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Savoring Life

Savoring Life, relax de-stress
https://thedailyquipple.com/      Used With Permission

Learn to enjoy every minute of your life. Be happy now. Don’t wait for something outside of yourself to make you happy in the future. Think how really precious is the time you have to spend, whether it’s at work or with your family. Every minute should be enjoyed and savored. Earl Nightingale

I’m really not very good at savoring life. I tend to hurry because there’s a big ol’ heap on my plate. Now, I wished for this big ol’ heap and I’m really grateful for it, but at the same time, I forget to have fun.

How do you forget to have fun?

Easy. You forget about savoring life.

Practice Savoring Life

I’m working ahead of Labor Day weekend to publish this post so that I can go play on Monday. For my friends across the pond, Monday is the Labor Day holiday in the US and honors the working class – those of us who most likely live paycheck to paycheck with little reward. So it’s time for a little monkey business. :)

And yes, I tend to hurry through life because there’s always something that needs to be done.

But not today. 

What do you do just for fun? What’s your favorite way to relax and savor life? Savoring Life, present moment

I love digging in the dirt. Just being outside on a beautiful day is good for my soul. I dream of the ocean – don’t get to go very often, but I love it there. I love to play golf but I haven’t played in a long while.

Most of the time, it’s because I’ve piled a big ol’ heap on my plate.

Hey wait a minute! I’m a certified aromatherapist – isn’t there a blend for that?

Yep. Sure is.

Savor The Moment Diffuser Blend

  • 2 drops Neroli Petitgrain Co-Distill
  • 2 drops Frankincense
  • 2 drops Sweet Orange (substitute Lemon if you like)
  • 1 drop Ylang Ylang

Add these drops to your cold mist diffuser and let it run! This blend is wonderful for lifting your spirits, calming your thoughts and grounding you. And that allows you to be in the present moment and savor life. If you don’t have these oils on hand, I’ll make 5 mL bottle for you for $19.99 plus shipping. Go to Custom Blends in the aromatherapy shop and let me know you want Savor The Moment – I’ll take it from there!

Have A Little Fun In Life

This afternoon, I’m outside with my laptop writing and guess what? A hummingbird flew right by me (3 times!). Interesting, eh?

There’s a message in that and I had to figure out what it is. The good folks at SpiritAnimal.info blew my mind by explaining the symbolism of hummingbirds:

The hummingbird generally symbolizes joy and playfulness, as well as adaptability. Additional symbolic meanings are: Lightness of being, enjoyment of life. Being more present. Independence. Bringing playfulness and joy in your life. Lifting up negativity. Swiftness, ability to respond quickly.

Now, ain’t that just something??

One of the (many) reasons I’ve been busy is adding lots of new products to my aromatherapy shop in Kernersville, North Carolina.

Debuting this coming week is a salt bath bar – you pick the essential oil you want and add a big scoop of bath salts. There’s also temporary tattoos, locally made soy candles and soaps and many other items for you and for gift giving.

I love having wonderful products to make your life worth savoring. So, even though it’s been a busy time, it’s worth it.

In the meantime, I’m purposely taking time to relax and play for a day!

I hope you’ve had some fun over Labor Day weekend and I hope you had time for savoring life.

Tell me how I can serve you better through aromatherapy – how can I help you relax, de-stress and be in the moment? Tell me how I can help you savor life.

Let me hear from you – the contact form is simple and fast or you can always email me. I can’t wait to hear from you!

Blessings,

Melissa

P.S. The Daily Quipple is a sweet and inspiring site – you should visit them!

Sunscreen VS. SAFE Sunscreen What’s The Difference?

sunscreen vs good sunscreen, toxic sunscreen ingredients,

Do you know what the difference is between sunscreen vs. SAFE sunscreen? Not all sunscreens are created equal and some of them contain ingredients that are downright dangerous!

Everything that you put on your skin gets absorbed into your bloodstream; your liver has the job of filtering and your kidneys must get rid of it. While you may think this is no big deal, it’s actually a huge deal!!

