For those of you who question the safety of applying, inhaling, and ingesting YOUNG LIVING essential oils (I don’t vouch for any other brand) during pregnancy, I want to share with you my pregnancy journey that may ease your mind. Every one person is different and I can’t say that my story will work for everyone, but I know for me I always like to hear other’s testimonials and experiences. Anything is better to me than consuming synthetic drugs. (Anything synthetically made alters the way our body naturally processes things and in the process of healing, it’s not always the best thing).

*newly added*

I will say as far as the safety guidelines go for ingesting the oils, do take precaution with the amount. From what I’ve studied, YL essential oils are safe to ingest, but one must know the constituents in each oil. Some oils are better and work better not ingested. Consulting with someone educated about the consumption of essential oils is key, along with your own extensive research and gut feelings. The amount that is usually indicated by YL reference books are from what I recognize as a safe bet. Any harmful effects that would even POTENTIALLY be considered have to do with certain, not all, oils ingested in massive amounts (like consuming an entire bottle a day with CERTAIN oils) because these oils are potent and WORK. When I use the word harmful, I do not reference this in regards to the actual constituents contained in the oils, but the amount consumed. My general rule of thumb for anything in life is “TOO much of anything might not always be the BEST”. The amounts that I have personally consumed and recommend do not even come close to the those potentially questionable amounts. Applying topically and inhaling rules are not the same and far less controversial. In fact, the only reason why I include this disclaimer paragraph is because of all the controversial arguments out there. Personally, I am comfortable with ingesting YL oils due from my research, experiences, and gut feelings. With all that said, I will continue…

Personally, I experience aggravating physical hindrances that definitely cause me some daily turmoil. I was diagnosed almost 2 years ago with psoriatic arthritis. Through extensive research and experience with administering meds used to treat the symptoms I was never comfortable with receiving anything. Prior to this recent pregnancy my research has led me to eat solely a vegan diet. Through my experience, this was the best for me and was the only thing that kept my inflammation down. Once I became pregnant, it was excruciatingly hard to keep a total vegan diet. Though I still stayed away from dairy, I couldn’t overcome my cravings for meat. Since being pregnant causes the immune system to lower, the arthritis I had goes into somewhat of a remission (being that it’s an autoimmune disease—immune system hyperactive overload). Because I didn’t suffer quite as bad as I did prior to pregnancy, it was much easier to veer off the vegan diet. By doing this however, I did still experience joint pain (manageable). Along with the joint pain,  all the digestive issues I’ve had in the past came creeping back. Nausea, indigestion, severe abdominal cramps, constipation/diarrhea…the works. Pregnancy did not help the situation either lol.

Obviously, I experienced my fair share of discomforts on top of the common pregnancy discomforts that were exaggerated as well. For those of you who have been pregnant, are pregnant, or are familiar with pregnancy, you are well aware of what you have to go through and the fact that you are super limited to what you can take to help ease things anyway. So here, my oily pregnancy journey begins…

(my oily little munchkin almost ready to enter the world)

1. Feeling “green faced”…blehhhh

The worst…especially being a nurse experiencing a wide variety of daily occupational smells. My go-to oil—> PEPPERMINT. I rubbed, lathered, sniffed, dropped in water, whatever I could to prevent my gagging reflexes to be put to work. I tended to inhale and rub on my chest the most. (I wouldn’t recommend rubbing directly on your lower belly when you are further along because it could potentially turn the baby’s position….I kept it high)

2. Digestive Support

Because I wasn’t the best at overcoming my cravings this time around, I suffered majorly from indigestion and abdominal cramping. Sometimes it was so bad I would have to get into the fetal position for relief. When my cramping was intense, peppermint didn’t always cut it for me. Low and behold the power of DIGIZE!!!! I couldn’t have gotten through this pregnancy without it. It really did the trick when peppermint couldn’t give me the relief I needed. I can’t go anywhere without my Digize. I mainly rubbed it on my chest or upper abdomen (pretty much right where the  site was). There were times where I also took a few drops in empty vegetable capsules. I’m telling you, life changing for people with digestive issues even when not pregnant.

3. Sciatica Support

Ooooooooooweeeeee nothing quite like it. A sudden jolt from your lower back radiating down your legs to the point of almost paralyzing you…at least it was for me. The sad thing is it’s something sometimes you feel like going to the hospital for, but there’s nothing really they can do for it. Stretching and yoga sometimes helps. I will tell you there are a few of my favorite go-to oils for this that helped out drastically as well. Idaho Balsam Fir, Copaiba, Peppermint, and Deep Relief. Since Copaiba and Peppermint are considered “driver oils” (oils that drive in/increase strength of other oils) I apply those on top of the others, or last. My combos were always Balsam Fir and Deep Relief, Balsam Fir and peppermint, Balsam Fir and Copaiba, or Copaiba and peppermint. Ha whatever I was feeling or seemed to work the fastest.

