Another New Year Begins...

Hi everyone! Happy New Year 2025! 5 years since the millennium. 22 years this year that I set up my business, and 21 years this year since I had my precious offspring! Time flies! Lets make this one count and see where it takes us. After the cold spell we’ve had recently, I thought I would write about some Essential Oils to warm, calm and soothe us this month.

Essential Oils for Warming the Muscles and Bringing Comfort

Our joints and muscles can get stiffer than usual during winter, and we can feel more anxiety and tension during the colder months too. We quite often do less exercise as well, as there is less incentive to go out, and this can also impact our energy, our mood and our mobility.

Below I’ve listed some Essential Oils that are lovely and warming when used in massage blends, or added to a warm bath or footbath.

To make up blends yourself, you can mix a maximum of 12 drops of Essential Oil per 30ml of Base/Carrier Oil (I use Sweet Almond Oil). This can then be used for general body massage, or you can mix it with a little milk, and add the blend to a footbath or lovely deep bath as preferred. This helps to warm and soothe the body, and will also boost your circulation. I am also more than happy to make up gorgeous Essential Oil Blends for you if required. I charge just £6 for a 30ml blend or £10 for a 50ml blend, using Essential Oils of your choice.

Please Note: at the end of each of the Essential Oil descriptions below, I have listed any Safety Data to be aware of. If you are blending for a child or anyone with hypersensitivies/hyperallergies, or for those with certain medical conditions, you should reduce the dose, and always contact myself or another qualified Aromatherapist for more advice, prior to application. Some of these oils are very strong, so please do read the cautions.

Some wonderful Essential Oils for use in the colder months are:

Benzoin (Styrax Benzoin)

This is a warming, comforting Essential Oil. It is great for soothing a troubled mind, and to help with anxiety. It is a sedative, an anti-inflammatory, and is great for calming the nervous system. Widely used in pharmaceuticals, Benzoin is also an expectorant, so is a great choice for this time of year, as it also supports the respiratory system. It is wonderful added to a warm bath, or in a massage blend. Please Note: This oil is generally non-toxic and non-irritant, but use caution with hypersensitive skins, and anyone who is allergic to elastoplast or other skin dressings, may well also be allergic to this Essential Oil.

Black Pepper (Piper Nigrum)

This Essential Oil is a great rubefacient (brings warmth), and is fantastic for osteoarthritis, rheumatism, sciatica, and general muscular aches, pains and fatigue. It is analgesic, strengthening, and wonderful for releasing sore and tired muscles. It is great added to a warm bath, or in a massage or sports blend with other oils added. Please Note: This oil is very stimulating, so is not recommended for bedtime, and should be used in low-medium doses only. It can be a skin irritant in high doses for those with hypersensitivity, and this oil is too strong for use on babies or young children.

Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus Globulus)

Eucalyptus Essential Oil is another rubefacient oil that is great for our muscular system, being antirheumatic, antineuralgic and analgesic. It is perfect for pre and post sports treatments and for muscular stiffness, cramps and arthritis. It is also wonderful for our respiratory system, which makes it extra useful in the cold winter months with coughs, colds, chills, fever and chest infections etc. Perfect used for inhalation with a bowl of hot water, for clearing the system. Please Note: This oil may antidote homeopathic remedies, and if ingested by a baby or child can be very dangerous.

Frankincense (Boswellia Carteri)

This Essential Oil is my absolute personal favourite! It is one of the safest oils we have in Aromatherapy. It is one of the best for dealing with any anxiety or stress, and is a really comforting, healing oil. It is warming, rejuvenating, wonderful for emotional support, and is really calming and centering. Being such a restorative oil, it is also lovely for elderly people (probably why I like it so much!) and it is useful when dealing with bereavement and trauma. There is no safety data required with this wonderful Essential Oil.

Ginger (Zingiber Officinalis)

This Essential Oil is another very warming, stimulating, energising oil. It is just wonderful for our muscles, helping with all aches, pains and fatigue, as well as rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis, joint stiffness and muscle tension. It is also analgesic and anti-inflammatory. Fabulous used in a warm bath after a busy day, but perhaps not just before bed. Please Note: This oil should not be used on babies or children as it is much too stimulating, neither should it be used on individuals with hypersensitivity or those with unmedicated high blood pressure.

Juniper Berry (Juniperus Communis)

This Essential Oil is yet another that is fabulous for the muscles too, being great for general muscle stiffness, cramps, post-sports treatments, gout, lower backache, rheumatism and arthritis. Please Note: This oil should not be used for people with kidney problems, and again may be too strong for those with hypersensitivity. It is also too strong for use on babies and children. Most importantly, it should not be confused with the herb ‘Juniperus Savin’ which should not be used in Aromatherapy, and definitely not to be used in pregnancy.

Marjoram, Sweet or French (Origanum Marjorana)

Sweet Marjoram Essential Oil is another great choice for keeping us warm and supporting our muscles. It works hard on cramps, muscular aches and pains, arthritis, joint pains and stiffness, sciatica and neuralgia. It is also very comforting and calming. I use this Essential Oil a lot, where muscles need supporting and where we need warmth, but perhaps where Ginger, Black Pepper or Juniper Berry may be too stimulating, or just not suitable for the client. Sweet Marjoram is an analgesic, sedative, and rubefacient oil, and is safe for just about everyone. Please Note: Slight caution with hypersensitive individuals, and it should not be used during pregnancy or menstruation.

Patchouli (Pogostemon Cablin)

This Essential Oil has a rich and warm aroma which centres and grounds us, reducing mental hyperactivity, and allowing our minds to let go a little. It is highly restorative, warming, and reduces tension and anxiety. It brings stability and strength in times of trouble and stressful situations, and is great for insomnia and restlessness. The aroma also lasts a long time, as does it’s benefits. A wonderfully strengthening Essential Oil. This oil is non-irritant, non-toxic and non-sensitising, so also a very safe choice – no safety data to report.