Natural Body Guru

Sebaceous glands are microscopic glands in the skin that secrete an oily or waxy matter, called sebum, which lubricates the skin and hair of mammals. Sebaceous glands in humans are found mainly on the face and scalp but  you will also find them in other areas of the body as well,  except for the palms of our hands and the soles of our feet.

When sebum gets blocked in a duct that has no surface opening, a hard white lump (milia) appears. Milia, commonly called whiteheads, are usually found on dry skin but they can also appear after some type of damage has been done to the skin. If you have had whiteheads for some time, they will need to be removed by a beautician or a dermatologist. However, you can break up recently formed milia by massage.

Use the following essential oils:

• Bergamot- 5 drops
• Thyme - 5 drops
• Almond oil or jojoba oil  – 1 tablespoon

Use a very small amount of the above essential oil mixture to massage the whiteheads twice a day, in the morning and at night. This will help the milia to be reabsorbed by the body.

If you add essential oils to your massage oil, your massage can take you anywhere you want to go and do anything for you that you want. No matter what your reason for having a massage, there is an essential oil that will make it even better.  Always use a quality carrier oil for your massage. Sweet almond oil is my favorite carrier oil for massage but liquid shea oil is wonderful too.

Aroma Massage Oil Formulas

• Add lavender for stress relief and relaxation
• Add rosemary to relieve sore muscles and pain
• Add a blend of peppermint and grapefruit for an energizing massage anytime you need a lift
• Finally, add ylang ylang for a sensual intimate massage

When my youngest was a child, she often complained that her legs hurt. I would just hug her, tell her they were growing pains, give her a bath and have her go to bed. She loved riding her bike and I thought that was why her legs hurt. We did ask her doctor about the pains during a yearly physical but he didn’t find any problems. I now know that I could have helped my baby more by massaging her legs with essential oil in a carrier oil.

If your child has aches and pains in his limbs from a hard day at play, massage his limbs with one to two drops of lavender in a teaspoon of a carrier oil like liquid shea oil. If your child is over five years old, you can use rosemary essential oil either in addition to (one drop of each) or instead of the lavender oil.

Almond oil is the most popular carrier oil used for facial and body massage because its excellent emollient properties help the skin to balance absorption. It is a great moisturizer that is suitable for all skin types, helps relieve irritation, inflammation and itching, and is fantastic when used for lubricating because it penetrates slowly.

Sweet almond oil is a good massage medium to use to assist in the spread of the carrier oil and essential oil mixture, while still allowing you time to do a good massage before it is absorbed by the skin. Not only does almond oil help protect the surface of the skin, but it is a wonderful emollient, skin soother and softener, conditioner of the skin, and it promotes a clear, young looking complexion. Almond oil is suitable for all skin types but is especially good for dry or irritated skin.

Women have been using oils to make their skin beautiful for hundreds of years. All the beauties of history used oils; first vegetable oils with flowers and herbs and then essential oils when they became available after the process of distillation was invented. Oils give the skin a sheen that catches the light and makes people stop and stare. You won’t need artificial body gleamers, they pale next to the oils.

There are many essential and carrier oils to choose from to make a good body oil. The essential oils are great for pampering your body and their properties will also do you a world of good both physically and mentally. Make your body oil using 5 drops of essential oil to 1 teaspoon of base vegetable oil. You can purchase a one ounce bottle of oil and scent it with 25 drops of your blend of essential oils or you can use just one oil. For a 2 ounce bottle of oil, use 50 drops of essential oil and so on.

My favorite body oil includes two base oils, sweet almond and evening primrose, plus chamomile, geranium and lavender essential oils. You can make your body oils with one carrier oil and one essential oil or a combination of five essential oils, it’s all up to you. The rest of this week’s blogs will be about different ways to incorporate body oils into products you can give as gifts no matter what the occasion. I hope today’s blog will get you interested in making an oil for yourself before you start making gifts to give away.

We are continuing our discussion of  using massage as a valuable method of applying essential oils to aid in the aromatherapy healing process. In previous blogs, we have discussed which essential oils to use for sore or fatigued muscles (see Essential Oil Muscle Relief). You can always look at the archived blogs if you have any questions. Now, let’s look at what kind of aromatherapy massage (aromassage) to use for different parts of the body.