Sunscreen vs. safe sunscreen

If you use sunscreen correctly by slathering it in a thick coat all over your body (and reapplying frequently), you’re actually coating your skin with carcinogenic chemicals. So, a few times doesn’t hurt, right?

How many times does it take before it becomes toxic? Where’s your tipping point?

The Environmental Working Group (EWG.org) is a non-profit organization that investigates the chemical properties of thousands of every day products. They look at each chemical and report on its’ potential to cause cancer, mimic hormones, damage organs and many other areas.

The EWG talks about sunscreen at length on their website and here’s why sunscreen has so many chemicals in it:

… ingredients in sunscreen should not be irritating or cause skin allergies, and should be able to withstand powerful UV radiation without losing their effectiveness or forming possibly harmful breakdown products. People might inhale ingredients in sunscreen sprays and ingest some of the ingredients they apply to their lips, so ingredients must not be harmful to lungs or internal organs. Furthermore, sunscreens commonly include ingredients that act as “penetration enhancers” to help the product adhere to skin. As a result, many sunscreen chemicals are absorbed into the body and can be measured in blood, breast milk and urine samples.

What stands out to me about the last sentence is the ability to measure these toxic chemicals in blood, breast milk and urine samples.

What Are The Dangerous Chemicals?

The active ingredients in many sunscreens act as chemical “filters” that keep harmful UV rays away from your skin. While that sounds good, some of the chemicals are known to cause all sorts of problems including skin reactions, hormone disruption and organ damage.

Europe is wa-a-a-a-y-y-y-y ahead of the United States when it comes to banning dangerous chemicals and they actually have better sunscreen protection that we do because of this.

Here are some of the culprits and why they’re dangerous:

  • oxybenzone – high rates of skin allergy and known hormone disruptor
  • avobenzone – associated with allergies and possible carcinogen
  • octisalate – can cause contact dermatitis and acne
  • octocrylene – increased production of free radicals possibly causing melanoma
  • homosalate – directly impacts the estrogen system 
  • octinoxate – known hormone disruptor

This is not a complete list by far – but you get the picture. Umm…is this what you want to put on your skin?

To make matters worse, sunscreen is killing off the coral reefs. Why is that a problem? Sunscreen bleaches the coral reefs which ultimately kills them.

According to SnorkelsAndFins.com which is an reef-friendly snorkeling website, up to 14,000 TONS of sunscreen wash off of people and into the ocean every single year. Here’s why that’s so bad:

Record heat registered in the past years, pollution, and a series of other environmental factors caused the bleaching of over 50% of the coralin Australia’s Great Barrier Reef. Based on the latest trends, scientists predict that about 90% of the world’s coral will be threatened by 2030 (NOAA Coral Reef Risk Outlook).

Since the ocean gives us most of the oxygen we breath, a loss of marine bio-diversity poses a risk to human life everywhere.

According to research (International Coral Reef Initiative, 2018), one of the main causes of coral bleaching is sunscreen; more precisely oxybenzone and octinoxate (NCBI, 2018), two compounds found in most sunscreens.

Healthy Sunscreens 

There are natural alternatives to the toxic ingredients found in sunscreens. The Environmental Working Group publishes an annual list of sunscreens that are MUCH safer to use. Here’s just a few with their websites: mineral sunscreen, natural sunscreen, zinc oxide

These are NOT affiliate links, but links to the companies themselves where you can find out more about each product and purchase directly from them. You can find many of them on Amazon. I chose the companies listed above because they have a good variety of sunscreens for all ages.

I want you to be as healthy as possible. And I know it’s so much easier to go to the drug store and buy whatever sunscreen is on sale. But think twice about what you’re putting on your skin and the damage you do to your liver.

While you’re being safe about your sunscreen, remember, at Scented Balance, there’s products for chronic pain, skin disorders, menopause, digestive issues and many other concerns – that are good for you!

Many blessings and thank you for stopping by!

