Category Archives: Essential Oils

Essential Oils for the Third Trimester

Disclaimer: I personally use essential oils to help support my body during pregnancy. These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration or Health Canada. I’m sharing my personal experience with the oils. As always, please consult with your health care team when incorporating new products into your health care routine.

I’m getting asked all the time which essential oils I’m using in my pregnancy so I thought I’d do a round-up of oils that I’m using throughout the trimesters. You can read about the oils I used during my first trimester here and second trimester here. Here are the oils I used during my third trimester.

Essential Oils for Third Trimester

The third trimester in a twin pregnancy was by far the hardest trimester. I don’t think I was truly prepared for how uncomfortable I’d be.

Heartburn: Last semester I talked about purchasing Ginger Gravol (US Amazon Link) or (Canadian Amazon Link) at my midwife’s recommendation. However, even that wasn’t working some nights. So I went back to essential oils and applied Digestzen/Zengest & Ginger in fractionated coconut oil to my esophagus and that brought immense relief.

Stretchmarks: I managed to make it until week 36 until the stretch marks appeared, so in addition to using the Body Butter & Yarrow | Pom I have been applying Immortelle and Helichrysum to my belly at night before bed.

Natural Labour Induction: I made my own blend of essential oils and have been applying them to my ankles under the ankle bone from week 37 until our induction date. The blend included Clary Sage, Lemon, Lavender, Ginger, AromaTouch.

Anxiety: With the impending birth, I was anxious at times and dealing with personal and work stress. So I would reach for my Adaptiv roller constantly and apply to my pulse points, the palms of my hands and then take a moment for a deep inhale and exhale to ground myself.

What essential oils did you find helpful in your third trimester?

DIY Padsicles with dōTERRA Essential Oils

As I prep for the twins’ arrival, I wanted to make sure I’m prepping a few items for the fourth trimester or post-partum party that I’m going to be hosting for myself. If I’m able to have a natural vaginal birth with the twins I wanted to ensure I have a few tools on hand to soothe “down there”. So I purchased a few items through Amazon and made some DIY Padsicles with dōTERRA Essential Oils.

DIY Padsicles with dōTERRA Essential Oils

What you’ll need:

  • Chlorine-Free Pads
  • Aloe Vera Gel
  • Witch Hazel (No Alcohol)
  • dōTERRA Essential Oils (I used Lavender, Geranium, Frankincense & Helichrysum)

If shopping in the US…

If shopping in Canada…

Chlorine-Free-Pads
With-Hazel
Aloe-Vera-Gel

Seventh Generation Chlorine-Free Pads: I wanted to choose a brand that was made without fragrances, deodorants, or chlorine processing. I’ve read that you could be wearing around 4 pads a day so I decided to make enough for at least one-week post-birth. If we’re able to have a vaginal birth I’ll pick up these Regular Pads and make more after a week since I did only buy the Ultra-Thin ones first. If we end up having a C-section I’ll donate these to my doula to see if another mama to be can use them.

Witch Hazel: This product has amazing anti-inflammatory and antiviral properties. It’s important to find a brand that’s alcohol-free.

Aloe Vera Gel: This product has a calming effect. I chose this brand because it’s cold-pressed from certified organic aloe vera plants. It contains no harmful ingredients, no added colour, no fragrance or alcohol, and no parabens.

dōTERRA Essential Oils: Using the Essential Life app I looked up postbirth healing and they recommended 5 different essential oils. After looking into the properties I chose Lavender, Geranium, Frankincense, and Helichrysum for their skin-soothing properties.

How to make DIY Padsicles

Step 1: Open up each pad, while keeping them in the wrappers so you can easily wrap them back up.

Padsicles - Lay Out Pads

Step 2: I had an empty 10 ml roller bottle so I filled it with Witch Hazel and added 10 drops of each essential oil to the bottle. I then rolled the mixture onto each pad.

Roller Bottle with Witch Hazel with Essential Oils

Step 3: I used 1 tsp of Aloe Vera Gel per pad. I used a tiny rubber scraper to spread the gel over the pad.

Padsicles - Aloe Vera
Padsicles - Spread Aloe Vera Gel

Step 4: From there I wrapped each pad back up and placed 7 in each zip lock bag and popped the bags into the freezer.

