Essential Oils for Anxiety, Depression, & OCD: Our Favorite Calming Products for Peace of Mind

Calming Essential Oils for Peace of Mind and Relief From AnxietyWhether your nervousness and tension is a chronic and reoccurring disorder or you have an imminent life-changing experience underway, there are many essential oils that can provide you with ease, tolerance, and peace of mind.

Now’s the time to skip straight ahead to the best essential oils for relieving anxiety!

Here, we’ll tell you how to incorporate essential oils into your daily life to dispel those negative thoughts, eradicate nervousness, and calm and quiet your emotional unease and chronic tendencies.

Are you worried about the side effects? If they will cause the opposite effects? Well, there’s no need to be so anxious with our guide at your disposal. We will hold your hand and let you know of any potential consequences and will even throw a few tips in there as well.

3 Top Essential Oils for Anxiety

Frankincense Essential Oil

frankincenseUsing Frankincense alone can do wonders for your emotional well being. It will help you improve your reactions to stress and banish negative emotions without unwanted drowsiness.

What You’ll Need:

  • 1-2 drops of Frankincense

How to Use:

Apply directly to the palms of your hands, cup, and inhale.

Insert into your diffuser or diffuser necklace.

Apply a drop or two to cotton balls and place in the vents of your car while in commute.

Dilute 2-3 drops with a carrier oil and lightly massage into your temples, scalp, and neck for direct sedative action in the bloodstream to your brain.

Bergamot Essential Oil

bergamotDo you have a stressful job? Are students just as anxious as you are as an educator? Bergamot has been proven to reduce anxious feelings while preventing the physical manifestations of stress on the body.

What You’ll Need:

  • 2-3 drops of Bergamot
  • Liquid body wash

How to Use:

Add the drops to your body wash for a powerful inhalation while in a steamy shower.

You can also skip the shower and put into a diffuser in the office or classroom.

Replace the body wash with a body lotion and specifically apply to the neck, shoulders, and chest.

Lavender Essential Oil

lavendarWhile towelettes are often used as make-up removers, you can also get creative and make your own. Plus, use lavender to douse yourself with sleep-inducing and relaxing, natural properties to remove the stress of the day before you hit your pillow.

What You’ll Need:

  • 20-24 squares of heavy duty paper towels
  • 1 cup Witch Hazel
  • 1 tsp Glycerin
  • 1-3 drops of Lavender

How to Use:

Mix all the ingredients together and place into a cup.

Fold the squares into thirds, then fold in half. Stack all folded towels together in a pile.

Place onto a baking sheet or pan using a finger to keep stack intact.

Use the other hand to pour the mixture over the entire stack. Let stand for a few minutes.

Place lavender-infused towelettes into a zip-lock bag or lidded plastic container.

3 Essential Oil Blends for Anxiety

Anxiety Ease Synergy Blend

Edens Garden anxiety ease synergy blendEdens Garden offers the Anxiety Ease Synergy Blend, which is a pre-mixed and pure solution of Lemongrass, Sweet Orange, and Ylang Ylang oils. When inhaled, it can invoke feelings of lasting peace, clarity, and relief from anxiety, tension, and stress.

How to Use:

Apply directly to the palms of your hands, cup, and inhale.

Insert into your diffuser or diffuser necklace.

For some tired feet treatment, place 10 drops into a foot soak.

Anti-Anxiety Trinity Blend

aromatherapySometimes the air and environment you’re in doesn’t do anything for you except provide oxygen. Give it a helping hand to help you stay calm and grounded. Whether you’re at home, in the office, or in your car for a long commute, you can use this mixture in a conventional diffuser or in a diffuser necklace.

What You’ll Need:

  • 5 drops of Lavender
  • 3 drops of Ylang Ylang
  • 2 drops of Bergamot

How to Use:

Gently mix the oils together in a dark, glass container.

Use a dropper to add 3 drops of the mixture to your diffuser of choice.

Incorporate this same recipe to make a soothing soap.

Bath Calmer Blend

clary sageIf you’re in need of an ultimate relaxation-inducing bath, then you need the Bath Calmer mixture! It’ll calm, soothe, and ground you from the inside-out. The tub is also the best place to enhance these feelings while the oils soak and absorb into your body to trigger peace of mind and serenity.

What You’ll Need:

  • 3 drops of Clary Sage
  • 2 drops of Ylang Ylang

How to Use:

Go ahead and douse your tub with this potent mixture of relief-inducing oils.

Essential Oil for Depression

Ylang Ylang Essential Oil

ylang ylangThis oil has mild sedative effects that helps to reduce stress responses. Research has even proven that it’s extremely effective for boosting self-esteem, releasing negative emotions, and even getting rid of jealousy which is toxic to both the mind and body! And, what better way to get the benefits than with a soothing face mask?

What You’ll Need:

  • 2 tsp Raw Honey
  • 1 tsp Aloe Vera Gel
  • 1-2 drops of Ylang Ylang

How to Use:

Mix ingredients and apply to face. Leave on for 10-15 minutes. Rinse with warm water.

Try using using a couple drops for your diffuser for a consistent air flow of relaxation.

You could also dilute 2-3 drops of Ylang Ylang with a carrier oil for an aromatherapy massage to the neck, shoulders, and chest.

