Lavender

I really just quickly have to say again how awesome lavender essential oil is.  Last summer we learned the hard way to keep it on hand.  Afton went outside to play on our monkey bars and almost immediately got stung by a wasp.  She cried and cried for an hour!  I don't know what to do or how to make it better.  The next day the same thing happened again.  We realized that there was a wasp nest in the pipe of the monkey bars.  That time I thought to try lavender.  I hadn't heard to use lavender for stings, but I knew it was the universal oil.  "If you don't know what to use...use lavender."  So I thought we would give it a try.  As soon as I put the lavender oil on the sting, she stopped crying and was all better.  Instantly...that fast!  Really.  I was convinced.  

This year we haven't had as many opportunities to try it.  Thank goodness!  But tonight we got ready to go for a walk and Kensi got stung by a wasp that had been hiding out in the stroller.  I grabbed the lavender and put it on.  Within 30 seconds she had stopped crying and was just fine.  It really is amazing.  I have learned to ALWAYS have lavender with me.  I keep a bottle in the car, one in the house and send one with the boys every time they go on scout camp outs or hikes.  I know for sure that I NEVER want any of us to be caught without it!

Essential Oils

I have been learning a lot about essential oils in the last year because of necessity.  I have come to understand them and I love to use them.  I had a class at my house in April that was taught by a woman who has been using essential oils for years and is a wealth of knowledge.  Here are the notes I took from that class:

All of the oil blends mentioned below are from the company, Be Young. You can email me if you want to know more about how to get them.

Essential Oils Class Notes

RECIPES:


·         Liver Cleanse:  1 Tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice, 1 drop lemon EO (essential oil), 1 drop peppermint EO.  Take 1 dose every morning.  (Unless you have high blood pressure, then use spearmint instead of peppermint)



·         Bath salts: 1/4 c. Epsom salts, 1 squirt of a carrier oil, 3-5 drops of EO.  For healing bath salts add the following oils: peppermint, eucalyptus, rosemary, chamomile


TIPS:

·         EO's like to float of the top or liquids in teas or in baths.  To remedy this in a tea, stir the EO into a spoonful of honey and then add the water.  In a bath, mix the EO with some bath salts (or just plain Epsom salts) and then dissolve it in the bathwater.

·         To help the oils get deep into the muscles, use peppermint oil on it or cover with a moist, warm towel.

·         Less is more.  One drop is often sufficient.

·         Be careful what oils you use in pregnancy.  Especially avoid the hormone blends (Venus & Mars) and peppermint.  If you are unsure, test a small amount on your feet and see how it affects you.

·         The citrus oils (i.e..lemon, orange) will make you burn if you expose the skin where you have rubbed them to the sun.  Be careful.

·         For the milder oils, the best way to take them internally is either by the "lick trick" (put a drop on your wrist and lick it off) or in a small amount of water and then swished around the mouth before swallowed.  Swishing gets the oil 90% absorbed in your mouth vs. the 25% absorption that you would get if you just "chugged it" into your stomach.


AILMENTS:

·         Neck pain: chiro-touch (relaxes) &; physical touch (healing)

·         Headache: Make a small pillow using 2 of 3x7 inch material.  Stuff it with equal parts of rice, flax seeds, lavender buds &; spearmint leaves.  Sew it up and store in a plastic bag.  For a headache, warm it up and lay it on your head.  If the potency of the spearmint &; lavender has faded, add 2 drops of lavender EO and 2 drops of spearmint EO on the bag and shake it around.

·         PMS: Mars & Venus EO blends.  They balance the hormones.  Mars balances testosterone, Venus balances estrogen &; progesterone.   Use one in the morning and the other at night.  (do not use in pregnancy)

·         Infection: Use Spice for Life, Guardian &; Defense blends.  Take internally swished around in the mouth.  Spice for Life in the morning when viruses are easier to kill, Guardian at lunch when fungus is less active &; Defense at night to kill the bacteria.  Use one drop or for more serious infections, 3-4 drops each time.

·         Breathing trouble/allergies:  Use the Breathe blend, peppermint or Eucalyptus.  Rub on chest over the lungs and also inhale deeply.

·         Depression: frankincense, 1 drop under your tongue

·         Heart burn: lemon oil, 1 drop under your tongue

·         Sudden overwhelm or anxiety: Geranium

·         "Baby Blues": Venus blend rubbed on the lower abdomen and frankincense taken under the tongue

·         Sunburn: peppermint &; lavender oils mixed with 4 oz. of water and mist on the sunburn often

·         Hormone imbalance in men: Mars blend or coriander

·         Hormone imbalance in women: Venus or bergamot

·         Labor help: Rose oil will open up the cervix if applied directly.  Loving care blend is good rubbed on the abdomen and thighs.  Basil helps you relax.

·         Breast engorgement in nursing: dill oil rubbed on

·         Stimulate breast milk production: coriander

·         Bug repellent: Lavender, tea tree, lemon, eucalyptus, &; rosemary.  Diluted with water and spritzed on.