Melissa

 

Lyme Disease – How Aromatherapy Makes A Difference

Lyme Disease, How Aromatherapy Can Make A Difference

Ugh. It’s tick season. And as much as I LOVE summer, ticks terrify me because they can cause Lyme Disease. If you live with this, it probably took a while to be diagnosed. Let’s see how aromatherapy can make a difference if you’re living with Lyme Disease.

The information here is general in nature, so if you’ve just begun your search about Lyme Disease, this is a good place to start – I’ll have links for more resources throughout this post for you.

What is Lyme Disease?

The first case recognized in the United States occurred about 40 years ago in Lyme, Connecticut – hence the name Lyme Disease.

It comes from the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi and is transmitted to humans through the bite of infected blacklegged deer ticks. What that says to me is not every single blacklegged deer tick is infected.

What are the symptoms of lyme disease?

You may have gotten a tick bite, taken care of it and not thought any more about it. Usually about a month after you’ve been bitten by an infected tick, you’ll begin seeing symptoms such as:

    • A “bullseye” skin rash called a erythema migrans erythema migrans
    • Fatigue
    • Joint pain and swelling
    • Flu-like symptoms
    • Sleeping disturbances beyond the norm

These aren’t all the symptoms and The Centers For Disease Control in Atlanta, Georgia has an entire section devoted just for this topic. The symptoms I’ve listed are the most common short-term symptoms.

This is one of those time where you need to see your medical professional. Yes, they’re going to put you on some strong antibiotics. If you’re concerned about this, talk to a naturopathic or integrative physician first – BUT DON’T WAIT – GET CHECKED OUT NOW!

Long term symptoms include:

    • Problems with short term memory
    • Chronic pain
    • Mood changes that aren’t normal
    • Facial paralysis
    • Arthritis

This is serious stuff!

Treatment for Lyme Disease

If you’ve been diagnosed early with Lyme Disease, your doctor will put you on a round of antibiotics which usually helps you recover fairly fast and completely, normally within a month. Whatever antibiotic is prescribed, make sure you take the WHOLE dose. This isn’t the time to be a hero.

On the other hand, if you waited for more than a month, or didn’t realize you got infected, then you’ll still be given antibiotics but you may receive them intravenously.

Here’s the kicker though. Antibiotics destroy both good and bad bacteria leading to problems with your immune system, yeast overgrowth and an eroding of white cell membranes which leads to more fatigue.  Worse yet, the Borrelia burgdorferi infection tends to become resistant to antibiotics over time.

Aromatherapy For Lyme Disease

skeeter off mosquito repellent, avoid tick bitesOne way to prevent tick bites is to use essential oils for repelling mosquitoes and ticks. I’ve carefully researched the ingredients in Skeeter-Off Mosquito Repellent for Adults and Skeeter-Off Mosquito Repellent for Children.

If you know you’re going to be outside, shake well and spray it directly on your skin and also on your clothing. It’s completely non-greasy, so your clothes should be fine. You don’t need to saturate your clothing, a light misting all over you will work. I actually mist my hair, too but please do avoid your eyes!

Although the majority of patients do recover after a round of very strong antibiotics, about 20% experience symptoms afterwards called Post Treatment Lyme Disease Syndrome. According to a Lyme Disease group out of Wisconsin, after the round of antibiotics, the bacteria is persistent:

While the cause for this is debated, one possibility is that persister bacteria are not killed by the current Lyme antibiotics and remain active in the system.

So, you’ve taken your round of antibiotics and you’re still feeling the symptoms. This is where aromatherapy shines! Pure essential oils have the power to help you help your body. Pure essential oils are healthy plant-based tools to assist strengthening and restoring your body.

Body Booster Oil

    • 10 drops Tea Tree (Melaleuca alternafolia)
    • 10 drops Lavender (Lavendula angustifolia)
    • 10 drops Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus radiata)
    • 10 drops Frankincense (Boswellia serrata)
    • 10 drops Neroli (Citrus aurantium)
    • 6 drops Peppermint (Mentha x peperita)
    • 4 drops Lemon (Citrus limon)
    • 4 ounces Jojoba Wax

Combine all ingredients into a 4 ounce bottle and shake well. Use all over your neck and body 4 times daily. These particular oils are chosen for their powerful anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial and nurturing properties. This blend can bolster your immune system, soothe inflammation, boost your body’s antioxidant supply and reduce pain and irritation.

