Essential Oils vs Fragrance Oils

What’s the difference between essential oils & fragrance oils?

Natural essential oils

Natural essential oils are 100% pure plant oil extracts derived from the leaves, flowers, branches and roots of herbs, shrubs, trees and flowering plants. The oils are carefully extracted through either steam distillation or mechanical methods such as cold pressing.

Natural essential oils are in their purest form and not combined with any other ingredients, which means they are never manipulated with synthetic ingredients.

Natural essential oils have been used for over 6000 years to help improve physical and mental health. Essential oils can be found in many wellbeing products to support relaxation and ease anxiety as well as in beauty products for their amazing skin care benefits.

Essential oils are commonly used in healthcare settings to support conventional medicine and can alleviate many emotional and physical symptoms of a patient’s ill health.  They can support symptoms such as nausea, pain, general wellbeing, anxiety, stress, depression and insomnia and support in end of life care.

The use of essential oils is one of the fastest growing complementary therapies worldwide.  

It is important to note that essential oils do contain many chemicals albeit naturally occurring ones, always follow manufactures guidelines when using them.

How to use natural essential oils: 

·        Diffusing – add a few drops into a diffuser, you can instantly change the mood and ambience of the room. With the aromas stimulating your senses and nervous system almost immediately, many people find diffusing essential oils reduces stress and anxiety, improve cognitive ability and improve mood. Check out our organic diffuser blends here.

·        Directly from the bottle – many prefer the traditional way of using essential oils; direct inhalation from the bottle through a couple of deep breaths, although do make sure your bottle has a child safety cap to prevent it getting into little hands.

·        Steam – grab a bowl of hot water, pop in a few drops of essential oils, place a towel over your head, and breathe in the intoxicating aroma. 

·        In products – essential oils are commonly used in beauty and wellbeing products as each essential oils have specific therapeutic properties for mind and body. If you wish to have a bespoke product created for your individual requirements, then get in touch via our contact page.

How to safely use natural essential oils 

·        Always check the quality of the producer of your natural essential oils. Use a trusted supplier and check that no extra chemicals or ingredients have been added; this could cause a reaction. 

·        Don’t be fooled into thinking that just because an essential oil is natural, it can’t be harmful. Essential oils contain very high concentrations of natural chemicals, so they should not be used neat on the skin and must be diluted. Seek advice from a qualified aromatherapist if in doubt. You can ask us any questions on how to use our blends via our contact page.

·        Keep your supply of essential oils up to date. Older oils, typically more than two years can be spoiled through exposure to light, heat and oxygen. If you notice changes in how an oil smells or looks, it’s more than likely time to get rid of it. 

·        Store them in a cool, dark place away from heat and direct sunlight.

·        Do not swallow or ingest any essential oil; this can be extremely dangerous. 

·        Pregnant women should take extra care when using essential oils and seek medical advice if unsure.

 Fragrance oils? 

Unlike essential oils, fragrance oils are blended in a laboratory and composed of raw ingredients taken from nature and mixed with synthetic materials to create longer-lasting and more complex blends. Fragrance oils will typically contain a mixture of essential oils, absolute oils, extracts and isolates from essential oil, as well as many synthetic materials. 

Fragrance oils are artificially created and often diluted with other ingredients, they do not offer the same therapeutic properties that natural essential oils do. Fragrance oils are more commonly used to make aromatic products such as perfumes, candles, soaps, wax melts, lotions, bath bombs and room sprays.

Just like essential oils they contain chemicals so manufactures guidelines should be followed when using these products.  

Winter Pick Me Ups

When the alarm clock goes off and its pitch dark, cold and you hear the rain pattering on the window more often than not we want to snuggle that little bit more under the duvet and drift back off to sleep but we can't always do that when we have commitments, whether it be work, school run etc.

There is actually a lot more to it than just being dark and cold that causes our brain to want to retreat from the world, get cosy on the sofa and eat all the delicious things we can muster up in our Mind.

The fewer daylight hours means less exposer to the sun which is important in providing us with Vitamin D. Vitamin D is associated with healthy brain function and a lack of this can contribute to making us feel low in the winter months, the shift in daylight hours can often mean less sunshine on our skin which means a reduction in vitamin D which is associated with healthy brain function.

