Why the sense of smell is so important

In Series 4, Episode 15 of the tv series House, Gregory House uses his sense of smell to help his memory. 

13: "Where are you going?"

House: "To smell a bus, obviously"

13: "Why are you smelling the passenger's clothes?"

House: "Smell is the most powerful evoke-erator of memory!"

I love the tv series House and I remembered this when reading up about why essential oils are so amazing and quick-acting. According to basic human biology - there is a direct connection between your nose and your brain's limbic system which is the area of the brain associated with memory and emotions. 

Smells can transport you to memories, for example, walking past a bakery can transport you to childhood when there was fresh bread ready for breakfast or when freshly mown grass reminds you of playing football with your siblings after the lawn was cut. The sense of smell involves far more receptors than with other senses, meaning you can discern lots of different aromas and be transported to many different places. 

But there is also the emotional side of it because smells (and therefore essential oils) can directly influence a person's mood, stress levels, anxiety levels and even depressive symptoms (from my favourite book Medicinal Essential Oils.) This is helped by the fact that the sense of smell is the only sense that has a dedicated, direct connection to the brain via the olfactory bulb.

So how does smell affects the body?

1. Aroma is inhaled
2. Odour molecules travel up the nose
3. Aroma molecules attach to the olfactory bulb receptor sites
4. Impulses are transmitted to the limbic system (a complex set of structures including hypothalamus, hippocampus, amygdala and limbic cortex)
5. In response to the aroma, the limbic system causes physiological responses in the body via hormones, neurotransmitters and other chemicals that influence body functions such as:
1. pain perception
2. appetite
3. metabolism
4. libido
5. wakefulness
6. body temperature
7. sense of well-being
8. stress levels
9. motivation

Amazing isn't it? How smell can impact our physiology and emotions.

Want to research it yourself?

If you want to know more about your amazing sense of smell go and read some doTERRA blog posts about essential oils and stress; the power of aroma or do some cool experiments here. 

Searching for more information via the internet, you too can find lots of people realise how amazing the nose is like this amazing poster about the quantum nose or these amazing TEDx or YouTube videos about smell:

1. TEDx Talk - Smell, Your Least Appreciated Sense. Rachel Herz talks about why you shouldn't take your sense of smell for granted and how it is so important for survival or even being attracted to someone. Active smelling has been shown to restore lost olfactory neurons [15:42] and your sense of smell is so important. [16:23] Use aromas to enrich your life - a scent is worth a thousand pictures.

2. Why Smell is More Important Than You Think. In this TEDx Talk, Holladay Saltz talks about how smell is so important including why cleaning products include certain smells. For example, citrus equals cleanliness; fruity smells increase feelings of comfort and floral equates to maternal love and care. Beware of marketing stuff as these things aren't natural products, unfortunately.

3. Here are some articles about How Smell Works and Psychology and Smell including the importance of smell in affecting emotion and in our memory recall.

4. Khan Academy - I love this site for information about everything. Here's a video from them about olfaction - the sense of smell. It is an in-depth video!!  

5. TEDx Talk - The power of the sense of smell. Donald Wilson talks about the massive importance of the sense of smell.

More stuff from me

I am starting to create my own repository of essential oil information on my MemberVault account here where you can find out more about me, my business partnership with doTERRA and you'll soon be able to find out more about my other work too. Go and find out more at my Essentially Shamanic MemberVault site now.

VISIT MY LEARNING PLATFORM and FIND OUT MORE 

https:www.essentiallyevolving.co.uk

Different ways to try essential oils - you decide!

Figure 1. Single sample

Trying a new health care product isn't always that easy. Especially if it is unfamiliar to you and unlike anything you have tried before.

What if you don't use the product enough? 

What is you use it too much? 

What if something goes wrong?

How do I know if it is working?

This sometimes means that the products go unused and another opportunity for someone's health to improve is missed.

I don't want that to happen and not just because every sample I send out costs me money, time and effort!! I don't want that to happen because you could discover like I did, that these wonderful plant medicines can help you overcome physical, emotional and spiritual issues and are really simple to use.

Pick 1, 2 or 3!! or 4!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So let me share with you the various ways you can get your hands on some oils with whatever level of support you need to make sure those oils get used:

1. pick an ailment from Figure 1., request a sample using this form, get the sample, use the sample and keep me in the loop as to how it is going, have a chat about what to do next (attend a class, purchase some oils, etc.) 

2. sign-up to my ever-evolving course platform where I share my passion for essential oils. On there you get the option to book a tailor-made 121 with me to discuss how you can use natural solutions to improve your health and wellbeing. £33 gets your 60-minute session over zoom or on the phone which we book after you have watched the 25-minute video of me sharing how I use the oils and why  I business partner with doTERRA. You will also receive a free introduction set of oils (worth £25) posted to you and a set of samples including one from Figure 1. that best suits you.

Figure 2. 7-day trial

3. take part in a 7-day essential oil trial alongside all the other people on their trials and with support from a large number of essential oil users and me! 

This trial includes a pre-class trial that covers information about how to use the oils. Then there is ongoing support within a Facebook group or via Telegram, with further information shared about the oils plus chances to win oils prizes. Then during the post-trial class, we cover options on purchasing the oils.