Essential Oil Blend for Depression

doTERRA Cheer Uplifting Blend

doterra cheer uplifting blendIf no amount of self-talk can swing you to feeling positive or happy, then you need a third party to cheer you up! doTERRA’s Cheer Blend consists of Wild Orange Peel, Clove Bud, Star Anise Fruit/Seed, Lemon Myrtle Leaf, Nutmeg Kernel, Vanilla Bean Extract, and more! It’s power-packed to kick the blues out of your head to let the sunshine back in.

How to Use:

Diffuse 1-2 drops into your diffuser.

Place a drop into your hands, rub, cup, and inhale throughout the day as needed.

Dilute for an aromatherapy massage to the neck, scalp, and shoulders.

Apply drops to cotton balls to place into the vents of your car.

Essential Oil for OCD

Spearmint Essential Oil

spearmintIf it doesn’t seem like anything can help to quiet your busy mind or ease those unwanted, persistent, and invasive thoughts or behaviors, then you might want to try Spearmint oil. It’s deeply balancing, influences the nervous systems, and calms obsessive inclinations. A luscious body powder can be the kind of sprinkle you need for a continuous, light dose of relief.

What You’ll Need:

  • 15 drops of Spearmint
  • 5 drops of Lemon
  • 3 drops of Patchouli
  • 4 drops of Lavender
  • 2 Tbsp Cornstarch

How to Use:

Place all ingredients into a zip lock bag. Massage gently to mix. Transfer to an air-tight container of your choice (mason jar, spice container, etc) and let it sit for a day. Shake well before use.

If you noticed, the other essential oils used in this mix are also associated with relieving the symptoms of anxiety and even OCD.

Essential Oil Blend for OCD

Peace & Quiet Blend

peace and quiet blendIf there was a miracle treatment to calm everyday tension and stress, ease unwanted feelings and thoughts, boost self-confidence, and aid in the cessation of bad habits, you’d want to know about it right? Rocky Mountain’s Peace & Quiet Blend can do just that! To let the oils infuse throughout the entire body, start with your feet!

What You’ll Need:

  • 1/2 oz beeswax
  • 2 Tbsp Shea Butter
  • 1 tsp Vitamin E
  • 1 capsule of Evening Primrose oil
  • 45 drops of Peace & Quiet

How to Use:

Use the double-boiler method to melt the Shea Butter and Beeswax. Once melted, add the Vitamin E and Evening Primrose oil. While it cools, add the essential oil blend and stir the mixture. When cool, transfer to glass container of your choice. Apply daily on feet or as needed.

Potential Side Effects of Essential Oil Use for Anxiety

Using essential oils for relief from anxiety and depression has been a long-time practice of the human race, and few side effects are expected. However, always spot test first for skin sensitivity, avoid synthetic oils labeled “perfume” or “fragranced”, and don’t use for internal applications unless under a licensed aromatherapist’s or physician’s care.

For more information about the possible side effects that can occur when using essential oils, please check out the Essential Oil Safety section of our Ultimate Essential Oils Guide.

Remember: Less is Sometimes More

You might be tempted to use more oil than you actually need, especially if your type of anxiety impacts your life more than you can control it. But, a little truly does go a long way when you’re using pure and authentic essential oils for stress and anxiety.

Research has also shown that calming oils, such as Bergamot, can work their magic in as little as 15 minutes to an hour. Therefore, it’s been determined that one hour of exposure to essential oils is effective for providing relief of panic, reducing heart rate, and lowering blood pressure.

However, you should be aware that over-use of these oils can result in over-stimulating the senses and end up having the opposite effects. You don’t need to go heavy-handed to get fast, calming results.

Types of Anxiety

Anxiety is more than just feeling nervous. It also involves depression, which is on the rise and is one of the most common mental disorders in the United States. Anxiety can also cover OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder), phobias, and PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder).

In their own way, essential oils can help to relieve the symptoms of all types of anxiety. They’ve even been said to be more effective than prescription medications because they don’t have the serious side effects that are common with medications such as suicidal thoughts, weight gain, serious health side effects, and unusual personality changes.

If you have a serious case of anxiety, you should do proper research and review with your physician before making any significant changes in your treatment.

Which Essential Oils are Good for Anxiety?

Whether it’s panic attacks, chronic depression, emotional problems, or hormonal imbalances, essential oils can bring clarity, relief, and calmness into your life. Here’s our highly recommended and favorite oils to use for anxiety.

roman chamomile

  • Lavender
  • Rose
  • Clary Sage
  • Vetiver
  • Ylang Ylang
  • Bergamot
  • Chamomile
  • Frankincense

Plus, if your anxiety is beginning to affect the quality of your sleep, you might want to try these relaxing essential oils for sleep as well.

How to Use Essential Oils for Anxiety

Using the recommended oils singly or in blends, you can create your own relaxing concoctions to bring about peace of mind. Some fun ways to show off your creativity for use are:

  • Candles
  • Soaps and moisturizers
  • Pillow mists
  • Bath salts
  • Aromatherapy massage
  • Diffusion
  • Foot soaks

Cheer Up

If beating anxiety was as easy as just feeling better, then all you’d need is the power of thought. But, it’s not that easy. However, when you throw essential oils into the mix to enhance positive thoughts, you’re suddenly able to lift the fog, dispel the dark, and let light back into your life.

You don’t have to solely depend on prescription medications, invalidate your feelings, or feel alone. Just a drop or two of Nature’s pure remedies can help you adapt, come out stronger, and feeling better. Essential oils are the helplines of life – cheer up friend.