Padsicles - Wrap Back Up, Place In Freezer Bags

The plan will be to take one out at a time, let it sit on the counter for a bit before using it in my underwear! 😉

DIY Laundry Detergent

Original Post Published February 15, 2017 – Updated May 18, 2020

Original Post:

There are days when I feel crafty and others I just need super easy solutions. I was feeling a little crafty so I tackled a DIY project for my mom & me to make our own DIY laundry detergent.

Mike and I are currently renovating our house so we are staying with my parents. We are so lucky and blessed because we get to eat dinner with our family every night. My mom is baking Mike muffins every time he finishes a batch and they are spoiling our dogs. They may or may not be getting treats to lure them inside if they are causing a ruckus!

If you’re here you may be looking for more “green cleaning” products to incorporate into your life. Or you are intentional with your spending. Here are 2 recipes you can try if you want to make your own DIY laundry detergent.

DIY Laundry Detergent with OnGuard Essential Oils

Laundry Detergent Recipe #1

Instructions: Mix Borax & Baking Soda Together. I divided half of this mix into my empty OnGuard Laundry Detergent container. And then an empty container my mother had of similar size. I added the 2 caps of cleaner concentrate & then water to the top. From there I added 10 – 15 drops of each essential oil to the container. Shake and Done.

Laundry Detergent Recipe #2

Instructions: Add the Borax, Castile Soap & 2 caps of cleaner concentrate to the empty container. Fill with water and add the 10 – 15 drops of each essential oil to the container. Shake and Done.

If you just don’t have the time to be crafty you could purchase the pre-made dōTERRA OnGuard Laundry Detergent (Canadian Warehouse or US Warehouse). It lasted us about a month using it for 2-3 loads a weekend.

One of the reasons why I became interested in making my own laundry detergent is because I’ve always had issues with mainstream store-bought products. And while there are great options out there with less toxic ingredients they are quite pricey!

Switching over to cleaner products made the world of a difference in my health. Gone are the days of itchy skin from the standard detergents on the market. And now I’m able to save money by making my own!

Updated Post:

It’s been several years since I published this last post and since then I’ve experimented with ingredients. Here is my new and refined DIY laundry detergent that I’ve been using for a few years now.

We just moved from Ottawa to Port Alberni, so I had to start over with many of my DIY projects. I purchased 2 big bottles of the Eco Max Lavender Laundry Wash (Canadian Amazon Link). This product was readily available at our local grocery store. It also has a list of clean ingredients according to the Think Dirty app. I use this app to gauge the toxin level of store-bought products. Once I finished both bottles I can easily whip up the DIY recipe to put in these empty containers.

New & Improved Laundry Detergent Recipe:

DIY Laundry Detergent

It took me less than 2 minutes to whip this up while I made coffee in the morning. While DIY projects can seem daunting this is an easy one to incorporate into everyday life.

If you’re curious about how to purchase any of the dōTERRA products that I’ve linked throughout this post at 25% off normal retail prices you can check out how to get started with your own wholesale shopping account here.

Essential Oils for the Second Trimester

Disclaimer: I personally use essential oils to help support my body during pregnancy. These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration or Health Canada. I’m sharing my personal experience with the oils. As always, please consult with your health care team when incorporating new products into your health care routine.

I’m getting asked all the time which essential oils I’m using in my pregnancy so I thought I’d do a round-up of oils that I’m using throughout the trimesters. You can read about the oils I used during my first trimester here. And now as I roll into third trimester here are all the oils I used in my second trimester.

Essential Oils for Second Trimester

Many pregnancy blogs, apps, and videos say that the second trimester is where you gain some new energy and feel much better if you were experiencing sickness in the first trimester. I definitely gained a bit more energy but in my experience, my second trimester with twins was still fairly challenging.

Heartburn: So I went from nausea to burping. My solutions here actually didn’t involve essential oils but I thought I would include. After getting by with DigestZen/Zengest essential oil, ginger chews and ginger cookies in the first trimester I needed something stronger in my second. We ended up purchasing Ginger Gravol (US Amazon Link) or (Canadian Amazon Link) at my midwife’s recommendation and I would also peel and cut up fresh ginger and add chunks to my water. I also found that I couldn’t eat too late in the evening and I would need to remain upright for at least 30 mins after eating to avoid getting heartburn.