·         Adrenal fatigue: juniper berry & geranium oils

·         Urinary tract infection: encapsulate 4 drops each of thyme &; oregano and take 2 times a day.  Rub Juniper berry on the kidneys.  Sometimes UTI's are caused by a blood sugar imbalance, treat for that as follows.

·         Blood sugar imbalance: 2 drops each of coriander, dill &; fennel taken with every meal


OILS and WHAT THEY ARE GOOD FOR:

·         Mars blend: for over aggressive boys.  It will calm the testosterone overload

·         Orange &; Lemon oil:  good for learning and stimulating the brain.  Orange for right brain activities (creativity) and lemon for left brain activities.  Rub the oil behind the ears and on the neck.  Orange is also good to use in water to help the body's cells absorb the water and hydrate the body.

·         Spice for life blend: anti-viral.  Best used in the morning when viruses are easier to kill.  Best if taken internally by the "lick trick" (put a drop on your wrist and lick it off) or in a small amount of water and then swished around the mouth before swallowed.

·         Fennel: digestion and car sickness.  Also can be put in water to help the body's cells absorb the water &; hydrate the body.

·         Brain Gem blend: lazy eye & learning disabilities.  Tells the tissues of the brain to repair themselves.

·         Helicrysm: pulls the poison out of the body, i.e..scorpion bite

·         Lavender or Rose oil: diluted for use on diaper rash, yeast infection, bug bites, & sunburn.  Dilute in water and then put in a spray bottle and spritz on the area needed.  Rose oil will open up the cervix if applies directly during labor.

·         Loving care blend: good rubbed on the abdomen and thighs during childbirth.

·         Basil:  helps you relax during childbirth.

·         Dill oil: will help ease engorgement in breasts when nursing

·         Coriander: helps stimulate breast milk


INTERESTING FACTS:

·         It takes 6,000 rose petals to get 1 drop of rose EO

·         Peppermint is the same frequency as the brain.
·         There are 2 "universal oils" which can be used for almost anything: Lavender & rose oil

*** Oh, and don't forget the "don't take this as medical advice and sue me later" disclaimer.  :)

Sugar Cont'd

Okay, confession time. I fell of the wagon and have been eating sugar. I found out that I just can't go cold turkey. We had been promising the kids all summer that we would go down to the Red Barn and get ice cream and when we did that I didn't want to be left out! For our family it will have to be a slow and gradual change to cut the sugar out. My original goals are still in place and I have been doing great with them. The days that I was "off sugar" were huge for me. I found out that I actually CAN do it! Yeah me...even if it isn't for very long. But it got me thinking about everything that I ate and wondering if there was a non-sugar alternative. One morning I warmed up & pureed strawberries & apple juice together and put it on my pancakes instead of syrup. It was TONS better than syrup! We may never by 100% off of sugar, but we are striving to be healthier one step at a time!

Sugar update

When we got back from reunion I decided that I was ready to try something drastic and so I decided to jump on board with my friends and go cold turkey without sugar for a month. If we all make it we are going to go to the spa together or something as our reward. I started on July 7th. So far I have 3 days under my belt and am feeling really good. I am not taking out ALL sugar, just the obvious ones: brownies, doughnuts, cookie dough, candy, chocolate, sugar, syrup...stuff like that. I'm not ready to start reading EVERY label to find & cut out the hidden sugar...that will come in the future sometime.

This has not really been as hard as I thought it would be. I think another factor is my success has been that I have also been working on balancing my hormones. So overall in life I have been feeling more stable and so don't have the need to "eat my way happy" with sugar.

The first hurdle came on day 2 when I was at a ward activity. They were serving ice cream sandwiches...I LOOOOOVE ice cream sandwiches. But I was able to say "no thanks" and really mean it and the kicker is that I didn't feel frustrated or deprived! I am so proud of myself. I am going to go find some big star stickers that I have and start sticking them on the calender to show my success! Yeah me! :)

Sugar Decision

Okay...there is no way that I can go cold turkey off sugar. Any time I tell myself that I can't have something I crave it and it is really bad with sugar. Any time I tell myself that I can't have sugar, I run out and eat a dozen doughnuts, or a whole cake...literally. So this 4th of July I am declaring my independence from sugar, but I have to do it my own way. Here is the plan:

***LSA step 1 - Eat a breakfast w/ protein within 1 hour of waking up

Eating within an hour of waking up has been the struggle for us. We get up, get dressed, make beds, clean room, have family scripture study and THEN prepare and eat breakfast. Usually that is almost 2 hours after we wake up. But a brilliant friend of mine (thanks Becky!) suggested getting up and having a quick protein smoothie first thing in the morning, then going about the morning routine and having breakfast later. That will get our protein breakfast in right after we get up. This is the recipe for George's Shake from the PNP website, www.radiantrecovery.com.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of milk
• 1/2 cup of fruit juice
• 2 tbs protein powder
• 2 tbs oatmeal (not instant)
• frozen fruit of your choice

Directions:

Put ingredients in the blender and blend on high for about a minute. If you do it for less time, you will be crunching oats at the bottom of your shake. If you prefer not to use milk in your shake, use water and a little juice. This shake work as a great breakfast choice because it combines nutritious foods with plenty of protein.