These trails happen at various times throughout the year. Just let me know which trial suits you and I'll let you know when the next one is running.

4. just dive right in and buy a fantastic doTERRA kit of oils. Here is a great PDF that tells you about the different kits so read that, pick your savings and then dive right in and buy that kit here

You choose which works best for you!! Contact me if you would like any further information about any of these options.

Be in control of what you consume via social media

It is a well-known fact that reading the news and repeatedly accessing social media feeds can negatively impact our mental health. 

When you realise how much of what we see is controlled by others, for example when watching the docudrama Social Dilemma, maybe there comes a time when we must take back our control over what we see on the internet and how our data is used illegally or to manipulate us.

I'm been thinking about this for a while just because I have been aware of how much Facebook is blocking natural health solutions from being seen on its platform. I know that there are wild claims out there that 'such-and-such' cures cancer, etc. but even those of us who are ethical in our posts and suggestion are losing our reach or having posts removed for spurious reasons. 

There are various social media sites that are being used to manipulate us and seeing as it doesn't seem to be getting any better maybe now is the time to make better choices for ourselves. 

That is why I have been mentioning in my Facebook 'lives' that I am moving over to MeWe.com. MeWe.com promises no ads, no spyware and was even mentioned by Web Inventor Tim Berners-Lee here Interview: Web inventor Tim Berners-Lee thinks his creation is out of control. Here's his plan to save it - BBC Science Focus Magazine. When the inventor of the internet is worried about how his invention is being used you know that we have a major problem. 

I would rather be in control of censoring my own social media input without someone else deciding for me what I should be consuming about my health, my soul or what the 'facts' are. I am aware of checking my sources and although that seems to be becoming increasingly complicated it is still doable if you are willing to put in the effort. I also want to be able to share my experiences of natural health solutions and soul healing without fear of censorship. And I want you to be able to make your own choices about whether you want to see my content or not.

Join me if you would like

So come and join me if you want and make up your own mind about what I post and share. You don't have to agree with me, I will always respect your rights to have your own opinions and I know that you are an amazing human being even if we disagree on things.

I'm on WeMe.com here so come and connect and/or join me in my group Essentially Together with Viv on WeMe.com where I share tips and tricks about my life and passions. Then if you want to move away from WhatsApp I'm on Telegram as an alternative platform and I also have places on there where I share information about essential oils if you want to join me.

• Essentially Oily Notifications channel where you can comment on the information I send out if you would like https://bit.ly/VivTelegramNotifications
• Essentially Oily Talk where you receive the same notifications that I send out above but you can also join in conversations about any of them with others in the group https://bit.ly/VivTelegramOilyChat

Here are some further recommendations

Forego YouTube recommendations; SUBSCRIBE to the channels you want to see and turn on notifications so you only watch the stuff you want to watch. You can even remove the recommended section using the Google Chrome Extension Unhook or move to a freedom first platform like BitChute.

Move to an AD free social media platform like WeMe.com where your data remains your own.

Move to an open-source messaging service like Telegram which unlike WhatsApp is not affiliated to Facebook. There's an alternative called Signal too

Be aware that you might not be seeing the information on Facebook that you want to so check in on your friends every so often. Favourite those people whose activities you want to see first and maybe move others into friend's lists on FB so that you can check in on people more easily. Maybe even pick up the phone to check on your friends as things are not always what they seem on social media.

Limit how much you read the news or even choose to read the positive stuff Home - Positive News - Positive News.

Bring awareness to what you are seeing online and stop scrolling if you feel it isn't serving your wellbeing.

Watch Social Dilemma - it seems to be free to watch on a fair few sites.

Essential Oil First Aid Kit

Here is a great list of essential oils that you can add to your first aid kit. I have given options so that you can choose your favourites. I have also colour coded where an individual oil appears more than once in the lists.

These oils are taken from Medicinal Essential Oils by Dr. Scott A. Johnson. I have only selected a few for each condition or use.

I have added a few doTERRA blends for specific purposes which contain the relevant oils listed as part of the blend.

Here is also the associated Facebook 'live' I did about this topic. I talk about making a kit for myself and one for my husband for when he is working in the woods.

If you want to ask me any questions about essential oils please get in touch.

If you want to be part of a channel where I post about essential oil facts but also other stuff then join me t.me/EssentiallyEvolving

Legacy is a circular thing & a wonderful acronym for life

During my core shamanic practitioner training I learnt to 'psychopomp' people. Psychopomp is derived from a Greek word that literally means 'guide of souls.' The shamanic ritual of psychompomping is therefore making sure that the soul of a deceased person gets to the shamanic land of the dead. 

This new way of viewing death and just the act of openly talking about death gave me a different view on where I am going when I die and how that fits in the amazing circle of life. Subsequent talks about:

1. ancestors and those that come before and after my time on this earth in this body
2. time and how in the spirit world it is not linear as it is on earth
3. reincarnation and choosing to live on earth again as a different lifeform 

were just some of the things that got me thinking about my legacy but only really as a vague thought in my mind rattling around but not really taking up space enough for me to really formulate any ideas.

