Winter is a wonderful time of year. It allows you to catch up on indoor projects, kills bugs and refreshes our soil and water table. There is nothing like the beauty of that first snow. There is no dust in the atmosphere when it snows, and the air is pristine and healthy. Unfortunately, there are some downsides. There is less sunlight and we don’t spend as much time outside. Thanks to all our modern inventions (like electricity), it’s really easy to become disconnected from our natural rhythms. As the days get shorter and the nights get longer, this can lead to all sorts of health problems, including SAD, insomnia, overeating, and depression. Winter brings colds, sinus infections and the flu. Here are some tips to help with your spirits and health as we begin 2019.
As you count down the days until spring, take this time to make a conscious effort to get your home environment back in tune with nature. Set up your spaces to take advantage of natural light—say working by a window during the day—and make sure to turn off electronics at least an hour before bedtime.
Other things that you can do to keep your spirits and health up is to incorporate Aromatherapy in your day to day living. Aromatherapy is a healing therapy using aromatic essential oils to improve the health of your body mind and spirit. What is an essential oil? Oils that are derived from raw plant material such as flowers, leaves, bark, roots, seeds and the peel. In most case distillation is the process used to extract the oils.
Aromatherapy can enhance both your physical and emotional health. Incorporating it into your life is really quite simple. You can diffuse it into the air, mix it with a carrier oil or apply it directly to your skin. You can also add a few drops in your bath water or in a spray bottle with some water and use it as an air freshener or linen spray.
Here are a few essential oils and their benefits:
Citrus oils have long been known to combat SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder). Simply put, SAD is your bodies’ response to not having enough natural sunlight. For some people it can be so severe that they use light therapy to help. Citrus oils such as orange, grapefruit and lemon have been shown to brighten your spirits. Why do you think there is lemon in household cleaners? We should all be happy little cleaners! In Japan they diffuse lemon in the air ducts of factories to make workers happy and work faster.
Peppermint, eucalyptus and tea tree oils are great for any respiratory problems. Combined or used alone
Last but not least let’s talk about stress. Being inside with our loved ones isn’t always easy! Lavender works great to relax your central nervous system. A few drops applied directly to the temples, spritzed on your pillows before bedtime or even added to your favorite tea will do the trick. I hope this information helps make your winter of 2019 fantastic!
I run workshops on Aromatherapy, making your own body butters and scrubs and vision Boards. If you’d like to be on my email list kindly send me your email at SixtiesAndSexy@gmail.com, just put add me to your list in the title!
Sixties and Sexy 