• Shoulders – aromassage into the shoulder muscles with both effleurage and petrissage movements. Make firm strokes from the shoulder to the neck and back again using thumbs and palms.
• Arms – aromassage up towards the armpit, using effleurage or petrissage on the fatty or muscular areas only.
• Back – Use firm or gentle effleurage or petrissage but do not massage over the vertebrae. Start from the lower part of the back and with both hands stroke all the way to the shoulders. Slide your hands over the shoulders and then return down the sides of the back. Repeat these strokes as many times as you like, the longer you aromassage, the more relaxing it is.
• Abdomen – only use circular movements on the abdomen and move in a clockwise direction. Effleurage is the best method to use on the abdomen.
• Legs – use effleurage to aromassage the legs and always move upwards. You can use petrissage on the fatty or muscular areas only but not over varicosed areas.
• Women’s reproductive problems- aromassage using effleurage movements beginning at the lower back and sliding over the hips. Then slide each hand over the abdomen separately and repeat the whole process.
• Feet – aromasssage from the toes to the heel with the thumbs under the foot and the fingers on top.

All massage should flow as the blood does, toward the heart. After an aerobic workout, aromassage is useful to release toxins and keep your muscles supple.

Using massage is an excellent way to apply aromatherapy essential oils to the body as part of an alternative healing process. It is not hard to do and anyone can do it for family, friends, even for yourself. There are several different methods you can use to massage in your aromatherapy essential oils:

• Effleurage – this is a series of gentle, soothing strokes which allow essential oils to penetrate your body and help you to relax and become calm. For this method, use your whole hands in  either long or short strokes that can be either firm or gentle.
• Petrissage – is similar to gently kneading dough. Use the palm, finger tips and thumbs to slowly and gently knead the body. Petrissage is most helpful when used on fatty areas and on backs.
• Head massage – put the essential oils  on your fingertips to massage the scalp. Work the fingers all over the scalp.
• For migraine and headaches – massage around the base of the neck and work your way up to the base of the scalp. Massage in this manner for a few moments with firm effleurage strokes.
• For the neck – massage the neck using small, firm circular movements from the base of the neck, up either side of the vertebrae to the base of the scalp. Massage the sides of the neck and repeat these movements in a more gentle fashion and work your way down the neck. Repeat several times using appropriate essential oils.

Aromatherapy massage or aromassage is an excellent way to apply essential oils as part of an alternative healing process. It is not hard to do and anyone can do it to family, friends, even to yourself. There are many different ways to apply aromassage:

• Effleurage – this is a series of gentle, soothing strokes which allow essential oils to penetrate your body and help you to relax and become calm. For this method, use your whole hands in  either long or short strokes that can be either firm or gentle.
• Petrissage – is similar to gently kneading dough. Use the palm, finger tips and thumbs to slowly and gently knead the body. Petrissage is most helpful when used on fatty areas and on backs.
• Head massage – put the essential oils  on your fingertips to massage the scalp. Work the fingers all over the scalp.
• For migraine and headaches – massage around the base of the neck and work your way up to the base of the scalp. Massage in this manner for a few moments with firm effleurage strokes.
• For the neck – massage the neck using small, firm circular movements from the base of the neck, up either side of the vertebrae to the base of the scalp. Massage the sides of the neck and repeat these movements in a more gentle fashion and work your way down the neck. Repeat several times using appropriate essential oils.

We will continue this blog tomorrow with more areas for you to massage.

Almond oil, also called sweet almond oil, is the most popular carrier oil used for facial and body massage because its excellent emollient properties help the skin to balance absorption. It is a great moisturizer that is suitable for all skin types, helps relieve irritation, inflammation and itching, and is fantastic when used for lubricating because it penetrates slowly.

Almond oil is a good massage medium to use to assist the spread of the carrier oil and essential oil mixture, while still allowing you time to do a good massage before it is absorbed by the skin. Not only does almond oil help protect the surface of the skin, but it is a wonderful emollient, skin soother and softener, conditioner of the skin, and it promotes a clear, young looking complexion. Almond oil is suitable for all skin types but is especially good for dry or irritated skin.

Adopt a healthy-hair diet. Eat more salmon, sardines, oily fish (or fish oil/DHA supplements), bran, eggs, nuts, avocados and green tea. Avoid red meat.

Wash your hair according to its needs. Over-washing hair can cause it to appear dry and brittle. Many find that as they age their hair becomes dryer and so requires less washing. In some cases it can even be helpful to skip every other shampoo, while still conditioning your hair.

Choose a cut that falls somewhere between your chin and your shoulder blades. Avoid too many layers for thinning hair, and go for thicker bangs when possible. Remember, longer layers help lengthen a round face, while shorter, framing layers will help soften an angular face.

Deep condition hair with natural oils, such as coconut or shea oil. Rub oil into hair, leave in for a few hours, then wash the oil out for a youthful shine.