Nothing brings these ideas into focus more than the death of a significant person and so my Dad's death in January 2020 re-engaged my thoughts around legacy and what it means to me. I wrote about my Dad's legacy in a previous blog post here. My Dad wanted to finish writing his latest book once he knew he was dying and it is such a gift to have all his published books to look at as something that has lasted beyond his time on this earth.

What does legacy mean to me?

The word legacy is derived from the Latin legatus meaning 'ambassador.' The meaning has changed over time and is now more linked to what is left after your death especially in a will but I am taking the word back to its legatus meaning.

After my Dad died and with lockdown starting soon after his death I was given the chance to do some personal healing work by attending an ancestral healing shamanic course. I was able to heal some of my ancestors from all four of my grandparent's lines and bring them into my shamanic work as ancestral healing guides. It made so much sense that healing those who have gone before and making sure that they were safely in the land of the dead would have such an important impact on all those ancestors who have come after those relatives.

This is when it really hit me that being an ambassador is not only leaving the planet a better place for those who come after me (whether my direct offspring, those whose lives I have touched or even anyone who is here after me) but also that I need to be the best I can be for those who have come before me. So many amazing people are in my family tree - so many experiences, so many obstacles overcome; so much learning and growth; so many amazing gifts and sacrifices and that doesn't even include the miracle of my existence on this planet.

You are a miracle

The proof is in this article here. The likelihood that you were born to the ancestors you have is truly a miracle: an event so unlikely as to be almost impossible.

So my challenge to you (and to myself) is to truly act like the miracle you. As one of my favourite artists Nik Kershaw sings in You Don't Have to Be The Sun - "you don't have to be the sun to shine on me, just the miracle you are!"

As a helping hand and because I love a great acronym feel free to use the following to help you be your truly awesome, miraculous being.

L = Love. Love yourself. Love everything you do. Love your life. Bring love to others you connect with

E = Everything. Do everything you do at 100% but that includes resting, failing, learning, loving and being with your friends (give them 100% of your attention!)

G = Gratitude. Find whatever you can to be grateful for. This isn't always easy but even if you can think of is that you are still breathing, thinking and feeling that is enough.

A = Authenticity. Be totally you! We have established you are a miracle so be miraculously you. Share your uniqueness with the world in whatever joyous ways you can. 

C = Creative. Find a place beyond your comfort zone and be creative with sharing yourself with the world via your friends, family or whoever you resonate with. Find the thing that makes you feel amazing about yourself.

Y = You. Remember you are the sum of your ancestors who came before you and will come after you. Take those gifts from them and thank them daily. Share those gifts with anyone/everyone. You leave your legacy with every person you interact with so make it a great interaction. 

If you want to hear more go and watch my FB 'live' about from New Year's Eve 2020. 

If you want to have a chat with me about any of my healing sessions whether it be about ancestral stuff, a lost loved one or anything else please book a free call. I'm always here to help if I can and if that resonates with you. [click button below]

If you are wanting any help with grieving over a lost loved one then there are also essential oils that are fantastic in helping with the process so a chat about that is also something I am more than happy to have with you. My free eBook and extra stuff are also available on my member site here. 

There is also a video I have done about essential oils and grieving here as well as two videos about using oils with emotions here and here.

I'm here to help

Look after yourself. Don't forget the 'Deep blue'!!

Last week seemed tougher than previous weeks this year. Nothing major happened (although it was the anniversary of my Dad's Memorial / Thanksgiving service at York Minster) but I was aware that I was a little more tired than usual, a little less motivated, a little more distracted, etc and I was not taking the time to slow down or look after myself. There were signs and thoughts that were hinting that this was going to be a problem but I still ignored it.

I forgot to take my vitamins, omegas and cellular support pills; I wasn't quite so proactive with my emotional oils and my muscle rub (doTERRA's deep blue ointment), which keeps my back healthy, got misplaced. I usually apply it morning and night at the very least but I kept forgetting to find my tube and so didn't stick to my usual routine.

Fast forward to Friday and my back 'went'. I am standing straight in this photo and you can see that I am very wonky and my hips are out of alignment. 

This hasn't happened for at least 2 years (probably more) because I had been methodical with my essential oil use and other beneficial stuff for my body generally. It was so strange to be reminded of how awful this made me feel and I started out very annoyed with myself.

• How could I be so stupid to forget to use my muscle rub?
• Why didn't I just find the tube and put it where it needed to be?
• Why didn't I pay attention to the signs of my brain telling me, via my body, to slow down?

And various other questions! All valid but ultimately unhelpful. 

The problem is that once my back has gone into spasm it's a lot more difficult to get out of it. Prevention is definitely better than cure in this scenario. Once I have lost the ability to stand or walk safely it is problematic.

Luckily helping out a friend a week ago with some essential oils information meant that I found a helpful reference section in my Medicinal Essential Oils book. I looked up antispasmodic and found these 2 pages of oils that I could use and there were loads of them! I already knew about marjoram having used that before at any hint of back spasm issues. 

But how amazing that bergamot mint (from the doTERRA Spring Exclusives kit) had arrived that very morning. Are doTERRA wizards? How did they know? It was a sign to me and this little ray of hope turned my questions and mind chatter around.

How can I help myself now I am in this situation?
What can I do to support myself with my natural health solution knowledge and supplies?
What could I do now to pay attention to my brain's messages to slow down and find a positive in that?

