Aromatic Compress for My Daughter

 




My daughter fell the other night and bruised her shoulder. She was out running in the backyard and tripped over a rock. When she came in and said that she fell and she was hurt, I immediately grabbed for my oils. My husband looked at it and made sure nothing was broken.

I like to use aromatic compresses for minor things at home. Some of the benefits of using a compress are:

• that it may relieve lymphatic and fluid congestion.
• may clear heat, fever, and inflammation.
• may improve circulation and reduce pain.
• may relieve tiredness.

Aromatic compresses are essential oils mixed with water, and applied to the skin with aid of a strip of gauze. Compresses can be either hot or cold.

Hot compresses are made with water that is as hot as can be tolerated. The hot compresses has historically been used to reduce muscular and rheumatic pain. It has also been used to draw out boils and splinters.

Cold compresses are made with ice water. It's uses include treating sprains, swelling, fever, and to relieve stress.

 The adult formula calls for 8-10 drops of oils, so for my 10 year old daughter I used half the amount oils.

4-8 oz. warm or cold water
  5 drops essential oils

I decided to use a cold compress for my daughter, but first I applied an ice pack while I was fixing the water for the compress. After the third day I will switch to a hot compress. In between using the compresses 3 times a day,

I add massage oil blend to the area.

I am really intrigued by Young Living's unique blends, and it is a convenient, and often a cheaper way to enhance the synergy** between the oils. I decided to use their PanAway blend.

The ingredients are wintergreen, helichrysum, clove, and peppermint. This is a powerful blend of anti-inflammatory and analgesic essential oils for reducing pain and inflammation. I would not use this oil on infants and very young children. It may cause skin sensitivity, so don't forget to perform a skin patch test before you need to use it.

If I didn't use PanAway I would have considered using oils like peppermint, geranium, eucalyptus, lavender, fennel , rosemary and cypress. These can be used as singles or mixed in a blend.The oils are linked so that you can make sure of any cautions when using them for your child. This is particularly important when the child is very small. The oils mentioned are oils that I would use on my 9 and 10 year old. The dilution chart will give you also give you information what oils to use for what age group.

My oldest son is playing football, and if there's severe bruising involved I add oils that stimulate the spleen, such as black pepper, chamomile and lavender. Other things to consider in bruising is to increase the intake of Vitamin C bioflavonoids, avoid aspirin, and increase dark green leafy vegetables and fresh fruit high in vitamin C.

As always when it comes to aromatherapy, check the dilution page and the safety page.


Also, check out my new blog, All You Need to Know to Get Started in Aromatherapy. It is designed to cover the most important things needed to start using essential oils successfully. Tons of things are added daily.

**Synergy

Synergy is based on the fact that the whole is greater than the sum of the part. Essential oils with similar constituents can enhance activity. For example research has shown a greater antimicrobial activity when the oils were combined.Therefore I like to mix several different oils into one blend for enhanced therapeutic value.