If you don’t have all of the ingredients, I make this blend for $32.95 plus tax and shipping. You can call, email or fill out this contact form and I’ll take care of you.

It’s also helpful to diffuse Thievery Synergy Blend. This blend is similar to Thieves; I added Lavender and Tea Tree essential oils as they are so beneficial for a compromised immune system.

Other Resources For Lyme Disease Information

Here’s some sound websites from the Centers for Disease Control:

Be well and remember – aromatherapy helps you help your body do what it does best – find balance.

Blessings,

Melissa

 

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.

Why Are You So Hesitant About Aromatherapy?

Why Are You So Hesitant about aromatherapy, natural medicine, side effects of toxic pills,

Why are you so hesitant about aromatherapy? Do you think it doesn’t work or it’s not for you? Would you rather use chemicals than try something that comes out of the earth?

Questions, questions, questions. Yes I know. Oh – there’s one more question. Did you know that your modern medicine began from the plant-based wisdom known as aromatherapy?

Yep. It’s true. The Journal of Advanced Pharmaceutical Technology & Research has an interesting article about this:

It has been well documented that natural products played critical roles in modern drug development, especially for antibacterial and antitumor agents. Even though popularity of the synthetic products increased due to its production cost, time effectiveness, easy quality control, stringent regulation and quick effects, but their safety and efficacy was always remained questionable, resulting in the dependence on the natural products by more than 80% of the total population in the developing world, because of its time tested safety and efficacy. A huge number of natural product-derived compounds in various stages of clinical development highlighted the existing viability and significance of the use of natural products as sources of new drug candidates.

So, why are you so hesitant about turning to aromatherapy – which is plant-based medicine – when you have a health concern?

It’s a proven fact there there are rarely any negative side effects of using pure essential oils. If you’re sensitive to the plant family, yes, there could be some reaction. But every single commercial that you see on TV hawking toxic drugs ALWAYS have nasty side effects such as stomach tears, diarrhea, dizziness, stroke, heart attack, nausea, internal bleeding, skin rashes, shortness of breath, headaches and possibly even DEATH.

Um…I don’t know about you, but that last side effect is a doozy.

To make matters worse, here’s what Drugs.com says about the nasty side effects of toxic medicine:

Side effects may also lead to non-compliance with prescribed treatment. When side effects of a drug or medication are severe, the dosage may be adjusted or a second medication may be prescribed.

A SECOND medication may be prescribed to offset the first one? How sick and twisted is that? What if you have nasty side effects from the second medication? Are you going to take a THIRD toxic pill?

GAH!!!!!

Why Are You so Hesitant About Aromatherapy?

What are you afraid of? 

Your body KNOWS the difference between synthetic and plant-based. Your liver has to filter everything you put in or on your body.

Y’all, I’m a trained, experienced certified aromatherapist. I went through 76 hours of Anatomy and Physiology to learn how pure essential oils work with your body and the possible reactions you might have.

I get skeptical questions about aromatherapy all the time and yet I’m able to answer those questions. Some folks roll their eyes to hard I swear their eyeballs are coming out their ears. Yes, I get this even in my own family.

And yet you take toxic prescription pills without question. And when you have nasty side effects from those toxic pills, you can’t figure out why you feel like shit warmed over or you’re simply not connecting the dots.

Listen, I’m not here to bash allopathic doctors. They’re doing the best they can to help you while being hogtied by insurance companies and big pharma. And big pharma knows if you’re healthy, they don’t make money.

YOU are their cash cow.

What I am saying is that aromatherapy is REAL. And if you’re willing to take a toxic pill every day that’s actually making you feel worse, than why not use aromatherapy everyday to help you feel better?

We’ve become brainwashed into thinking that a magic pill from the doctor will fix whatever ails us and we go on our merry way.

Nope.