And various other helpful questions! 

I even gave myself a target that if I couldn't fix this by Monday I would have to resort to going to the doctors and getting myself pills - which I hate and have made me feel shite in the past. This was very motivating and so with this in mind I got to action (in a very slow, deliberate, painful way!!!!)

1. I took my pills and set an alarm to remind myself to take them daily
2. I found my deep blue rub (3 tubes) and strategically placed them around the house (including one back on my chest of drawers for before bed and after waking application!) 
3. I used the deep blue rub and layered it with copaiba essential oil and my forgive / frankincense blend on my back
4. I took and then placed my antispasmodic oils on my chest of drawers - marjoram, bergamot mint, rosemary and a few others with capsules ready to take every 4 hours
5. I did some spinal twists to get my spine back in place
6. I had a hot bath and did some cold therapy too
7. I checked how my energy body was doing and found out what was going on in my lower chakras paying particular attention to my sacral chakra (something I do as part of my spiritual / energy / shamanic work)
8. I did some writing / journaling about what I found during my energy body scan and how I was feeling generally

I woke up Saturday morning and felt so much straighter.  I planned to use the antispasmodic oils and deep blue rub every few hours throughout the day which gave me a reason to move often throughout the day which was important for my back and for me to check my progress.

I could still feel the tension in my back. I was still worried so I added in some emotional oils on pulse points and I continued to journal my feelings, noted down this plan of action (and noted down some more antispasmodic oils) and had a plan for later in the day if things went in the right direction.

I have been walking most days at lunch with my DH who is working from home. Over the weekend we often do a longer walk or a bike ride but on Saturday I was concerned about any activity. My plan was to go for a walk if I could really feel that it would be ok for my back. Again this was a great motivator to use the oils, rest, look after myself and really tap into how my body was feeling and if it was realigning itself. 

I made it and it was so great to go out with DH, DS on a lovely late afternoon walk.

So my message to you is:

1. Make sure that your self care is foremost in your mind ALL THE TIME or at least most of the time
2. If your brain is telling you to remember to 
•     take your pills
•     use your essential oils
•     take a break
•     use whatever is your go-to thing to support your health and wellbeing, LISTEN TO YOURSELF
3. PAY ATTENTION if you are:
•     feeling a bit low 
•     a bit demotivated 
•     tired
•     feeling something that might be telling you to slow down
4. Take a BREAK when you need to and do something JOYFUL
5. Take a bath - do some hot / cold therapy 
6. 
   Go for a gentle walk - notice at least 3 things in nature
7. Lie on the floor with your feet and legs up against a wall and listen to some fab music
8. Check your chakras and see if anything is going awry (I can help with this if you want to know more)
9. Listen to your intuition or gut as to what you need to do
10. Be your own cheerleader for looking after yourself
11. Have some fun (like I did with Snapchat on my walk!)
    

If you want to know how to use essential oils, essential oil-infused supplements, energy body clearing or anything I have talked about here, please book a FREE spiritual / essential oil health check with me. I'm here to help you be the HERO of your HEALTH.

If you want to see what Kevin Hart thinks about doTERRA's Deep Blue rub watch here.

How to never feel imposter syndrome (or never again)

Imposter syndrome is the belief that you aren't as competent as others perceive you to be despite external evidence to the contrary. It also includes the fear of being found out as a fraud. But it seems that actually, pretty much everyone feels like that regardless of whether we are talented, experienced, a newbie or a seasoned veteran. Either that or they hide it well OR maybe there are actually people out there who don't care and get on with what they are doing regardless.

To be honest, I don't mind if you are actually an imposter in some ways - so what if you are pretending that you know more than they do, so what if you are winging it or slightly faking it to get ahead. I don't mean actual fraud or deception tor fraudulent gain or conning people. I mean slightly bending the truth ("I passed my Maths GCSE!") to get ahead in something you love so that you can learn on the job or get that step up that you need to prove or improve yourself.

Good for you for having a go. If the vast majority of people are feeling like they are imposters then we can all join the party and be in it together and if there are people who are faking it because they love what they do good for them. I'd rather be an imposter in something I love doing than a veteran in someone I hate doing, as long as I am not hurting anyone. 

So what if you know less than the next person? How do we even measure this?

So what if there are people out there who know more than you? They aren't you and the way they implement their knowledge may be very different to you!

So what if you have less experience, so what if you are a newbie? Everyone has to start somewhere before they can become competent.

Here's the 'live' I did on Facebook about this subject - https://youtu.be/BPiT4Dz9jfY. I start most of my 'lives' on Facebook with "hello beautiful people" and I finish most of my lives with something along the lines of "remember you are an amazing, unique person and there is no-one else like you." because both of those statements are true. I am not talking about external beauty although I believe that everyone is externally beautiful! I am talking about the amazing, beautiful, unique people we all are. There is no-one else with your brain, your talents, your skills, your thoughts, etc in the way that they are arranged in you. 

So really you are an expert and uniquely qualified for at least one very important task. 

Being you

So let's forget about imposter syndrome, let's forget about competency, let's forget about what others think about you. 

If you are doing something that brings your joy and adds value to one other person's life even indirectly, brilliant. What others think about that is irrelevant and what you think about what other's think about you is also irrelevant and is also frankly a waste of time because they are too busy worrying about whether you have noticed that they are imposters or they haven't even noticed you at all.

