May 22, 2010 in Aroma Touch Therapy, Massage Therapy, Wellness by empoweringwellness

Aromatherapy – An Everyday Household Application for You

I am very pleased to offer this useful aromatherapy formula from an e-book written by Marlene Druhan and me titled The Essentials About Essential Oils – Basic Aromatherapy Applications. The book contains many useful aromatherapy formulas ranging from household applications and everyday uses to formulas for managing stress, relieving muscle and joint pain and much more.

Excerpt from The Essentials About Essential Oils – Basic Aromatherapy Applications.

Everyday Household Applications

Essential oils can be invaluable for household uses ranging from cleaning/disinfecting to gardening. For those interested in cleaning and adding pleasant fragrance to the home with highly effective and pleasant alternatives to chemicals, here are a few formulas to get you started.

Countertop Disinfectant

Ingredients:

• Spray bottle
• Distilled water
• Essential oils of lavender, lemon, & tea tree

Fill spray bottle with distilled water and add 20 drops tea tree essential oil, 25 drops lavender essential oil, and 20 drops of lemon essential oil. Shake well and spray the surface you wish to clean. Wipe with a paper or cloth towel. Variations for those who appreciate a lovely fragrance while cleaning are: Add 25 drops of lemon essential oil, 10 drops of ylang ylang essential oil, and 25 drops of mandarin, grapefruit or sweet orange essential oil; or add 20 drops of peppermint essential oil, 10 drops of spearmint essential oil, and 20 drops of pine needle or spruce essential oil.

You may purchase a copy of The Essentials About Essential Oils for $12 through my online store. Enjoy!

May 20, 2010 in Aroma Touch Therapy, Massage Therapy, Wellness by empoweringwellness

Introducing Aroma Touch Therapy

I’m very pleased to announce a new therapeutic offering – Aroma Touch Therapy. Aroma Touch Therapy was developed by Dr. David Hill, a licensed Chiropractic Physician and the Chief Medical Advisor to dōTERRA, a leading manufacturer of therapeutic grade oils. The Aroma Touch Therapy technique uses 8 specially blended essentials oils developed by dōTERRA.

The Aroma Touch Therapy technique involves applying a combination of the 8 different essential oils in a precise sequence. The technique helps with:

- Reducing stress – Emotional stress, career choices, family discord, financial worries and the like elevate stress levels. Clinical studies have linked high stress and chronic stress to numerous negative health conditions.

- Boosting immune system response – We’re exposed to a wide array of toxic insults, including disease-causing pathogens, hormone and pesticide contaminated food products, and elevating free-radical assault from pollution, foods, and sunlight. The Aroma Touch Therapy technique uses a blend of oils specifically designed to help reduce adrenal fatigue and strengthen immune system response.

- Reducing inflammation – The increased consumption of foods with pro-inflammatory components (foods high in polyunsaturated vegetable oils such as safflower, corn, and peanut oil) together with high carbohydrate, low protein diets contribute to increased inflammation in body systems. Stress, with its accompanying imbalance of cortisol, can also contribute to inflammation. Studies increasingly show links between poor health and chronic inflammation. The Aroma Touch Therapy technique uses a blend of oils that help reduce inflammation in soft tissue, thereby contributing to an overall sense of well-being.

- Balancing the nervous system – Imbalance of the autonomic nervous system can negatively impact health in a number of ways. Aroma Touch Therapy helps to restore the body to a state of homeostasis (balance) and helps to address the physiological impact of stressors on the body.

Clients may schedule a 30-minute Aroma Touch Therapy session, or include Aroma Touch Therapy as part of their therapeutic massage session.

Visit my website to schedule your Aroma Touch Therapy session now. And as an added bonus, if you book an appointment for Aroma Touch Therapy in May or June, you will receive a FREE copy of my e-Book, The Essenstials about Essential Oils, a beautifully illustrated reference guide written by Marlene Druhan and me that will help you incorporate essential oils into your daily life.

