Are there not enough sheep in the world to count your way out of insomnia and into Dreamland?
Perhaps your insomnia is the result of tension and worry?
Or maybe the lack of quality sleep isn’t your fault – it’s your snoring husband in bed next to you!
No matter the cause of your sleeplessness, to save your sanity (and perhaps even your marriage), it’s time to consider the underdog to help you get to sleep – essential oils!
You may be desperately wondering what essential oils are good for sleep if you have dark circles under your eyes, you’re yawning throughout your day, and you can’t be bothered brushing out your bed hair. Apart from being far from sexy, if your sleep suffers, you suffer.
Here, we’ll tell you how to use essential oils for a better quality sleep, some very important warnings of using them, and some extra tips to help you get some zzzs tonight!
3 Top Essential Oils for Sleep
What You’ll Need: How to Use: Add the ingredients to the spritz bottle and spray over bedding linen and pillows. You can also diffuse Lavender for a sleep-promoting aura in your bedroom before hitting the pillow. A warm bath before bed with a few drops of Lavender can also relax the body to enhance sleepiness. Don’t forget a foot massage or a body massage with Lavender and a carrier oil can also do wonders in de-stressing and calming both the mind and body. What You’ll Need: How to Use: Massage into the soles of your feet and anywhere else on your body such as the base and back of neck and the back for grounding, relaxing, and calming effects. Vetiver has a strong and unique aroma, so you may want to add Lavender or other rest-inducing essential oils if it’s your first time using it. What You’ll Need: How to Use: Add ingredients to a spritz bottle and mist over linen and bedroom liberally before hitting the sack. How to Use: Inhale directly from the hands throughout the day to promote peace and calmness. At night, massage into the feet with a carrier oil or toss it into a warm bath with some sea salts to further enhance body relaxation. You can also diffuse in your bedroom at night, especially if you have a restless and upset baby. If you opt for the softgels, take one or two at bedtime to calm the nervous system and encourage ease of falling asleep. What You’ll Need: How to Use: Add the Good Night Synergy Blend to the cotton ball and place under your pillowcase on top of the pillow for direct inhalation while laying down. What You’ll Need: How to Use: Add essential oils to the water and gargle for 3 full minutes before going to sleep. If you only have Lemon oil on hand, add 2-3 drops to water and gargle for 2-3 minutes. You can also add 2-3 drops to a q-tip and apply directly on the underside of your nostrils before bed. Don’t forget that using this recipe with a carrier oil for a massage to the feet is also very effective! How to Use: Diffuse a few drops for respiratory support throughout the night. What You’ll Need: How to Use: Drink this tea up to three times daily with the last tea before bed. It typically takes about two weeks before consistent results can be expected. Another note: Valerian Root may smell awful! But, it tastes much better (or tolerable) than it smells! NOW Peaceful Sleep Essential Oil Blend. Any essential oils to diffuse for sleep should have an impressive blend of Orange, Tangerine, Lavender, Chamomile, Ylang Ylang, and Sandalwood to soothe, relax, and calm the senses. But, when it comes to sleep apnea, these oils can help to minimize the symptoms, ensuring that you can get quality sleep to face the day head-on refreshed and focused! How to Use: Use in a diffuser during the night to keep sleep apnea symptoms at bay. You can also use 30 drops of Peaceful Sleep Oil in 1 ounce of water to create your own room mist. Some oils, such as citrus oils, may not be appropriate for use in diffusers since they can damage it. You might also show skin sensitivities to some essential oils. Always skin test first to ensure you won’t inhibit sleep with itchy or red skin instead of succumbing to quality sleep. Essentials such as Lavender, Chamomile, Peppermint, and the like can be used effectively when used internally to promote a restful night’s sleep. However, ensure that you’re only using 100 percent pure essential oils for internal use. Those labelled as aromatherapy and fragrance essential oils are absolutely unsafe to consume! If you experience any skin or respiratory abnormalities, discontinue internal and topical use immediately! Look out for symptoms such as: Valerian Root is an herb that’s been a long-time friend of those with sleep disorders including insomnia. It can be used in a variety of forms such as tinctures and teas. It does take between 2-6 weeks of consistent use to get the benefits of Valerian Root to improve sleep, reduce snoring, and banish insomnia. While it does have sedative and relaxing effects, some users have reported the opposite effects when taking Valerian Root. You may feel anxious, restless, or even more depressed. If you already suffer from depression, see your physician first before taking Valerian Root. While Valerian Root isn’t addictive in any form, some users experienced withdrawal symptoms after using it for an extended period of time. Instead of going cold turkey when you’re done with Valerian Root, gradually reduce your doses over a period of time to be conservative. Because