Be you, be unashamedly you, be successfully you, be effectively you and by default you will be competently you and as Yoda would say "you an imposter cannot be!"

PS. If you would like some help accessing or exploring your personal power or are inquisitive about how you let allow outside factors influence your wellbeing arrange a call with me where I can tell you how I could help as a core shamanic practitioner. Book a call with me.

If you are into essential oils spearmint and bergamot are just two oils that can help you find your true voice, confidence and allow you to embrace your fabulous awesomeness. Arrange a call if you would like further information (use the button above.)

PPS. I have added my logo to this post because it was designed from a doodle I did after a shamanic journey I went on about my business. If you look at the way that it has been drawn it spells B ME with a backward B. This is the basis of my Essentially Shamanic business. I want everyone (including myself) to be truly themselves. 

Alternative healing for dogs - stressed, separation anxiety, etc.

Shamanic Healing

As a shamanic practitioner, I believe that everything - people, animals, plants, stone, etc. - has a spirit or soul. 

When something happens to humans such as trauma, shock or even just stressful life circumstances, the soul can fragment and a bit of it can leave. This loss can be expressed through the physical body and mind, manifesting as such problems as illness, confusion, apathy or just feeling 'out of sorts'. 

This can also happen to pets if something traumatic happens like an animal attack, accident or even being affected by how their owner is feeling. Separation anxiety or a change in routine can make a dog feel great loss and result in troubling behaviour.

Shamanic healing can address the spiritual aspect of these issues whether in the animal or the owner. Animals are particularly responsive to shamanic healing because they live in their soul / spirit much more than we, as humans, do. They understand the spirit world intuitively even though they are very different from their wild cousins.

If you would like further information about how I can help you and your pet please book a free Spiritual Health Check call with me or contact me here. 

Essential Oils

Essential oils can also be used for pets and as their worlds often revolve around scent, aromatherapy can work really well.

Firstly though remember that animals tend to use their sense of smell of lot more than humans. For example, a dog's nose has 40 times more scent receptors than humans which means they are very sensitive to smells.

Secondly, there is a well-known phenomenon in animals where they self-medicate called zoopharmacognosy. This is where non-human animals select and ingest or topically apply mosses, lichen, grasses, plants, soils, clays, insects, etc when out and about. 

So when working with oils, self-selection is really important and diluting the oils is equally important. (Essential oils are diluted in carrier oils such as almond oil or fractionated coconut oil.)

Some oils that are great for stressed /  anxious dogs

Spikenard, lavender and turmeric are great oils to try with anxious dogs and the doTERRA blends Serenity, Balance and Peace can also be very supportive. 

If there are underlying health concerns or conditions that are causing issues with your dog then there are supplements and oils that can help with:

• digestive issues
• the cardiovascular system
• the liver, kidneys and urinary tract
• the nervous system 
• immune support 
• oral health

Dr Janet Roark is a licensed veterinarian who uses doTERRA oils with animals and there you can find out more here Using Essential Oils with Animals podcast (with transcript)

Please be aware I only use doTERRA oils (see below*) so cannot comment on any other blends or makes of oils.   

How do you use the oils - Self-Selection

There are various ways you can do this. 

1. Put an oil you feel drawn to in the diffuser and see what your dog does
2. Grab a bottle of essential oil. With the lid still on and the label hidden, offer your closed hand to the dog
3. Pick a bottle of essential oil, take the lid off and leave it near your dog 

With all these methods you are then watching for signs of positive body language such as:

• lots of lip-licking
• yawning
• coming and sitting in front of you
• nudging you etc 

You know what signs your pet gives you that are positive. If you see this sort of reaction then that is an acceptance of the oil. 

Please be aware there are essential oils that are not good to use with pets and that all essential oils are NOT the same. I only use doTERRA oils (see below*) so cannot comment on any other blends or makes of oils. I would strongly suggest that you buy some of the resources to help you feel more confident (see below **)

Dilution

The general dilution rule for canines is to mix one teaspoon of carrier oils with 2 drops of essential oil (or a 2% dilution). Obviously, if your dog is a smaller variety then dilute more. 

If diffusing essential oils then having a diffuser like the doTERRA Lumo diffuser with a 10-hour setting with intermittent time on/off is a great way to diffuse 3-5 drops of essential oil. There has to be a way for the pet to leave the room though.

Another way to affect animals is for the owner to wear the oils in diffuser jewellery or on the skin or clothes and the animal can benefit that way and you get a 2 for 1 benefit with your oils.

You could even add the diluted oils (15ml of almond or coconut oil with a drop of essential oil for example) on the dog lead before going for a walk or massage it down the spine from neck to the top of the tail if the dog needs to be calmed. 

If you would like further information about doTERRA oils please get in touch and we can have a chat. I am also more than happy to send you a sample to try with your pet before you buy. Contact me here or connect with me on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/vckidd or via messenger here.

There are some great resources out there for you to find out more. 

Here are just a few:

PETS and essential oils - this is a 51-minute talk about using doTERRA oils with horses, dogs, cats and even rats!!