4. Joint support

This was mainly due to the arthritis, however I know pregnancy can bring it’s fair share of joint issues as well. Because mine tended to be severe at times, there were days I made  “tension relief capsules” (5 drops of each: frankincense, copaiba, and balsam fir). I put them in empty vegetable capsules and consumed when I really needed them. I didn’t always do it, but when I really needed it I didn’t hesitate. I also utilized the same oils I listed for sciatica support as well as PanAway. I would apply directly to the site. PanAway is an oil that is better to apply to the site because it’s mechanism of action works better that way than ingesting it.

5. Stress

3 WORDS…Daily Lavender Baths. Because I worked such long days and was always on my feet I became obsessed and addicted to lavender baths. I mixed a handful of epsom salts with about 4 drops of lavender, sometimes more. I judged my portion a lot by smell as well. It was something that eased my emotions and physical stresses. I also diffused either Gentle Babies or Peace and Calming right next to the tub as well. Ooooo la la…talk about relaxing. (I know people are hesitant about taking baths while pregnant because of cleanliness factors and potentially too hot temperature waters, but for me, it was something I HAD to have to relieve my back pain and stress)

6. Facial blemishes

Minor, but extremely annoying. My go-to oil for this was frankincense. I either took a couple of drops daily in capsules or applied directly to my face either alone or mixed with organic coconut oil (I used Spectrum brand). Another thing that helped out my breakouts was switching to Young Living’s daily activator face wash. I LOVE it. Other oils that may help with breakouts (because every person is different), are Purification, Lemon, Melrose, and Lavender. I’m telling you, you’ll notice a difference.

8. Circulation support

Loverly, huh?? Bad enough you feel like a beached whale, now you have to have elephant ankles and sausage fingers??? Two oils that really helped: Cypress and Tangerine. The best result I experienced using these two was dropping 3 drops of each in a FULL glass of water. After drinking the ENTIRE glass in one sitting, it worked. (Be prepared to pee a lot.) Fluid is escaping from your blood vessels and into tissue where it’s not suppose to collect. Because pregnancy makes it hard for your lower extremities to get adequate blood flow and force, fluid pools out where it’s not suppose to be. That’s why compression stockings help as well. They squeeze your legs enough to help prevent the fluid from leaking out. Cypress and tangerine help with blood flow and circulation. They act as equalizers in the body and help with water retention. They also help by drawing the fluid back into the blood vessels where it needs to be allowing us to essentially pee the excess out. Another way of using these oils is to apply/massage directly on the legs in an upward motion with a carrier oil.

9. Sinus Function support

For me, this was exaggerated big time during this pregnancy. For sniffles, I sometimes concocted up capsules (3 drops of each: lemon, peppermint, and lavender). I didn’t always take this, because I was never good at keeping up with something daily. Whenever I needed quick relief from itchy, watery, stuffy nose I rubbed lavender under/on my nose. When it was bad, I applied one drop under my tongue (Warning: NASTY lol). Lavender worked within seconds for me. For when I developed more stubborn sinus issues, my go-to oil (for any immune support) was Thieves. Whenever I start to show any sign of any gunk, I start taking Thieves like crazy. For the first day, I would put a drop in a shot of elderberry syrup or on the back of my tongue as frequently as every hour for the first few hours then every 3-4 hours after that. The second and third day I would take 2-3 times a day then daily for a week after that. I take thieves as long as I could until I felt my normal self again. I would find relief instantly. After 3 days, many times I would feel like I didn’t need it anymore, but I would finish the week off no matter what. For opening my airways, I would use a couple of different oils depending on how severe it was. If it was minor, I would apply/inhale peppermint. For severe, the combo of frankincense followed by copaiba worked great for me.

It’s bugging me to no end that I don’t have 10 pregnancy issues, but I cannot think of anymore for the life of me right now lol.

I hope all of my oily experiences throughout my pregnancy journey are helpful to you. Even not pregnant, the oils I listed are great for the same symptoms experienced. Like I stated before, this is my story and what worked for me. Everyone is different, but it’s always great to compare and experiment. Again, I want to reiterate that I can only speak for Young Living essential oils because I have done extensive research on their safety.

Having my oils to “go-to” for all of my issues was so comforting to me because a lot of times because of pregnancy, I wasn’t able to do much to ease any of these discomforts before. The OTC and/or prescribed meds given for the issues that can be treated aren’t always the safest either. You know my opinion on synthetic meds. I’m not comfortable with them. You have to use your gut instinct and research, research, and research some more. Knowledge and prayers are best friends to your health. Utilize them.

Because I CHOOSE to manage my health different than most, I am grateful to say that this beautiful healthy baby boy was born into the world without being exposed to any synthetic meds.

If you have any questions regarding Young Living essential oils, feel free to comment below!