-and-services.html
The Importance of the Ingredients Are you wondering why you might be using some of these ingredients? Let’s explore some of the reasons. Coconut Oil, extracted from the kernels of the coconut, is chosen because it tends to make a creamy product, and lots of people like how it smells. If you use the unrefined coconut, it will be hard at room temperature and revert to a spreadable solid butter after it cools. Many people cook with it for its nutritive value, so you might have it on hand Cocoa Butter comes from the roasted seed of the Cacao and is substituted if you are allergic to coconut. It is often enjoyed for its fragrance as well. Additionally, it is a skin lubricant, having a 40% – 50% butterfat. This is commonly found in a health food store in small quantities. Shea butter is pressed from the kukui nut, native to Hawaii. It is high in linoleic acid, a very nutritive element for the skin, and quickly absorbed, not leaving a greasy feeling on the skin. You can also find this in a health food store in small quantities. Lavender – has properties that are calming and reduce anxiety. It has also been said to have antidepressant qualities and assists in promoting sleep. Geranium - is considered to assist relaxation and in reducing anxiety. Rosemary - supports the function of the nervous system; has pain relieving qualities
Geranium
Lemongrass – assists with inducing sleep, reduces the effects of depression, and supports the function of the nervous system. Peppermint – reduces topical pain experience, supports the function of nervous system.
Now that you have your feet all pampered, are you ready to crawl into bed? Try putting 2 ounces of purified water in a spray bottle and adding about 12 – 15 drops of Lavender, Marjoram or Lemongrass (or a combination if you prefer). These oils will ease most people into a deep slumber in a split second. 4|Page Lavender
Spritz your pillow and bed sheets. Let only enough time pass (10-15 min) so your bed is completely dry. When you get into bed, the oils will carry you on a Magic Carpet into dreamland where you will rest and awaken rejuvenated! Important Safety Information about Essential Oils 1. Essential oils don’t mix with water. a. When you make a mister (spritzer), you must shake the blend every time prior to use to mix the oils into the water. b. When applying oils to the skin, they must be mixed with a carrier oil or a cosmetic nut butter. c. When using essential oils in the bath, they must first be mixed in salt, cream or half & half, or a bath gel 2. Sensitive and allergic persons require caution when using essential oils. Test diluted oils safely on the bottoms of the feet. 3. Certain oils may cause phototoxicity, so exposure to the sun or tanning lights should be avoided within 2-4 hours following application to the skin: Bergamot, Lime, Tagetes, Cumin, Angelica Root, Bitter Orange, Lemon, Grapefruit 4. FIRST AID: Some essential oils are highly irritating to the skin and can cause skin reactions should they come in contact with the skin in undiluted form. When we work with essential oils, we often don’t realize we have them on our hands until we wipe our face and eyes. a. EYE – apply fractionated coconut oil (olive oil or whatever is handy) to a Qtip and touch it to the inner area of the eye nearest the nose. Hold the Q-tip in place – it will draw the essential oil to the Q-tip as essential oils are oil loving rather than water loving. Repeat until symptoms resolve. b. SKIN - apply olive oil to the area with a paper towel (or other carrier oil vegetable cooking oil works – whatever is handy); wipe, remove and repeat until symptoms resolve. c. KEYNOTE: Putting water on an essential oil ‘spill’ is kind of like putting water on an electrical fire – it only makes it worse, spreading the oils onto a larger surface area! 5. In most situations, essential oils should not be applied directly to the skin undiluted or come in contact with the mucous membranes, unless directed by a trained aromatherapist (two exceptions are high quality, organic lavender and tea tree essential oils). Essential oils that should never be applied, taken internally or applied to the mucous membranes undiluted: a. Oregano b. Clove leaf, Clove bud c. Savory d. Thyme ct Thymol and Carvacrol Peppermint 6. Store essential oils out of reach of children
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7. Oils with a high menthol content (especially peppermint oil) should never be used near the neck or throat of children under the age of 30 months. This chemical component has the potential to cause a bronchospasm in young children, which can be a medical emergency. 8. Essential oils should not be taken internally unless directed by a qualified health professional. 9. Use of essential oils during pregnancy should be done under the direction of a qualified and trained health professional. Deonne Wright is a leader and educator in the holistic healthcare arena as a career registered nurse professional. She uses her holistic leadership as a bridge to create an integrative approach to wellness that unifies the emotions, mind, and spirit with the body. A nationally registered clinical aromatherapist since 2001, Deonne’s expertise is in developing custom essential oil formulas specifically for each individual's needs. Her practice is based on recognizing that we are each unique, and the healing process is a personal and individual journey. Deonne combines her training as a Reiki practitioner and sound healer with her Journeying and Energy Psychology skills to integrate the intelligence of plants into her work with clients to facilitate the intention of the session. Custom formulas developed during individual sessions elegantly help the nervous system, supported by the intention, to lay down new pathways in the brain for different outcomes. Deonne also offers distance sessions. Contact Deonne here to learn how to get a free custom blend.
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