Pamphlet on using oils with cats & dogs - £8 written by Dr Janet Roark**

Leaflet on using essential oils with cats and dog - only £0.90** 

These pamphlets and leaflets have information about what oils to not use with dogs (and cats) so definitely worth the investment!

* I can only recommend doTERRA oils as I know that they are 100% pure from the tests that they undergo. To be labelled as pure however essential oil bottles only need to contain a small amount of the actual oil. doTERRA bottles all have a number on the bottom of the bottle where you can go to sourcetoyou.com and see all the tests that that oil passed to be put in that bottle. All essential oils are not the same.

A different blog post - lockdown time warp lessons

At the beginning of the lockdown, I had grand plans. I was going to get all those courses I signed up for over the years done, get back to writing regularly, blog every week and be more present on social media. 

Having had a minor car accident in December 2019 I had taken a break from face-to-face shamanic healing sessions due to a knee injury. I was in the process of moving my business online and I was furloughed from my part-time job so I had more time on my hands. So that was the plan and then reality hit! 

I was still grieving for my Dad following his death in January 2020 and as I wrote in a previous blog post it was tough grieving whilst in lockdown. Although I have many useful ways to support my emotions via my essential oils and shamanism, I still noticed that I felt more stuck than usual - like my grieving was on lockdown as well. 

For me, time changed over lockdown. I have a very frenetic lifestyle with not much structure. Taking my son to college; my daughter being out on Fridays; attending networking events and my part-time job were the only really static things in my life. I fitted my self-employed work, hobbies and time out with friends around those events but when they were gone, my days merged into each other.

But I still had that extra time and I wanted to make the most of it and so I planned. I felt that the more I tried to be rigid with my time, the more I was not getting anywhere and not even getting things that I used to get done, done. What was going on?

So I tried even harder and I started to succumb to that little voice telling me I wasn't good enough. Social media told me everyone else was doing ok? Why was I finding it so tough? 

So I ripped up my plans and I stopped. I felt very apathetic but I did some shamanic work with a friend, got my emotional oils strategically placed around the house so I could grab them wherever I was and I decided to just go with the flow. 

 

I rediscovered my joy for doing silly things like changing the lyrics of a song for my fundraising challenge and writing for the joy of it rather than for a blog post. I stopped expecting more of myself just because I had more time. Instead, I gave myself permission to just be in that extra time. I came to realise that lockdown was not a time to expect more of myself but to fully realise that I am ok as I am. 

I feel that time has changed over lockdown. In some ways, it slowed down but in other ways, it speeded up and as I write this I can't believe that it is nearly August. My Dad died over 6 months ago but it seems only a few weeks ago. So I am going to continue to be aware of that time distortion as I continue venturing out. But I am also going to remember to take care of myself, slow down and take a breath when I need to and to fully embrace that everything is as it should be because of who I am not because of what I have (or haven't) achieved over the last 4 months. 

I know that going back to work, getting out and about more is going to feel equally surreal and weird so I am taking this realisation of what I need into those future times with me. 

So this was not the blog post I was going to write. I was going to write one that would help the re-launch of my business in September. But this is the blog post that called to me and so here I am going with the flow and writing what I feel needs to be written for me and anyone else it touches.

And following on from my post about grieving being tough in lockdown, I know that I am finding it easier to grieve now that I can do some of those honouring things I spoke about. I attended York Minster's Eucharist service last Sunday with my Mum and gave myself the space to cry whilst lighting a candle for my Dad. I also attended a wonderful Talking About Loss event last Saturday which also gave me the space to cry about my Dad in a safe space and away from my immediate family. 

I'm going to celebrate these moments as well as the fact that I did indeed get one course finished. I managed to honour my Dad and my Black ancestors with my crazy fundraising challenge and sharing my love of oils with people over the internet rather than face to face. I got to enjoy my garden more and spend time more time outside and walking with my family. I have decluttered stuff that doesn't serve me anymore and some of those courses on my list are never going to get finished because I don't feel the need to do them anymore.

I challenge you to write down all the things you have achieved, however 'small', unplanned or weird. 

• What new joys have you discovered? 
• What old joys have you rediscovered?
• What have you let go off that doesn't seem to fit your life anymore? 
• What are you not going to go back to after lockdown?

Now take the time to celebrate those things

If you want to know more about using oils whilst grieving here is a video I did for Dying Matters - Dying Awareness week - May 2020

                 

How I am coping with emotions around cancer

Great artwork in Bexley Wing to lift the spirits

My Dad has just been diagnosed with liver cancer which is still a 'scary' cancer in my book. This is compared to my husband's testicular cancer which even back in 2009 was a 'non-scary' cancer.  

To be fair I still find the word 'cancer' scary whatever type it is but statistically speaking getting cancer of the liver is not good.

Bexley Wing Oncology Department, Leeds

When my husband was diagnosed he had his testicle removed and then had regular check-ups in Leeds. His cancer had not spread so he didn't need chemo and we were very happy when he was offered a place on a trial and was only required to undergo 3 MRIs over the 6 years he was followed-up. His family has a hereditary lean towards contracting colon cancer so keeping him away from any unnecessary radiation was important.

Over those 6 years though we spent enough time at Bexley Wing that when I then drove my parents there for my Dad's appointment last week, it brought back memories and not great memories, despite my husband's successful recovery.