Here’s one of the many formulas that are included in the book. This formula is for a natural cleaning agent.

Lemongrass-Citrus Sink, Tub, or Toilet Scrub: Sprinkle a generous amount of baking soda in a damp sink or tub along with 6 drops of lemongrass essential oil and 6 drops of lemon essential oil. Use a wet sponge (rough or smooth) and clean as usual. Rinse very well. ** Caution: some sinks and tubs (especially old tubs with “make over” surfaces) scratch easily so keep this in mind. Use with care. Variation: Use 6 drops of lavender essential oil and 2 drops of spearmint essential oil. This can also be used as a toilet scrub.

Finally, here is a brief video featuring Dr. Hill from dōTERRA, as he explains some of the benefits of essential oils and how they work.

May 7, 2010 in Recipes, Wellness by empoweringwellness

Sharing a Meal – The Gift My Mother Gave Me

I first published this on Mother’s Day 2009. I hope you enjoy reading it again.

My love of food and cooking comes from my mother. When I was a little boy, I would remember coming home from school to warm and magical smells from the kitchen that would fill the entire house. To this day, I can bring myself back to the moment when I would open our front door, and the smell of cakes, pies, soups, stews would greet me and tell me ‘you are home.’

My mother was a wonderful cook and she taught me how to cook. She taught me to make a white sauce when I was six years old. Like an apprentice in a French restaurant, she got me started cooking by teaching me how to make sauces and gravies. We then moved onto more complicated dishes, and eventually I could pull together an entire meal, a warm cucumber salad, roast chicken with potatoes and gravy, and an apple crumble for dessert.

But this isn’t just a story about learning to cook. It’s about learning to share, and the importance of sitting down together, as a family, and sharing a meal lovingly prepared. Sharing a meal is an act of nurturing. It is an act of caring and it harkens back to prehistoric days when clans would gather round the fire and share the spoils of the daily hunt. The act of sharing a meal brings us together as people and as family.

Studies seem to support this notion too. In an article in today’s Washington Post’s food section titled If Big Mama Could See Me Now, Michelle Singletary writes, “compared with teens who frequently eat dinner with their families, those who rarely sit down to family meals are 3-1/2 times as likely to have abused prescription drugs or an illegal drug other than marijuana, according to the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University.” As you can see, the simple act of sharing a meal as a family unit, has a profound impact on our children.

A few years ago, my mother, then in her late 80′s came to visit my wife and me in Northern Virginia. We were able to cook together for the first time in many years. And she was determined to show me how she made Beef Rouladen, a hearty dish that I loved so much as a child. I acted as her sous chef that Sunday afternoon; chopping, slicing and assisting her, amazed that she could prepare this meal from memory after all these years. I chopped parsely to sprinkle on as a garnish, and she gently chided me that I had not chopped it finely enough. “The flavor of the parsely blossoms in your mouth when it is finely chopped,” she said. And she was right. Always the teacher.

My mother doesn’t cook much these days. She is 92, and lives with my brother and his family in a small apartment that my brother built as an addition to his house. But, she still enjoys sharing meals with my brother, his wife and her grandchildren. And at the end of the day, she and my brother share a glass of wine together before saying good night.

When my wife and I visit my brother, we all get together to prepare big meals that we all share. Everyone, from my little niece Katie, my nephews Daniel and David, my brother, his wife, my wife, and I all have a hand in preparing the meal — whatever it may be. My mother hovers around, acting as the approving executive chef in our family kitchen. And then we all sit down at the table, share the stories of our day together, and talk about our dreams of the future. The warmth and love from the food does more than nurture our stomach — it fuels our souls.

I shall call my mother this Sunday, and wish her a happy Mother’s day. And I will tell her how much I love her, and how much she has given me in my life. I think it’s time for another visit. Perhaps she can give me another cooking lession, and along with it, a lesson in love and life, for those are things that you are never too old to learn.

Happy Mother’s Day to all moms who care, love, nurture and give.

Blessings.