of its sedative properties, it can enhance the effects of other sleep aids. Don’t use Valerian Root if you’re also taking sleep aids, medications, alcohol, and other supplements such as Melatonin and St. John’s Wart. If you’re about to start your day off before heading out onto the road, operating machinery, or really, any activity that requires your alertness and mental abilities, don’t take Valerian Root – yet. Save it for the end of the day. Do not take Valerian Root if you have liver disease. If you suffer from depression, chronic anxiety, or any other nervous disorder that impacts your sleep, you should always discuss with your physician first before incorporating Valerian Root into your lifestyle. Sleep doesn’t start when you get into bed. It actually starts long before that! If you’re guilty of having a large flat-screen TV in your bedroom – move it out! While you’re at it, leave cell phones and tablets at the door. You may find out while doing this how dependent and addicted you are to your electronics. While it may give you peace of mind to have them close, it’s doing the exact opposite for your sleep! You should also avoid bright light for at least an hour before bedtime. If you need essential oils to help kick you of your addictive behaviors, consider Basil, Grapefruit, Lavender, Peppermint, Orange, Lime, Clove, and Marjoram to help ground, suppress, and enlighten you. Wake up and go to bed around the same time everyday – yes, even on the weekends! Staying consistent will support your body’s natural sleep-wake cycle. This will benefit your health and encourage sleep for when it’s bedtime, letting your body know without confusion that you’re actually ready for sleep, not for stimulation – unless you’re lucky enough to get “that kind” of stimulation. If you need essential oils to help get you up in the morning, you should use Basil, Black Pepper, Lemon, Peppermint, and Rosemary. If you get sluggish during the day, an hour or two nap might be your norm if you have that luxury. But, it’s actually setting you back when it comes down to quality sleep at night. If you must nap, a cat nap or power nap of 15-20 minutes is okay. However, using essential oils to power through your afternoon and boost energy levels is even better. Try Peppermint, Lemon, Ginger, Rosemary, Orange, Grapefruit, and Basil essential oils for revitalization and extra energy throughout your day! You don’t have to pop a pill, down a beer, or run miles to get some quality zzz’s. The using essential oils to promote sleep can get you into Dreamland faster and safer than any other alternative that brings on groggy, sluggish, and dreary brain-fogs. With a little rub-a-dub-dub or spritz and mist, your good night of sleep is only a drop away!
Lavender has much more to offer than just Old Wive’s Tales. It’s actually been scientifically proven to be one of the best, most effective essential oils for restful sleep and relaxation. So if you’re wanting to overcome restlessness, light sleeping, and improve deep and quality sleep, Lavender is a must-have!
If your mind doesn’t shut-off when your body is ready to, and there’s no amount of counting sheep that can help you to get some decent shut-eye, then Vetiver oil has your back. It can help to calm racing thoughts and promote restful sleeping when your mind has other plans.
Chamomile has long been associated with sleep and relaxation. German Chamomile is a stunner when it comes to serving as a mild sedative. For a truly, sleep-inducing, grounding concoction to help promote a deep, quality rest, only use the best essential oils!
Since a good night’s sleep starts long before you hit the pillow, feel free to use this complex blend of oils throughout the day to really be able to feel calm come nightfall. doTERRA’s new to 2016 Serenity Restful Blend and Serenity Softgels are the new and improved formulas of this Calming Blend to also aid in promoting quality sleep while soothing the senses.
If quality sleep is something you know nothing about, then you need the sedative properties of Lavender, Clary Sage, Ylang Ylang, Sandalwood, and other relaxing oils that are in the Good Night Synergy Blend. If getting to sleep quickly and staying asleep sounds more like what you need, then Edens Garden Sleep Ease Synergy Blend is another mind-kicker oil that can help you countdown the sheep instead of counting upwards.
Your partner doesn’t have sleep apnea, but they do have a serious case of loud and obnoxious snoring! Save the snores for the bores and use essential oils to drown down the snorts that keep you up at night! Shh, they don’t have to know what you’re up to with your oils – it’s not like it’s keeping them up! This essential oil concoction has been proven to work for noisy sleepers!
If snoring is caused by inflammation in the sinuses and from congestion, then let the Breathe Easier Synergy Blend help out. Made with Lemon, Peppermint, Eucalyptus, and Rosemary essential oils, this blend will help to clear airways, promote easier breathing, and calm the senses.
It’s not just the snoring that bothers you, it’s the irregular breathing, fatigue, irritability, and lack of concentration that also comes with it. Although it’s a common sleep condition, it can be a dangerous one. So while you’re getting some professional help for it, use essential oils to help promote a restful sleep while diminishing the symptoms.