How I am dealing with my emotions

There are many differences between the father of your young children having cancer and your Dad. Neither is easy, but I am a very different person to who I was 10 years ago. Following DH's diagnosis, both he and I attended the Hoffman Process which is a transformational process that gives you many tools to deal with life, relationships and unhelpful inherited patterns of behaviors. I feel I am a very different person to who I was, due to attending this course and having various techniques I can use when I need to, emotionally, mentally and spiritually. 

Shamanic Healing

After attending Hoffman I trained as a shamanic practitioner and had many shamanic healings and soul retrievals over the course of my 5 years of training and since, which means I feel 'more' me and am more able to deal with my emotions and handle these kinds of stressful situations. I feel more able to accept my emotions and thoughts when life takes a 'turn' that maybe I was not expecting and I can use my shamanism tools to tap into power, peace and ground myself when I feel that is needed. 

Shamanism has changed my life and I feel privileged to be able to offer others healing sessions where they too can become empowered and more connected to their authentic selves. 

Essential Oils

I discovered essential oils in 2017 and they are my favourite way of dealing life when there are strong emotions around just because they are easy to use. I carry small bottles of different oils everywhere I go and also have roller-balls made up with different potions that I wear like perfume. There are emotional blends that are my go-to favourites in times of stress or upset but to honest any great smelling essential oil will lift the spirits. Smell has a direct access to the limbic (emotional) seat of the brain so there are always positives to breathing in essential oils.

WhatsApp - SOS

I also love the WhatApps broadcast ability. This means I can send a message out to my friends just telling them how things are for me. Even if I am just having a wobbly and don't know why I can send a little message letting them know. This group of friends, who I class as being in in my (SOS) Circle of Support group, know that when I feel down, I send out an SOS and they can respond with an emoji or just a thumbs up. I always get something back from at least one of them but the important thing is that I know I am in their thoughts and I know they have my back. 

Contact me

If you want to know more about anything I have talked about here please get in touch with me:

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How I went from bent to straight!!

My friend's cancer got me into essential oils. She had had 2 re-occurrences of breast cancer and she wanted a decent quality Frankincense to add to her natural health regime. We found doTERRA and an AMAZING frankincense. My friend hasn't had a reoccurrence since and is an avid sharer of all doTERRA products.

(I did a Facebook 'live' about it on my Essentially Shamanic Facebook page which you can view here)

My friend and I shared the cost of a doTERRA enrolment kit but soon realised that we both needed more oils each so she then got her own account - that is how good they are. Here is what really sold me on the oils though:

No more antibiotics for Indie

I home educate my children and we have various other children in and out of the house on a regular basis, with or without infections. Whenever someone got ill my daughter would fall ill too and it would ALWAYS affect her lungs. Nothing helped and she would end up on antibiotics more times than I was happy with. After getting the oils we would diffuse OnGuard (a protective oil blend) any time people came over and quickly I purchased another diffuser for her room so that she could diffuse either OnGuard or Air (a respiratory oil blend.) She hasn't been on antibiotics since.

Wonky Viv can run again

I am now back to running because of Deep Blue (a soothing oil blend.) I use it religiously every morning and night, and additionally before and after exercise. I haven't seized up since joining doTERRA and, as you can see from the picture (where I am standing as straight as I can), that is great for me.

Top tip - if I think I am going to seize up I use marjoram which is an anti-spasmodic but generally if I methodical with the deep blue, that doesn't happen

Essential Oils help with emotions too

Anyway, there are so many other ways these amazing oils have helped my family - reducing anxiety in my son when he started college, helping my husband get better sleep, stopping me getting migraines, helping me stay motivated when exercising, and so many, many more. The oils are also AMAZING for helping me when I feel 'Mum guilt' - but more on that later!!

Get in touch with me and ask me any questions

I will be adding more uses in future blog posts but if you want to know more please get in touch either via Facebook, on my Facebook business page (where I do weekly Monday Live Moments or MLMs!!); go and check out my latest Natural Health Solution classes or visit my webpage. I am here to help in any way I can because I wish I had known about these amazing gifts of the earth sooner!!

Not a New Year's Resolution

I don’t really do new year’s resolutions but this year I am going to be fitter. In one of my Facebook ‘lives’ a few weeks ago I talked about this along with accountability and a term I learned from permaculture called stacking. (Watch that 'live' here-https://www.facebook.com/vckidd/videos/10157499306215579/.) 

Last year my husband started doing the York Park Run (Saturday morning 9am starting near Cherry Lane car park) regularly. The route is marked out on the pavement so it is a really good place to measure your distance and time if that is your thing (it is mine as I like a little competition with myself.) Also if you join the Park Run organisation you can add freedom runs, that you do at any time, even if you never get to one of their events.  

As someone who tends to get in my own way when trying to integrate new things into my life, I thought I would love to ‘stack’ this element of my life so that I did not feel I should or could be doing something else. I also wanted accountability to keep doing it. 'Stacking' basically means getting more yields (outputs) from one element of your life. So with regards to my health wouldn’t it be great if I could improve my physical health whilst also gaining something else. That thing I decided was inviting any friends or acquaintances to join me and therefore getting fit whilst having fun and socialising. Don’t get me wrong I love having a coffee at a friend’s house or at a café or nights out but sometimes life is too busy to fit that in along with everything else. So why not chat whilst walking? Everyone benefits health wise and you get to chat/connect/share. So far I have done that 5k with my Mum, my friend Donna and another friend Sarah and I have loved every minute of it even though I am not a huge fan of exercise.  

