Mothering Ourselves: Using Essential Oils to heal the Mother Wound
This month, I set out to discover which essential oils help with healing the mother wound.
I made a list of oils that spoke deeply to me in terms of nurturing, encouragement, unconditional love and warmth…and I compiled those essential oils into a list to share with you here.
The truth is, Mother’s Day is hard for so many people. If you want to nurture yourself in ways you may not have experienced from your mother, I encourage you to explore and connect with these oils.
These oils can be used in conjunction with trauma work or during therapy. You can also use these oils during journaling or meditation practice.
I want to highlight my recommended oils for nurturing the spirit and why and how they can help us feel cared for when we need it the most.
I’ll share uses and benefits for each of these individual oils, and at the end I will share my ultimate Mother-wound healing blend.
Wild Orange
Wild Orange essential oil can make us feel abundant and generous. But it is also the oil of our inner child! This oil inspires joy, exuberance, playfulness and uninhibited creativity. It is so powerful.
As a mother myself, I know that no motherhood journey is perfect. But many express a deep wound where a Mother should be…memories of harsh words, a lack of support, love based on conditions or obedience, or even a complete estrangement. Wild Orange might be playful, but quite importantly, it allows us to connect emotionally to a time when we were completely free. When we inhale it, we can imagine a life without fear, scarcity, pain or suffering. That is why Wild Orange is such an essential component to this blend.
To harness the powers of Wild Orange, pour 4-5 drops into the palm of your hand. Rub your hands together, cup your hands over your nose and deeply inhale. Meditate on a memory (or memories) from your early childhood when you felt most free. Who were you before you were criticized? How free and expressive did you feel before you felt inhibited? Journal about these emotions in great detail and allow yourself to feel those free uninhibited feelings again.
Grapefruit
Grapefruit is an oil that helps us remove shame. This applies to shame in every facet of life, but especially pertaining to shame around our body or body image. Using Grapefruit can help us feel loving towards our physical self. If we grew up receiving criticism about food, exercise or eating habits, we need to lean on Grapefruit. But regardless of whether we specifically have shame around food, using Grapefruit evokes feelings of self-love, courage, integrity and truth to oneself.
To use Grapefruit for body acceptance, pour 4-5 drops of Grapefruit into your hand and combine with a teaspoon of fractionated (liquid) coconut oil. Massage into your stomach and abdomen. While you massage it in, say your favorite affirmation to yourself. One of my favorites is, “I love and accept my body exactly as it is.”
Lavender
Lavender is the oil of communication! Lavender is soothing and calming. But it is also an oil that helps us say the things that need to be said. When it’s time to speak your truth, Lavender is there for you! It encourages emotional honesty and liberation from mental prisons of our own making. Lavender is here for us when we have secret shame, hurt that needs expressed, feedback that needs given, and relationships that need to be repaired. Lavender is not harsh or cruel…it simply provides the support we need as we say what is on our hearts. No relationship can be strong and enduring without that truth. Lavender is a good plant ally if you have felt stifled or silenced by your maternal relationships. It would also be helpful for having difficult conversations with a mother figure.
To use Lavender for communication, pour 6-8 drops into your essential oil diffuser. Inhaling Lavender affects the olfactory system of the brain, helping us to feel calm, in control and communicative.
Roman Chamomile
This is one of the most underrated essential oils. Everyone thinks of chamomile tea but have you used pure chamomile extract before? It is divine. Roman Chamomile essential oil is an oil of peace, purpose, unshakeable determination and spiritual connection. Roman Chamomile is a wonderful oil to use in times of conflict. Whether you literally have an argument or tension with your mother figure - or whether you have inner conflict about your mothering relationships - Roman Chamomile can guide you towards purpose and connection with a peaceful, serene feeling.
To use Roman Chamomile to help you feel more peaceful and purposeful, add 1 drop into a teaspoonful of organic, local honey. Stir this honey and chamomile blend into a steaming mug of hot water. This is much stronger and more potent and powerful than regular chamomile tea.
Magnolia
This is like a warm hug. Using Magnolia essential oil feels like connection. If you are someone who did not receive the nurturing your heart truly needed, Magnolia could be part of your healing journey. Magnolia is a euphoric oil!
I recommend Magnolia to the person whose mother or father figures did not easily make verbal or physical expressions of love and support. If you were not often told that someone loved you, or if you didn’t get physical touch and affection, please begin using Magnolia essential oil!
doTERRA Magnolia comes in a simple, easy-to-use rollerbottle for application on the go. I like to throw it in my bag and use it whenever I’m feeling frustrated, lonely or disconnected. Roll Magnolia directly on your heart, wrists and neck as a personal fragrance.
Use these oils to make the ultimate Mother-wound support blend:
Diffuse it
Add the oils to your essential oil diffuser. The oil will vaporize into the air so that you inhale it. When we inhale essential oils through our nose, chemical messages are sent from our olfactory system (under the bridge of our nose) to our brain and the rest of our body. Inhaling this blend can help us feel those feelings of being nurtured, cared for and encouraged.
Add it to Bath Salts
Grab a small jar and add epsom salts until the jar is 3/4 full. Pour this blend into the jar. Cover and shake. Top off with epsom salts. When taking a bath, add 1 cup of bath salts into your tub.
You might be tempted to just pour essential oils into your bathtub but the salts are super important. Not only do epsom salts relax your muscles and help soothe your body - the salts will also prevent all the essential oils from sitting on top of the bathwater, as they would if we simply poured them in. Making these bath salts helps us to enjoy the effects both aromatically and topically (through our skin).
I hope this helps you enjoy the beautiful, unique benefits of these oils.
You can purchase doTERRA oils at retail by clicking each oil above. However, I suggest that you Click below to get your oils at Wholesale price (25% off) as a member. As a Wholesale member, you get your oils, nontoxic cleaning supplies, essential-oil-infused spa products and more all at Wholesale prices. Once in your cart, you can add and subtract oils as you wish.