I don't know about you, but my diet really impacts my mind-set which is for sure trickier in the winter when all I want to do is curl up and eat yummy food which in turn means I have little motivation to do exercise. Historically we would hibernate, keep warm and eat food sourced in preparation for the winter months so our bodies hold memories of this from our ancestors.

So what can we do? Through my research these are the top tips for beating low mood in the winter months

• Get out in the light as often as we can and take a walk, this way we get double the benefits of exercise and light

• Invest in a light box which can help with getting us moving on those dark mornings

• Get enough sleep by keeping a consistent sleep pattern when possible

• Balance work with things that bring fun and pleasure

• Eat a balanced diet, this doesn’t mean denying ourselves of sugar or carbs but making sure we include a daily dose of fruits and veggies

Try switching up your exercise routine if you are finding it hard to motivate yourself. Any exercise is good for you so finding a style that feels good to you is the most important thing and will help keep you consistent.

The same may go for self-care routines, I think the winter months lend themselves well to gorgeous scented candles, journaling, sipping cacao, hot baths with beautiful essential oil infused bath salts, luxurious body oils to help keep the skin hydrated and nourished from the winter elements.

Most of all be kind to yourself and don't beat yourself up for the scientifically proven changes to our mind and body. This happens to us all! Instead try incorporating the tips above into a balance that works well for you and try leaning into the cosy winter months.

Mindset

It’s natural for our mind to sometimes drift to a negative place which can cause worry, doubt or feeling that things aren’t working out. This is normal and all part of being a human being but it’s also super helpful to find ways to be able to switch this mindset so we don’t dwell in this space for too long.

Here is a little exercise that can help along with a short meditation. You can spend as long as you need on this exercise until your mind is focusing on happier and more positive thoughts.

Mindfulness Exercise

Journal prompts

1. Make a list of the times in your life that have made you feel alive and joyful

2. Write down all the things you love to do.

3. Write down when you feel at your happiest

4. Write down what you are most passionate about

5. Write down when you feel the best about yourself

6. Write down your personal strengths

These prompts help us to focus on positive thoughts and happy times.

Mindfulness Meditation:

1. Play some gentle background music of your choice, this could be sounds of crashing waves, birds and nature, musical instruments such as gentle piano of flute sounds.

2. Get yourself comfortable either lying down or sitting

3. Listen to the music and focus on the sounds of the music

4. Try to keep your mind focused on the music

5. Recall your happy answers from the journal exercise

6. Focus on how they make you feel and why they make you feel that way

7. If your mind starts to wonder bring your attention back to the music

8. Take 3 deep breaths in through the nose and out through the mouth

9. On exhale release any previous negative thoughts

10. Bring your thoughts back to the music and smile whilst remembering what makes you feel joyful.

Being Kind to Yourself

Being kind to ourselves is the number one self-care practice we probably don’t do enough of and all need a little bit more of. We often put others before ourselves leaving us feeling unworthy and then selfish when we finally do something for us.

Self-care looks different for everyone but there are some really simple practices that we can incorporate that will soon have us noticing a difference in our own self-worth.

1. Focus on all our positives, this doesn’t mean that we need to ignore our areas for development but it does mean giving a shout out to ourselves for all the good things about us. Being proud of our achievements, starting to accept compliments with a thank you rather than finding a brushoff comment when someone says something nice. Noticing what we love about our body is it your eyes or perhaps your smile, we can all find something to love about ourselves.

2. Start something new it could be a new routine or practice maybe a new hobby you’ve have been wanting to try for ages. This can spark excitement in us which brings about a smile and happy feelings in the brain.

3. Quit the comparison. I know this is hard particularly with social media but, you are you and that is your super power! Remember that. It’s worth noting those that trigger you too, think about why that is. Do they have something you want? If so rather than be jealous support them, cheer them on and go after creating the same for yourself.

4. Take time to hang out with your friends, the positive ones! The ones that lift you up and make you laugh this can change our mood and mind-set instantly.

5. Get moving and eat some high vibe food! This doesn’t mean don’t eat cake or have a day slobbing on the sofa, I’m all for days like this but everything in moderation. Life is about balance and creating the right balance is everything for a healthy mind-set.

