I started using essential oils around 4 years ago. I got a diffuser for Christmas, researched essential oil brands and and begun diffusing a few fairly basic blends. It wasn’t until I became a mom though, that essential oils began to be more important in my life.

Two years ago, I was trying to figure out how to get my period back after exclusively breastfeeding my first son. For whatever reason, I don’t get my period until after I wean and I was hoping to get pregnant again. My OBGYN told me I should consider it a blessing that I hadn’t gotten my period back, but I was longing for another baby and desperate to find any natural ways of getting my period back.

So one day I listened to a podcast about female hormone health and was introduced to a woman named Dr. Mariza Snyder. Snyder told a story on that podcast about how she was in a season of life where she kept getting sick–cold after cold after cold. And one of her friends mentioned an essential oil blend that would help make her healthier and keep her from getting sick all the time. Snyder didn’t know much about essential oils at the time, but she was desperate to get healthy so she said okay give me the oil, and after months of using and no longer having repetitive sicknesses, she was hooked.

Snyder began to research essential oils and find out why they are so effective. She can explain it much better than I can, and she has in her book Smart Mom’s Guide to Essential Oils. Snyder talks about how her family uses oils not just to prevent sickness, but for mood boosting, and yes, even hormone health.

Once I heard her speak, I bought her book and was also hooked.

Here are a few of the ways I now use essential oils for my family:

• We use a roller blend (blend of essential oils diluted with a carrier oil) of Thieves on our feet every morning to prevent sickness and ward off germs (especially for my son who goes to preschool)
• I use a roller blend for hormone health from Snyder’s book that helped me get my period back when I hadn’t had it in almost 2 years after exclusively breastfeeding. Upon weaning, I got it back after 2 days of using the roller blend.
• I used a roller blend of peppermint oil to dry up my milk supply (along with cabbage leaves)–worked within a couple of days.
• I used a roller blend of clary sage to induce and intensify contractions while in unmedicated labor
• I also use a roller blend of lavender essential oil for calming my mood, and various blends along with bath salts for a relaxing soak in the bath

Essential oils are essentially like medicine to our bodies, warding off sickness and naturally regulating our hormones in ways that we couldn’t do otherwise. If you are looking for ways to naturally boost your immune system, to regulate your hormones, dry up breastmilk or even help bring you a sense of calm, I highly recommend them!

You do need to be careful which essential oils you use when you are pregnant or breastfeeding so be sure to do some reading about safe essential oils for the motherhood season you are in. It is also a good rule of thumb to not diffuse essential oils around babies until they are at least 3 months of age, and to be cautious about which essential oils you diffuse around little ones.

If you’re looking for where to start with essential oils, here are some recommendations:

• Learn more about Essential Oils. Snyder’s book Smart Mom’s Guide to Essential Oils has been really beneficial for me but there are many helpful books out there.
• Buy a few supplies. For a beginner, these have been helpful for me: a diffuser, 10mL roller bottles and carrier oil
• Research which oils you’d like to purchase- quality matters when it comes to essential oils in terms of effectiveness and safety. Most people who care about quality buy either Young Living, doTERRA or Plant Therapy. I went with organic Plant Therapy because of these reasons here (under Essential Oils) (We do use Thieves from Young Living because of how great it is for immune boosting although it is more expensive.)
• Learn how to make a roller blend with the proper dilution ratio (Essential oils are extremely potent and need to be used safely by diluting them, depending on whether you are diffusing them in the air or using them in a bath or in a roller blend.)

There’s a lot to learn with essential oils but don’t let that keep you from giving them a try! I believe medicine can be very helpful, but I also believe God gave us plants and herbs as medicine too, and I like to lean into the more natural side of health when I can.

Have you given essential oils a try before? How do you use them in your home?