***Give protein snacks instead of sugary snacks

String cheese instead of Popsicles.

***Try to replace the sugary meals with something more healthy

Breakfast is going to be the hardest place to take out the sugar. We eat pancakes w/ syrup, rice pudding, oatmeal or cream of wheat w/ sugar & cinnamon, cold cereal etc. You see the pattern. We have something sugary almost every morning. That is NOT a good way to start the day. To combat this I am going to make more breakfast burritos (eggs, hash browns & cheese rolled up in a tortilla). I will blend up berries w/ apple juice to put over pancakes or in hot cereal to sweeten it. We won't buy any more sugar loaded cold cereals.

These 3 goals are my beginning baby steps to recovery!

Sugar Addiction

"Hi, my name is Jen and I am a sugar addict."

That is probably how I should start my day...every day. Lately I have been having a conversation with several of my friends about sugar addiction. It seems that we all struggle with the same problem and have been struggling with it for a long time and haven't known what to do about it. I have had some real incites in the last month so in order to start healing, I want to put it out there for everyone to see. This way I am accountable and this is "real", not just in my head.

I go CRAZY for sugar. When I need sugar, I NEED SUGAR. and you'd better not get in my way. And if there is none around I am a crazy lunatic. No exaggeration! I can't just eat one of something...I have to eat ALL of it...and don't even think of asking me to share because there is no way I am going to. I take my treat and hide in my room so the kids don't know and won't ask me to share. And then after eating all of that sugar, I feel rotten the rest of the day while I "detox" and that is NOT pleasant. I hate feeling like a slave to sugar, but the thought of doing w/o it seems so impossible.

This is how I have lived my life, at least my married life when I have been the one in control of what I eat and buying the groceries. And the worst part is that now I am seeing these same tendencies in my kids. So it's not bad enough that mom is a raging lunatic, but now the kids are too! And I feel so guilty passing this on to the next generation to deal with when I can't even deal with it. I was telling my mother in law about this a month or so ago, I was telling her how my 2 year old, Kensi, will go totally BALLISTIC over a Popsicle and she handed me a book that is in the process of changing my life. It is "Little Sugar Addicts" by Kathleen DesMaisons. She also has a book for adults called "Potatoes not Prozac". In her books she talks about "sugar sensitivity". In people who are sugar sensitive, their bodies chemically process sugar totally different than "regular" people. It literally affects the body like an addictive substance, like drugs or alcohol. She actually started this food program for alcoholics (alcohol is sugar) and found that alcoholics who stuck with the food program didn't relapse back into their alcoholism. Her way of combating the sugar sensitivity works for all sugar addictions. (for some people it isn't even sweets that are the problem, but breads & pasta) In the end, the goal is to be totally off sugar. But in her 7 step process, getting off sugar is #6. And the steps are doable. She reiterates over and over again that it's not our fault we are like this - it is chemistry - but there is something that we can do about it and the key to successfully overcoming it is to take it really slow.

In "Little Sugar Addicts" (LSA), the steps for children are different than the steps for adults in "Potatoes not Prozac" (PNP).

In LSA the steps are:

1 - Eat breakfast w/ protein

2- Make connections between food & mood

3 - Change snacks & drinks

4 - Eat protein lunches

5 - Shift to whole grain foods

6 - Take out the sugar

7 - Take care of life

In PNP the steps are:

1 - Keep a food journal

2 - Eat 3 meals a day at regular intervals

3 - Take vitamins

4 - Eat the right amount of protein at each meal

5 - Switch to brown carbs (brown rice, whole grains, etc.)

6 - Reducing & eliminating sugars

7 - Create a plan for maintenance

She suggests that if you are putting children through "the program" that mom (&/or dad) do the kids steps w/ them instead of trying to do something totally separate for themselves. So far all I have been able to do is just add more protein into our lives. Give protein snacks instead of sugary snacks and I can already tell a difference in behavior (mine & the kids) around here.

I have been struggling with this for years and am finally ready to put my foot down and make some changes and I finally feel like I have the tools to make the changes instead of running around blindly. I definitely think that sugar addiction is a tool that Satan uses against me. I am a horrible mom sometimes and I can generally link those times back to sugar. And when I am being a horrible mom, I am doing exactly what Satan wants me to do. He doesn't want me to feel good so that I can be a good mom. He wants me to feel as horrible as possible so that I won't be the strong, loving mom's that I need to be. And I'm not going to let him anymore.

I am trying to formulate a plan to change our lives, and you all get to come along for the ride! Lucky you! :) Several of my friends have a goal to declare their "independence from sugar" and go without it from July 4th - August 4th. I don't know that I am ready to commit to that. I literally want to cry when I think of never having cookie dough or lemon bars again. So that is a good indicator that I'm not ready yet. I have one more day to decide...I will keep you posted.