Doing this also taught me something else about myself. I am someone who likes to just rush into whatever I am doing even though I know that very often preparation can really help. Abraham Lincoln said it well "Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening my axe."  

So I did my first 5k walk with my dear husband Dave on 1^st January and we did it in 52m 57s. So the next time I went I wanted to do it faster but I overdid the fast walking and I had also forgotten to put on my soothing blend cream which is great preparation for any exercise. My Mum, friend and I got 2k around the course and I had to stop to apply my soothing blend (thank goodness I had remembered it!!) and then had to complete the rest in a slower manner. 

So I now have my preparation routine set:

1. Marjoram essential oil on my back in case I go into spasm (at the same time as my morning application of deodorant)

2. Soothing blend on my back and all over my legs (at the same time as I apply to my back every morning anyway)

3. Soothing blend soaked Epsom salts ready for a relaxing bath sometime later in the day so I don’t have to think about it - done when the salts run out 

It works a treat!! I did a joggle (new term for walk, jog, walk, walk, jog, etc.) 5k yesterday with Sarah and no aches and pains today because I remembered my preparation routine. 

I also did some EFT tapping on the way to the course from the car. “Even though I believe that I am not a runner, I totally choose to have fun and trust my body to know how to run with ease.” None of these things took any real extra time although I may have looked a bit silly tapping my face on the way from the car to the start of the parkrun. No aches and pains on the way around and no aches and pains today (the day after.)

So basically if you can find a way to ‘stack’ your functions and get more yield out of your inputs do it. Be creative.  When there feels like there isn’t enough time in life find creative ways to get more out of what you do. Build exercise into your life and invite friends to join you; do some stretches in the morning when you brush your teeth; do pelvic floor exercises when you drive the car; dance when you make the dinner; if you are self-employed share your home and have some ‘hoffice’ days with friends who are also self-employed so at coffee breaks you can share ideas or not feel as lonely and you have an accountability partner there in your home. Do this in a positive way so it adds value. There are so many ways to squeeze more stuff into the time we have without it being a chore. Would love to know your ideas...come share with me on Facebook.

The positives of having a cold

Seriously, is there a positive to having a nasty cold?

When you are experiencing it sometimes it feels not.

However, I thought I would turn those feelings on their head and see where I ended up!!

Here goes........................

I have tried really hard, and quite successfully until this last weekend, to NOT get a cold. It is the season to be coming down with something at the moment whether it be a cold, stomach flu, etc.

My dh got the horrid cold last week and I still managed to avoid it. I am generally a healthy person and having recently started using essential oils (EOs) via doTERRA, I have found diffusing their protective blend, drinking lots of water with their lemon oil to alkalise my body, as well as other things, has greatly improved mine (and my family's) health.

The irony is that because I was preparing for my first outing as a doTERRA wellness advocate, some of these routines went by the wayside: I was going to Wakefield Vegan Festival to share oils and hopefully empower others to look after themselves with EOs as part of their health regimen and I was forgetting to take that advice myself.

How often does that happen?


Anyway ,Sunday came and so did a cold - straight to my throat. I was so annoyed because I find it SO MUCH EASIER to prevent an illness than GET RID of it once I have it. Also ,I have no tonsils (they were removed on my 19th birthday!!) so anything that goes to my throat makes me very annoyed as it brings back memories of many, many attacks of tonsillitis but also it tends to then go to my chest.

So how to get rid of a sore throat and not have my infection go to my chest?

I am relatively new to using essential oils but I have some great books I bought from Essentoils and there is also a wealth of information out there from other EO people via Instragram, etc.

I ended up with this combination:
1. Lots of water with lemon and peppermint.
2. Healthy snacks like apple with On Guard oil (wild orange peel, clove bud, cinnamon leaf, cinnamon bark, eucalyptus leaf and rosemary) diluted with coconut oil.
3. And then other oils to combat the illness internally.




That stopped the sore throat in its tracks - SUCCESS. Now I just have a runny nose which will pass in time if I keep looking after myself.

However, it hasn't all been about EOs. They are foremost in my mind because as a geek I like to try and see what works but also the best way for me to try and share the oils with others is to practice what I preach. However, I also took the opportunity to clear my decks of everything that I could this week and take some time for myself.

I am a person who does a lot of stuff (by choice) but I do forget sometimes that the energy required to have a full life also requires time to just be.

It has been great to rest, do some shamanic journeys, use my oils in new ways, read a new book, re-read an old book, mind-map ideas, listen to webinars, do a bit of planning for the future and write this blog post.

So maybe it wasn't just my 'not looking after myself' that meant I ended up ill. Maybe, as we all do, I needed the excuse to slow down and take some time out. However, in the future I am going to try to:

1. remember to plan taking time out
2. remember my daily health routine
3. NOT get ill

If I fail again though, I will count it as a blessing and take the time to slow down, reconnect with myself, sleep and dream.