I challenge you to think twice before you swallow yet another toxic pill or use another toxic cream on your skin. I challenge you to try aromatherapy and see what happens. Even if you don’t come to Scented Balance, please give aromatherapy a try.

Your liver will thank you!

Blessings,

Melissa

P.S. Still not sure? Fill out this contact form and let’s talk – TODAY!

 

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. 

5 Ways Drinking Lemon Water Improves Your Health and Life

5 ways drinking lemon water improves your life and health

Do you feel good? Are you healthy? If not, or you want a simple way to help yourself get healthier and feel better, here’s 5 ways drinking lemon water improves your health and life. 

For Reals!

What’s Up With Lemons?

Why are lemons (and all citrus fruits, really) so good for you? That little yellow bombshell is loaded with stuff your body loves:

    • vitamin C
    • B-complex vitamins
    • calcium
    • iron
    • magnesium
    • potassium
    • fiber

Lemons have more potassium than grapes or apples. Vitamin C, potassium and magnesium are all critically important for approximately 300 bodily functions. And fresh lemon juice taste pretty good, so that’s a plus!

It’s easier for your body to absorb and process the vitamins and minerals it needs from food and beverages than it is from pills. Pills don’t always break down in your intestines, so you may not be getting any nutrients from them at all.

5 Ways Drinking Lemon Water Improves Your Health and Life

Here’s just a few of the benefits of drinking lemon water:

1. Your Liver Will LOVE You!

When I studied anatomy and physiology for aromatherapy school, I found out a whole lot of things I didn’t know and the one that stuck with me the most is how good lemon is at protecting your liver.

YO – you can’t drink yourself silly just because you’re imbibing lemon, okay? 

EVERY MORNING, squeeze half of a fresh lemon into either warm or room temperature water (about 6 to 8 ounces) and drink it down. Woo hoo – you just made friends with your liver!

2. Flushes Out Toxins in your system

This goes along with reason number 1 above, and makes you feel better because you’re getting rid of all the toxins that would otherwise be stored in your liver and other organs. Most of us have not connected the dots when we feel tired and draggy, but this is one culprit.

According to BodyEcology.com the toxins lodge in your cells, soft tissues, and muscles, and overwhelm your entire immune system and that’s why you feel sluggish.

See what’s going on?

3. Reduces Inflammation

This is huge y’all! Inflammation is the culprit behind so much disease and left unchecked, it causes real damage. You may not be aware of it right now, but it wreaks havoc on your system. Go back to reason number 1 and drink that lemon water every day!

4. Boosts Your Immune System

The d-Limonene in lemons is known to activate white blood cells which is what makes up your immune system. (Have you had your lemon water yet today?)

It’s full of vitamin C which is like having jumper cables for your immune system. That’s why you take more vitamin C when you feel a cold coming on. 

5. It Reduces Anxiety and Depression

Lemon is the most universally loved scent and it’s excellent for those who live with anxiety and depression as it has a calming effect on your nervous system.

Bonus Reasons Why Lemon Water Will Change Your Life fresh lemon juice, drink lemon water

I couldn’t resist – here’s even more reasons to drink lemon water every day!

    • Helps fight hunger cravings (hello weight loss!)
    • Assists with fighting viral infections
    • May help manage blood sugar levels
    • Excellent for avoiding kidney stones

HERE’S THE BIG CAVEAT TO ALL THIS WONDERFUL NEWS: Lemon is acidic until it hits your intestines, so it will take rust off a bumper (and the enamel right off your teeth). That means you must DILUTE THE FRESH LEMON IN WATER. Got it?

Have your drank your lemon water yet?

Listen, nobody gets out alive in this life and I’m not saying that drinking lemon water makes you perfectly healthy and you’ll live forever. What it does help you with is keeping your system cleaner and happier and that means m-a-a-a-y-b-e you’ll stay healthier longer.

IT’S HALF OF A LEMON AND SOME WATER – YOU CAN DO THIS!

Let me know if you have any questions about drinking lemon water – or how aromatherapy can make a huge difference in your life. You can call, email or simply fill out this quick and easy contact form and let’s talk today!

Blessings,

Melissa