Orientation
Like usual, could you let your animated helper walk you through this page’s sequence and main attractions?
You’ll be able to hop over to Aphrodite’s Lounge beside the Salon for this segment. Like all rooms on the ship, the space transforms for your needs.
Please read the information after you get comfortable and sip your favourite beverage. After you have made notes, you can enjoy the short video. There are some handy reference lists and recipes. At the bottom of the page, you will also find some downloads to contemplate.
Using Essential Oils During Pregnancy:
Overview- Using essential oils during pregnancy and breastfeeding is a contentious issue in aromatherapy. Most seem safe in tiny quantities after six months, but I would generally avoid using essential oils during this delicate time just to be ultra-cautious. There are exceptions to this guideline, but hydrosols and carrier oils are safer tools during pregnancy and breastfeeding. Remember not to use Essential oils with pets. Please do not give them oils internally, nor put them on their fur, which they will lick. Even diffusion of essential oils may cause problems with some pets, so practice extreme caution.
Tisserand and Young pg 152 and 153 have created a list of essential oils that should be avoided by any route throughout pregnancy and lactation. I have added essential oils. Sheppard-Hanger also suggests avoiding.
I will only include essential oils commonly used in aromatherapy.
Video Overview on Pregnancy and Essential Oils
Avoid These Essential Oils During Pregnancy and Lactation—Avoid using essential oils with babies or pets. Hydrosols are much safer.
Anise and anise star, birch sweet, bitter almond, birch, boldo, buchu, calamus, camphor, carrot seed, cassia, chaste tree, cinnamon bark, costus, cypress-blue, dill seed, fennel-(bitter and sweet), feverfew, ho leaf, hyssop, lanyana, lavender stoechas, mugwort, mustard, myrrh, myrtle, oregano, parsley leaf and seed, pennyroyal, rue, sage, savin, tansy, thuja, red cedar, wintergreen, wormseed, wormwood and yarrow.
Once your baby is born, Tisserand states that eucalyptus, peppermint and ravintsara must be avoided initially. A chart with a more thorough explanation of babies and children will appear in the next chapter.
Essential Oils that Should Be Restricted During Pregnancy-
Tisserand and Young pg 156
Basil, Boswellia papyrifera, champaca absolute, clove, cornmint, horseradish, hyssop, lemon balm, lemongrass, may chang, melissa, myrtle honey & lemon types; nasturtium absolute, tea tree (the lemon-scented variety), savoury, sassafras, tarragon, thyme-(the lemon type) and lemon verbena.
Terms: (Tisserand and Balacs 1991)
Emmenagogue– A substance which regularizes menstruation.
Abortifacient– capable of inducing an abortion.
Do not use essential oils in the first three months of pregnancy. After that, use only those considered safe in tiny amounts, or avoid essential oils until after pregnancy and breastfeeding.
Practice extreme caution if-
A) the woman has a shaky obstetric history, difficulty getting pregnant, or previous miscarriages.
B) epilepsy, kidney damage, cancer or a rise in blood pressure.
C) she has essential oil or plant allergies-(this is not specific to pregnancy).
Help in Conception–
Rose– may raise sperm count.
Rose Geranium– balances hormones.
Sandalwood, ylang, and jasmine- set the mood, erotic and relaxing.
She Oak- Australian flower essence- was suggested by an excellent naturopath, Ian Smith, to aid conception.
To Lessen the Effects of Stretch Marks –
Please do not use it in the first five months of pregnancy.
Almond 3 tbsp.
Avocado 1 tbsp.
Rosehip 1 tbsp.
Jojoba- 1 tbsp.
3 drops lavender e.o.
2 drops tangerine e.o.
1-drop ylang e.o.
Rub onto the tummy area.
As shown below, Ryman’s 1991 book has been used for many blends and ideas.
Alternative Stretch Mark Blend:
The carriers of hazelnut, flaxseed (100 ml) & a few drops of helichrysum, e.o.
Petitgrain, neroli, and rosemary verbenone are also useful for stretch marks.
Many of the recipes below were adapted from Ryman, 1991. Use very low quantities of essential oil, .5% for cautionary reasons, and only during the last couple of months of pregnancy.
Preparing the Perineal Area.
Mix 1 tbsp—jojoba with one drop of lavender. Rub in every day for eight weeks before delivery to help prevent tearing.
Labour:
To speed and facilitate delivery: palmarosa, fennel, peppermint, bay, clove, and lavender.
Essential Oils to Use During Labor:
A midwife best does it. Don’t use any essential oil the woman is not attracted to. Use all oils in a significantly diluted form—no internal use. Once delivered, keep the essential oil away from the baby.
Lavender—Massage into the body to dull and ease uterine pain and soothe aching back and legs. Use a warm bath to relax and calm during the first stage of labour. It is antiseptic. You can use a diffuser to cleanse the air in the room. Lavender should not be used with epidural anesthesia, as it may be hypertensive.
Rose: It aids circulation and encourages deep, calm breathing. It is also an antidepressant, emotional upset-stress reliever, and can aid uterine action.
Roman Chamomile– Backache, pregnancy rash and tension.
Clary Sage- Tension reliever. You can use a compress as a pain reliever.
Roman Chamomile-Backache, pregnancy rash, tension.
Neroli- In a diffuser to help reduce fear, apprehension, and anxiety. Helps with breathing.
Jasmine—Compress—Uterine tonic. Lie the compress onto the abdomen and lower back in the early stages of labour. Jasmine is an analgesic and anti-spasmodic that can dull uterine pain. It shortens contractions and calms them. Use as a compress. Lay the jasmine-infused compress on the abdomen immediately after birth to help expel the placenta. The uplifting scent of jasmine may also help with post-natal depression. In 2024, Canada is talking about restricting or eliminating jasmine oil.
Rose Geranium—Use in a diffuser or as a massage blend. It is suitable for circulation and aiding breathing during labour. It also balances emotions.
Nutmeg– On a compress for pain.
Ylang– Used in a diffuser, ylang calms, soothes and is an anti-depressant.
Post Delivery
Add a few drops of essential oils to a warm or sitz bath. The oils can heal tears incurred during birthing. Lavender can help prevent infection, heal wounds and encourage new skin growth. Use a minimal concentration diluted in a gentle carrier oil to minimize the burning sensation. An Epsom salt sitz bath would also be beneficial.
Soothing Gel: To cool and soothe, mix comfrey gel with minute amounts of lavender, helichrysum, blue chamomile, etc.
Nipple Oil:
50 ml of Calendula oil. (It can be used without essential oils).
Apply to sore nipples after feeding the baby. Wash the oil off the breasts thoroughly with warm water before feeding.
Suppression of Lactation– This has been achieved by applying Jasmine flowers to the breasts.
Hemorrhoids—Essential oils, which act as astringents and vasoconstrictors, may help relieve pain: cypress, juniper, and frankincense. Witch hazel water is excellent. Apply diluted essential oils to a compress or add them to a shallow bath as a soak.
Itching may be relieved using patchouli and geranium in the same manner.
Ryman, 1991 pg. 282 recommends boiling leeks and freezing ice cubes from the cooking water to rub onto the area for immediate relief.
Please take a look at the download below. You will find articles on pregnancy and aromatherapy.