Our Journey from Essential Oil Skeptics to Essential Oil Believers
If you have followed our HBOT journey, you know how life changing it has been to eliminate the use of drugs in controlling seizures for our 10 year old son, Ryan. We are still moving forward with the process for ongoing insurance approval; however, continued coverage isn't guaranteed. The thought of losing that coverage has been extremely stressful, until a friend blessed us with a Young Living Premium Starter Kit, along with the Brain Power blend. I was skeptical but the results have been undeniable.
September 9, 2014
We received our kit on Saturday, September 9, 2014. Being a cheapskate, I had already tried the NOW brand sold in stores. We didn't see any changes, which made me even more skeptical. However, I must admit the box of oils, that smelled so amazing, definitely stirred my hope. The pretty diffuser served as a perfect nightlight in his room.
I should first describe Ryan's health at the time the Young Living package arrived. Before HBOT, he would have multiple seizures daily. I was sleeping in his room, he was missing school, and I was missing work. With HBOT things were dramatically improved. He was back in school and I was back to work. However, I was still sleeping in his room because he was still struggling with one grand mal seizure every 4 to 5 weeks.
With a grand mal seizure, his body would jerk, he would turn pale, look scared or appear to be completely unaware of what was going on, and his heart would race to the point that we could feel it beating with our hand on his chest. Those episodes required Diastat to make them stop and, afterwards, his little body would be wiped out. He couldn't even hold his head up. Mom and Dad would be pretty wiped out too. They filled every day of our lives with a sense of fear and dread.
When the Young Living package arrived, Ryan was having periods of confusion and we were working on getting enough dives in to head off a seizure. As I was going through the Young Living package, Ryan started looking confused and his eyes were losing focus. I opened the Brain Power and held it under his nose. He quickly began scanning with his eyes; he has cortical visual impairment, which is like looking through Swiss cheese so he has to scan to find a good field of vision. He scanned, found it, and took a deep breath. Then he smiled and the confusion was over. I was absolutely stunned! This has happened multiple times sense the first and once on a field trip with his class. His teacher was watching as I pulled out the oil and she was equally stunned with the results.
We also took a tablespoon of Organic Virgin Coconut Oil and mixed in about 15 drops of Brain Power. Since then we have been taking that blend and rubbing a small amount on his two big toes, the back of his neck, and wipe off whatever is left on his stomach. As of today, Thanksgiving 2014, Ryan has not had a grand mal seizure since 9/29/14 and the suspicious confusion and crying spells are rare and if they happen he still responds well to simply smelling Brain Power.
We also diffuse Lavender in Ryan's room at night. He has often experienced seizures in the middle of the night. So, when he has set-backs, he becomes fearful about sleeping alone in his room - and I become fearful about leaving him. I sleep in his room during those periods. One morning, after sleeping in his room, I realized that I really felt rested. Once we felt like he had a strong seizure threshold, I went back to sleeping in our room again.....we bought another diffuser so that we could also rest well at night. : )
I ALSO NEED TO POINT OUT THAT EPILEPSY.COM LISTS THE FOLLOWING AS OILS TO AVOID FOR PEOPLE WITH A HISTORY OF SEIZURE ACTIVITY:
Basil
Fennell
Hyssop
Rosemary
Sage
Tansy, Idaho
Tarragon
Wintergreen
Aroma Siez
Awaken
BLM
Breathe Again
Carbozyme
Clarity
ComforTone
CortiSope Women's
Detoxzyme
Di-Gize
Deep Relief
Dragon Time
Egyptian Gold
Endo Flex
En-r-gee
Envision
Essentialzyme
Estro
Exodus II
FemiGen
GLF
Harmony
ICP
ImmuPower
InnerDefense
Into the Future
Juva Flex
JuvaTone
K&B
Lady Sclareol
Magnify your Purpose
Melrose
M-Grain
Mister
Panaway
Para Free
Polyzyme
Power Meal
Protec
Raven
RC
Rehemogen
Relieve it
SclarEssense
SuperCal
Thieves
White Angelica
I'm not a medical professional; however, as an overprotective mom, I would suggest that you introduce one oil at a time. This will help you to assess which oils are having the best impact on your child's health. Additionally, don't assume that the above list is ok for your special needs child. I research any new oil before introducing to make sure that are no seizure related issues. After a learning curve, I also research to see which oils should be avoided at bedtime since many increase mental alertness.
