I was first introduced to essential oils (EO's) in 2012 when I was pregnant with my daughter. I had a beautiful, hippie natural birth planned and wanted to do all I could to facilitate an easy delivery. I did minimal research and decided on some lavender to help me relax during labor, sweet orange for when I needed energy to push and clary sage to help speed things along. I was so excited when I was able to pick these oils up at my local GNC for less than $20 and I immediately threw them in my hospital "Go" bag.
However, the birth moved so quickly that I didn't even get a chance to open my bag and pull out any of the goodies I had brought - and I had brought a lot (that's a entirely different post). The oils went unused for months until I decided to try my cheap lavender oil to help my daughter relax and fall asleep at night. And guess what folks, it didn't help at ALL!!!
I was extremely disappointed and gave up on essential oils for a while - writing them off as some crunchy mamas voodoo. Cut to 2014. I'm several months pregnant, stressed, anxious and smack dab in the middle of getting ready to put our house on the market. I scrubbed this house from top to bottom with what I believed was a non-toxic, environmentally "green" cleaning product. By the time I had wiped and mopped and scrubbed the entire house, I had a sinus infection from inhaling all those nasty "non-toxic" chemicals. I can't even imagine how bad that stuff was for my unborn child! I decided then and there to stop using harsh chemicals in my home and move toward a more natural arsenal of cleaning.
And that's when I discovered Thieves! I had heard rave reviews of the product line from Young Living and I was desperate to get my hands on some. Just take a look at this post on 101 Uses for Thieves. You will be astounded. Thieves is such a multi-tasker!
I knew I had to try Thieves but I was still skeptical about EO's in general. I started looking into Young Living and was very impressed with their commitment to quality. The company has been around for over 20 years and sells only the highest grade oils. I learned that many EO companies dilute and alter their oils to make them less expensive or enhance aroma. Have you ever read the directions for use on the back of some of these cheap oils? Most of them say "Not for internal use." One of my bottles even says "Do not use on skin." WHAT? Young Living's oils are therapeutic grade and most can be diffused in the air, applied topically and/or ingested. That's what I'm talking about!
Here is what Young Living has to say about their process for attaining essential oils:
The process Young Living uses when planting, cultivating, harvesting, and distilling a batch of oil is crucial to retaining its vital compounds. Without the exact blend of naturally-occurring plant chemicals, an essential oil can lose its beneficial properties and fail to produce the desired effect.
Young Living Therapeutic Grade (YLTG) means that every essential oil Young Living distills or sources has the optimal naturally-occurring blend of constituents to maximize the desired effect. Young Living is able to make this assertion because of our strict cultivation process—illustrated by the Four Ps—that guarantees the optimal potency of every Young Living essential oil.
Plants
An oil’s potency can be affected not only by selecting the proper plant to cultivate, but also by where the plant is grown, the quality of soil in which the seed is planted, and even the time of day it’s harvested.Young Living has extensive experience selecting the correct species of plant for desired oil potency, planting under optimal conditions, using ideal soil and natural methods to encourage growth, and knowing the precise time to harvest each crop. Only those plants that produce the most active and widest array of therapeutic compounds are selected.
Preparation
Once the optimal soil, plant, cultivation, and harvesting conditions have been adhered to, the plants must be distilled properly in order to meet Young Living Therapeutic Grade standards. Young Living uses a gentle, proprietary technique for steam-extracting the most potent essential oils, which remains unmatched throughout the essential oils industry.To meet Young Living Therapeutic Grade distillation standards proper temperature must be maintained throughout the distillation process, and pressure, length of time, equipment, and batch size are strictly monitored.
Purity
Young Living Therapeutic Grade standards prohibit the acceptance of any diluted, cut or adulterated oils. Every product Young Living produces—essential oils, oil blends, nutritional supplements, or personal care—meets strict purity standards.Every batch of essential oils is subjected to rigorous, state-of-the-art analysis at the Young Living chemistry lab. Using some of the most advanced equipment in the world, our scientists subject every batch of essential oils to Gas Chromatograph and Mass Spectrometer testing, and heavy metals analysis. Oils that exhibit even the slightest hint of possible adulteration or tampering are rejected.
Potency
The culmination of the preceding three stages, Potency means that the naturally occurring compounds contained in each essential oil product are of the highest and most consistent bioactive levels. Without strict adherence to the Young Living Therapeutic Grade standard in the Plant, Preparation, and Purity phases, the final product would not have the necessary potency to create the desired effect.
I hope you can see why I decided to go with Young Living Essential Oils. I chose to go all in and signed up for a membership with Young Living so I could get the products at wholesale pricing. To top it off, as a member, I was eligible to buy the Premium Starter Kit which saved me almost $100 off retail if I had purchased everything separately.
I can't wait to share with you, over the next few weeks, my experiences with YLEO's and just how they have helped my family. If you are interested in learning more about Young Living oils please visit their site and do your own research. In order to purchase you must sign up as a retail customer (it's painless) or a wholesale member. I'd love to help you in your EO journey as a sponsor and/or a friend!
Have you ever tried essential oils? Are you a skeptic like I was?
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