6. Be your own best friend think about how you would talk to your best friend and compare it to the things your mind says about and to you. Is it the same? More often than not, it is not the same and this needs to change. Start by some small reflective thoughts at the end of the day what are you proud of today, what did you handle well, what did you learn, what did you appreciate? Start noticing the achievements each day. This not only helps your self-worth but also encourages you to be better and find more positives in the day.

I hope this is useful to some of you, we would love for you to share your being kind tips in the comments so we can all add even more to our tool kit. :)

Journaling

Journaling can be an absolute game changer for our wellbeing because it can help us to get down our dreams and goals, our daily intentions, our reflective practices and also remind ourselves what we are grateful for. We can also use it to monitor our feelings and cycles and look for patterns of behaviour or emotions that routinely come up.

I journal daily, although my practice isn’t always the same. Sometimes I want to set intentions for the day ahead which could be based on how I want to feel by the end of the day or I may write out the goals for the day or even a to do list. Sometimes If I am feeling out of sorts or perhaps I got out the wrong side of the bed, then I’ll write down how I’m feeling or ask myself questions which then help to bring out the answer I’m looking for through my journaling. If I am journaling about my dreams and goals sometimes instead of writing I will draw them, now I am definitely no artist but it allows me to think creatively about what those dreams will look like in reality and I can get lost in an exciting dream like state during these times.

In society today we have very little time to process our thoughts and actions so I also like to use journaling to be reflective, to help me show up as the best version of me. At times we all get stressed, angry, upset, exhausted and these emotions all impact how we show up in the world. Reflective journaling allows us to work on becoming our best selves, by giving ourselves the time we deserve, this time should not be spent beating ourselves because we snapped at a work colleague or didn’t sit and listen intentionally to your child’s day from start to finish whilst trying to cook the dinner for the whole family. It means acknowledging these things and being kind to yourself first and foremost. Once we start to identify the things that cause us to behave in these ways we can start to take small steps to reduce them. It’s not about being perfect at everything, that is quite frankly impossible but it is about you feeling good about you!

There is no right or wrong way to journal, simply do what feels right for you in the moment. You will soon notice by allowing yourself this time for selfcare that you will be more in tune with your emotions, needs, hopes and dreams.

Our Mind Notes Journal and cards are a great way to get into this selfcare practice as they provide you with various wellbeing activities to choose from which are shown below.

• Inspirational quotes

• Colouring pages

• Motivational exercises

• Probing questions

• Coaching techniques

• Mindfulness techniques

• Breathing exercises

• Positive affirmations

  Check them out here.

The Journey to Wellbeing

Welcome to the Blossom Leaf Wellbeing Blog page, where I hope you find inspiration, tools and practices to enable you to live your best wellbeing life!

Life recently has taught us to slow down and go inwards so what does this mean and what is wellbeing? It looks different for everyone and is much more than a soak in a hot bath at the end of the day or a walk in the fresh air at the weekend. Wellbeing is regular practices and routines that provide a holistic balance of the mind and body.

Our mind map below shows what we consider to be important components to overall wellbeing.

Here are some daily practices which can enable us to meet these requirements.

Journaling - Getting those whirring thoughts out of our head and on to paper, this can be assisted by journaling prompts, reflecting at the end of the day or setting intentions for the day/week/month ahead.

Solitude - Being happy to be with our own thoughts isn’t always easy but spending time in solitude gives us time to reflect on whether we have shown up as the best version of ourselves or met intentions we previously set. These time can also help when planning for those times when we know we need to be on our ‘A’ game or just making mind space for the interactions with those we spend time with.

Movement - Finding any form of movement/exercise that we enjoy is important, this helps to remove stale blocked energy and stimulate the body to produce the feel good endorphins which give us that happy buzz .

Nutrition - Listening to want your body needs, this doesn’t mean restricting yourself but does mean filling your body with a wide range of high vibe food full of vitamins and minerals so your body and mind can work at it’s best as well as eating that big slice of cake when you want it!

Meditation - With practice this gets easier, and once the mind has started to slow down we have the awareness to listen to our intuition much more and respond to life events as opposed to reacting.

Finding our passion - This often leads us to our purpose, those things we love we are meant to share with others. When we follow our passion we find motivation, direction and a sense of fulfilment.

Wellbeing is a journey with no end, something that can have ups and downs but ultimately should support us to feel and be the best we can be.