October 2014
Ryan was having lots of trouble with his stomach, which he often struggles with. We found that massaging Peppermint Oil on his stomach by doing small circles around his belly button in a clockwise motion (you can find an example on Youtube). We've been told by Ryan's therapist that this type of massage would help his stomach but we hadn't ever had much success with hit. However, when I used the Peppermint Oil I could feel the gas bubbles pop. He would laugh and seemed relieved.
We later realized that he was lying awake until midnight or later and wake up at 4:00 am. That was a concern because a lack of sleep can lower his thresh hold for seizures. It finally dawned on me that Peppermint Oil was recommended to increase mental alertness for tests and work. Once we put the pieces together and realized that Peppermint Oil was a stimulant, we took a break from it and he began to sleep well again. We would still use Peppermint Oil again if needed, provided it was before 2:00.
November 28, 2014
Over the last few days, I've had increasing pain in my joints and muscles. I've tried Valor and Peppermint Oils and still no change in my pain. Today it finally dawned on me that I should Google for the side effects of an antibiotic that I've been on for over a week, Cephalexin. Sure enough, joint and muscle pain is listed under rare side effects. To top it all off, I have family members that are allergic to Cephalexin.
I asked a pharmacists for empty capsules and she gave me five. I placed two drops of Lemon Oil and two drops of Lavender Oil in a capsule and filled the remainder with Grapeseed Oil. Lemon is known as an antioxidant and Lavender, an anti-inflammatory. After taking the capsule orally, there is still some pain in my joints; however it is greatly improved.
Ryan has seemed uncomfortable today. Since he is non-verbal, it is always a guessing game. He kept his hand in front of his face a lot, cried a few times, and just seemed very fatigued and troubled. I decided to try Orange Oil and Lemon Oil. The two oils are thought to help each side of the brain better communicate with each other. Orange is for the right side of the brain, so I placed a drop on his left toe. Lemon is for the left side of the brain, so I placed a drop on his right toe. Within 15 minutes, I heard him laughing. He is still awake but is relaxed and looking sleepy.
Note: Lemon and Orange are stimulants.....he was awake late. : )
Just prior to giving Ryan the Lemon and Orange Oils, I walked into his room and stood by his bed. He couldn't see me even when he moved his hand down and his head around. I waved my hand in front of his face and he never flinched or squinted. My anxiety went through the roof and I felt like I couldn't breathe. I prayed, thought about how CVI fluctuates with illness, and used Stress Away on myself. I noticed that my anxiety was under control 20 minutes later...still concerned but no difficulties breathing.
November 29, 2014
Ryan seemed fatigued and uncomfortable this morning. After he ate breakfast, we put him in for a bath. While he was in the tub, I placed Lemon Oil behind his right ear and Orange Oil behind his left ear. He immediately started laughing and went back to the happy Ryan we love to hear squealing. He was visually focused and very aware of my coming and going. He remained more content throughout the day and fell asleep at 10:00 pm.
The pain in my joints was increasing so I did another capsule with Lemon Oil, Lavender Oil and Grapeseed Oil. It again brought the pain level down.
Ryan is a very bright kid. In the past when we have used Depakote, he would scan and watch his food because he knew that we would put meds in it. Once he thought medicine was put in, he would stop eating. Yet, with the oils as soon as he smells them, he scans for them, and then tries to smell them. He knows they make him feel better just like he knew Depakote made him feel drunk.
I am so incredibly thankful that God has brought about a way for our family to sleep at night. Thank you Lord!!!