Growing Belly & Boobs: I knew I was going to have a big belly by the third trimester (since I’m carrying twins) but I wasn’t expecting to look full term by week 24! I’ve been using the dōTERRA body butter and Yarrow|Pom everyday on the growing belly and boobs!

Nasal Problems: My sinus problems have persisted since the first trimester. I didn’t cover this in my first-trimester post but it’s been sticking around. It’s especially bad at night. When I lie down on one side one nostril fills and then drains to the other side when I roll over. I’ve been diffusing Breathe/Easy Air at night and literally shoving CorrectX up my nose to soothe the dry skin or help heal when my nose starts to bleed.

Gum Bleeding: One of the lovely body changes is that your blood volume increases during pregnancy, which unfortunately can contribute to bleeding gums. I’m brushing my teeth twice a day with OnGuard toothpaste, scraping my tongue in the morning, and also using the OnGuard mouthwash after flossing to soothe the gums.

Aches & Pains: I’ve had this weird ache across the top portion of my belly, it’s like a strip of pain and at times it even goes numb. I thought it was associated with my bras being too tight or even just the pain of the bra sitting on that area. It definitely feels better after taking my bra off for the day. One thing that has been amazing about working from home in the past 2 months has been the joys of a no bra lifestyle! I purchased 2 nursing bras for after the babes arrive and they are much more comfortable than my underwires. The other habit that’s been helping immensely is using Rose Touch and Copaiba topically on the band and massaging it into the skin!

What essential oils did you find helpful in your second trimester?

Essential Oils for the First Trimester

Disclaimer: I personally use essential oils to help support my body during pregnancy. These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration or Health Canada. I’m sharing my personal experience with the oils. As always, please consult with your health care team when incorporating new products into your health care routine.

I’m getting asked all the time which essential oils I’m using in my pregnancy so I thought I’d do a round-up of oils that I’m using throughout the trimesters. First up! First Trimester!

Essential Oils for First Trimester

I had a few pesky pregnancy “issues” during my first trimester so I’ll share what worked for me including essential oils and other health habits.

dōTERRA also put together this great blog on How to Use Essential Oils in Pregnancy that I used to educate myself from the start.

Nausea: I used DigestZen (ZenGest – Canadian name) or Ginger essential oil rubbed on my belly during bouts of nausea. The ginger drops were also amazing to have on hand.

I would also sip room temperature water with fresh cut up ginger dropped into the glass. I would eat ginger candy chews and ginger cookies. My husband and I also discovered that if I ate smaller meals throughout the day and immediately went for a walk after eating this would help immensely.

Essential Oils for First Trimester Nausea

Head Tension: I used a combination of Peppermint, Frankincense and Copaiba to battle head tension. Usually rolling my Peppermint Touch (roller bottle already pre-diluted with coconut oil was enough to help ease the pain.

And on the few occasions where that didn’t work, I’d ensure I was drinking enough water for the day and I’d go for a good old fashion nap!

Essential Oils for Head Tension

Insomnia: I didn’t realize this was a thing until there were so many nights when I’d get up to use the washroom and just couldn’t for the life of me fall back asleep. I would pop Lavender, Serenity, or Cedarwood in the diffuser, and turn on a meditation.

If all else failed, I’d watch something on Netflix (Love is Blind!) or play a word game on my phone until my eyes started getting drowsy again. While I wouldn’t recommend getting on your phone (due to the blue light exposure) there were just some nights when nothing else was working.

Essential Oils for First Trimester Insomnia

Skin Health: While I haven’t broken out a ton more than usual with pregnancy, I have noticed some darker spots pop up on my cheeks. So I’ve been using the Vérage skincare system diligently and popping Geranium in my daily moisturizer while also using Neroli (morning routine) and Rose (evening routine) rollers daily on my cheeks under my eyes.

Essential Oil Skin Health During First Trimester

Congratulations on your pregnancy. I found the first trimester to definitely be hard. It’s one where you can’t always talk about what you’re going through publicly (as most people wait until the second trimester to make any sort of announcement) and if you do share with your friends they may have had a few tricks that worked for them. But the more we share resources with other mama’s to be the more we learn and can support ourselves.

Essential Oils for the First Trimester