AROMATHERAPY PRE HOLIDAY TIPS

However travelling with children is very different from when you went away with friends or partner BC (Before Children)! How much stuff do you need to take? If you are travelling with babies it may seem that you are taking the entire contents of your house!

However help is on hand with some essential oils and a few remedies that may get you all off to a great start, and in a few weeks I will be posting a blog on what oils to add to your first aid kit for those little holiday ailments! Start the holiday relaxed and even feel calm before you set off. I know that the packing and leaving is quite stressful so read on for a few tips!

You– have a soak in the bath with 2 drops of Lavender, Lavandula angustifolia, and 2 drops of Geranium, Pelargonium graveolens , added to 5 ml of base oil or a small cup of full fat milk. The oils will help disperse the oils evenly and the full fat milk will make you feel like Cleopatra! It does need to be full fat as that fat content also helps to distribute the Essential oil. Add your blend just before getting in and sit back and relax for 15 min minimum.

Lavender is a sedative and relaxant and Geranium is a hormone balancer and emotional regulator. Sounds perfect to help you sleep before you big getaway

Kids – Make up a blend to also help them sleep, curb that excitement and they will also wake raring to go.

Again using Lavender, but this time add Roman Chamomile, Anthemis nobilis to your base oil make up a blend following the instructions below.

Babies up to age one you will need 40mlof base oil and just one drop of each oil.

For toddlers age 1-2 you will need 20 ml of base oil and one drop of each oil

For kids 2-12 you can add 1 drop of Essential Oil for every 5ml of base oil

Then at bed time spend a few moments massaging your child over their tummy or back whatever feels good to them and talking about the holiday. Be guided by them, even a few minutes doing this will aid their sleep and why not take the remaining blend with you to settle them once you get there in a new environment. If you are travelling abroad make sure you pack in your main luggage as there are still restrictions on taking liquids in your hand luggage! However, if you are planning a long haul flight transfer the blend into a 100ml see through bottle, available from chemists, and you could do some easy foot or hand massage on the flight again to soothe and calm your kids!

Travel sickness is a huge worry to loads of families; I know my kids have both suffered from hot and long car journeys which can be made so much more bearable by the  simple use of Lemon, Citrus limonum,Essential Oil. The oil refreshes and revives and definitely quells motion sickness.

Add 2 drops to a cotton wool pad or ball and place in the car 20 min before leaving.  I usually place it on the dash board. You will then be travelling in a lightly scented car which can be replenished every 3-4 hours.