How Can We Include a Little Trip Insurance?
Treatment With These Oils is Simple
9 Essential Oils for Travel. Going on a trip is usually considered a wonderful experience that you and your family may have planned and looked forward to for some time. To have the most fun, to get the most out of the experience, it’s important that you and your loved ones have the means to overcome those little ailments and discomforts that can make the experience range from mildly unpleasant to downright unbearable. How can we include a little ‘trip insurance’ to our already overstuffed luggage? Aromatherapy has an answer with some readily-available essential oils.
Bug bites, digestive difficulties, and general travel weariness, to name a few, are common discomforts experienced when venturing away from home. A small collection of inexpensive essential oils can provide great relief from these ailments.
Treatment with these oils is simple, ranging from inhaling a little oil from a tissue, adding a few drops to a bath, to applying a diluted essential oil to your skin (Always make sure that essential oils are diluted in a carrier oil before applying it to your skin to prevent possible irritation! Performing a patch test before you travel would be a good idea as well. Also NEVER EVER INJEST Essential Oils!!!).
9 essential oils for travel
- Lavender
- Peppermint
- Ginger
- Lemon
- Eucalyptus
- Lemongrass
- Chamomile
- Geranium
- Thyme
Ginger is known for its calming upset stomachs
Ginger essential oil is also known for its calming of upset stomachs, a little inhaled from a tissue or diluted in a carrier oil and rubbed on the abdomen can bring relief. It is also a good idea to pack a few ginger tea bags as well as peppermint tea bags, this may be effective for some food-related stomach issues, particularly when combined with the abdomen massage method.
Peppermint Can Also Be Uplifting
Peppermint can also be uplifting to the weary driver or passenger, a drop or two placed on tissues in the car or near your seat will release the aroma into your surroundings. Be careful with this oil, however, as getting it on sensitive areas of the skin (directly under the nose, and certainly near the eyes) can cause irritation. Tissue with the oil on it should not touch these areas directly. You can also easily make or purchase essential oil inhalers that are very travel friendly.
Lavender “A Medicine Chest in a Bottle”
Lavender Essential Oil I san Effective Wound Healer
Lavender has been called ‘a medicine chest in a bottle’ due to its wide range of effects. The aroma of lavender is uplifting and relaxing, useful for stress in congested airports or crowded highways. Breathing this very safe essential oil is effective for adults and children alike, inhaling drops from a tissue or personal inhaler directly, can calm the nerves.
Lavender essential oil is also an effective wound healer because of its anti-inflammatory, mild antibacterial, and skin-regenerative actions. It can be used directly in case of burns, I actually keep a roller bottle of lavender at a 5% dilution rate mixed with fractionated coconut oil in the kitchen, it is an absolute miracle for burns!!! You can also use it to dress minor scrapes or wounds with a band-aid.
Lavender is very useful for treating bites and stings, just place a little ‘neat’ (undiluted) on the affected area. This versatile oil is also a component of an insect-repellent blend composed of equal parts of lavender, thyme, peppermint, and a double dose of lemongrass essential oil. A drop or more placed on tissue or cloth about your room can keep the insects out of your space; 3 drops of this blend per teaspoon of carrier oil can be regularly applied to the skin, or you may mix a similar amount into any lotion you may have.
Lavender can also be used in combination with geranium, chamomile, peppermint, and eucalyptus oils in relieving the effects of jet lag. Getting out of this weary state as quickly as possible makes any trip more enjoyable. This requires getting yourself and your companions in-synch with local time, having a good night’s rest, and perhaps a gentle lift in the mornings and throughout the day.
To get yourself into the swing of local time, relax and be ready for bed with equal parts of lavender and geranium essential oils, chamomile may also be used in place of the geranium and works especially well for soothing children (if they are irritable for ANY reason). Add a few drops to a carrier oil and massage it into your skin.
For a morning eye-opener, do the same using equal amounts of peppermint and eucalyptus. You will find these useful at other times when you need a little clarity and pick me up. Once again, you can also purchase or make personal inhalers with these oil combinations…personal inhalers are great for travel and eliminate any chance of leakage of the oils.
Lemon is Effective as an Antibacterial
Lemon also has some wonderfully diverse uses. It is effective as an antibacterial, but not so strong as to be an irritant. Adding several drops per quart to water will help purify it, and the water can act as a disinfectant to be used in washing your fruits and vegetables. The need for this certainly depends on your location, but it is not a bad idea whenever bacterial contamination is possible.
Eucalyptus Can Relieve Congestion
Eucalyptus has a great range of uses as well. It can be used to relieve congestion, can support circulation, and bring lightness to a travel-weary head.
Eucalyptus oil can be used like peppermint to uplift and invigorate during long intervals in an automobile. It can be used on a cold compress in cases of heat exhaustion and heat stroke (accompanied by, of course, copious amounts of water and electrolytes!), and used in a similar manner to reduce fever.
Eucalyptus oil may be blended with geranium as a massage oil or added to your lotion (3 drops of eucalyptus and 2 drops of geranium per teaspoon of carrier oil) to relieve heat cramps. For congestion relief, add a few drops to a steaming bowl of water and inhale.
Conclusion
These are just a few examples of ways to make your travel experiences more enjoyable with aromatherapy. With a little effort, you can expand your knowledge of these oils, discover further uses, and find other oils that work well for your particular needs.
These essential oils are readily available, and fairly inexpensive, though caution should be used when buying oils, as some can be adulterated, and others are mass-produced with techniques that may limit their therapeutic benefits. A general rule of thumb is that if the botanical name is not printed on the bottle, then it probably is not pure or unadulterated. And as with any aromatherapy application, start slowly, essential oils deserve a healthy respect.
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