Welcome to It's My Nature's online email newsletter. Our goal is to provide you with interesting, useful information about herbs and aromatherapy. We will share ways to relieve the stress of daily life and bring a little natural comfort into your life and the lives of those you love.

Spring is in full swing and another long winter is behind us. We hope your days are filled with sunshine and happiness and you'll look back and remember this season as the time you decided to fill your days with as much fun, joy and laughter as you can stand! This month we will take a look at ways you can simplify your life so that you can enjoy it more and stress less. 

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Monthly Tip:
Essential Oils and Fragrance Oils (also known as Perfume Oils) are not the same. Perfume oils do not offer any therapeutic benefit. Only essential oils are compatible with aromatherapy.

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Herb & Essential Oil of the Month - Lavender
Lavandula angustifolia

Lavender is the most versatile herb. That phrase is often heard in the world of aromatherapy. Lavender has so many uses. Research has shown it is low in toxicity and that it is safe and gentle to use even with children and the elderly. It is an adaptogen, that is, a substance that adapts to what the body needs or is lacking. There are few herbs that have all these characteristics. 

This month we will provide a list of tips and techniques to give you a look at the variety of uses Lavender has. No home should be without Lavender essential oil. Consider it a main staple in aromatherapy.

Because Lavender is safe to use, it is one of the few oils that can be applied "neat" to the skin. That is, you can use it without diluting. However, always use common scents with all oils and do a patch test first.

Lavender is a member of the mint family. Its name is derived from the Latin word, Lavare, which means "to wash". Lavender baths were a favorite of the Romans and that tradition continues on today in spa treatments, foot baths, and as floral water used for facial splashes and complexion spritzers.

These tiny and fragrant flowers bloom from July through September. Harvest the flowers when fully mature. Hang upside down to dry. This allows all the healing properties to concentrate in the buds. These dried flowers will last for years if kept dry and away from sunlight and heat.

Well known for its calming attributes, Lavender is often used for insomnia, restlessness, stress and anxiety. Simply inhaling the fragrance will effect the central nervous system. It balances the body to what it needs. When the body is wound up or over stimulated, it will actually act as a sedative and calm the body down. This is of great help in the evening and awesome with kids. A simple sachet tucked inside a pillowcase or a bowl laying near the bed spreads the fragrance throughout a room. Spraying the sheets with a Lavender spritzer is great when turning in at night. A Lavender bath is also good at the end of a day for relaxing aching and overworked muscles including tired feet.

Now on the other hand, its wonderful adaptogen qualities actually uplift a sluggish body by acting as a stimulant to the nervous system. Great when feeling emotionally down or depressed and during midday slumps.

Lavender also has many beneficial medicinal qualities. Including anti-bacterial and antiseptic actions. When you spray it in a room it kills airborne germs. Spray it on door knobs, phones and take it with you when you travel. 

Internally, drank as a tea, Lavender's antispasmodic actions reduce muscle tension and relieve cramps, gas, nausea and vomiting. Also beneficial for expelling intestinal worms.

Used topically as a poultice with the dried herb or with the pure essential oil, Lavender's analgesic properties make it great and quick relief for headaches, arthritis, any aches and pains whether internally or from a wound or injury. Keep a vial of pure Lavender essential oil in the medicine chest. Use in place of neosporine and get pain relief with anti-bacterial healing.

Most people think of Lavender as a common fragrance often associated with grandma. We found little sachets tucked in closets, under the beds and in old chests full of blankets. We didn't really know what was in them, most of us just assumed it was to make things smell better. Well that is one benefit, but Lavender is a natural insecticidal. It keeps spiders and moths from making homes in these closed off places. The scent last for years and every time it gets moved it reactivates for longer yet.

Here is a list of some of Lavender's therapeutic properties: Analgesic, anticonvulsive, antidepressant, antimicrobial, antirheumatic, antiseptic, antispasmodic, detoxifier, carminative, deodorant, diuretic, hypotensive, insecticide, nervine, parasiticide, sedative, stimulant, stomachic, tonic, vermifuge and vulneray, among others.

Common uses for Lavender:
Skin Care
Abcesses, acne, allergies, athlete's foot, boils, bruises, burns, dandruff, earache, eczema, insect bites and stings, insect repellent, lice, ringworm, sores, sunburn, wounds.
Circulation, Muscles & Joints
Lumbago, muscular aches and pains, rheumatism, sprains.
Respiratory System
Asthma, bronchitis, halitosis, laryngitis, throat infections, whooping cough.
Digestive System
Abdominal cramps, colic, dyspepsia, flatulence, nausea, motion sickness and stimulates gastric juices.
Nervous System
Depression, headache, hypertension, insomnia, migraine, nervous tension and stress related conditions, PMS, shock and vertigo.

Dried Lavender Herb Usage
Tea -1 teaspoon of dried or 2 teaspoons fresh Lavender flowers.
Steep 10 minutes.
Great remedy for digestive problems. Has a relaxing effect, good for irritability, headaches and depression.    
Bath -Place 1/4 cup of Lavender flowers in a small muslin bag or large
tea ball. Steep while you bathe.
Helps heal wounds, burns and sore muscles. Has anti-bacterial and antiseptic properties.
Lavender Water -
Stimulates complexion, aromatic astringent, cleanses skin.

Pure Essential Oil Usage
Inhalation - Relieves stress, nervous tension, depression,
calms emotions and induces sleep.
Bites & Stings - Rubbed on insect bites, it relieves pain
and inflammation. It can be used to treat scabies
and head lice.
Earache - Place 2 drops of neat Lavender oil on cotton ball
and plug into the ear.
Massage - Apply directly to sore, exhausted muscles. Rub
on sprains, strains & stiff joints. Particularly good for
dry skin. Tip: Mixing 12 to 30 drops of essential oil to a carrier oil such as Sweet Almond Oil, makes it go a lot further and it's easier to cover larger areas.
First Aid - Apply to burns, cuts, scratches, pimples, wounds.

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Lavender Tips

When you are creating a blend remember that almost every blend is enhanced by adding even 1 drop of Lavender.

Lavender oil can be rubbed onto the breasts to help tone and tighten the skin. Add 2 drops of the oil to 3 tablespoons of a base oil, such as Sweet Almond, and apply to breasts daily.

For minor kitchen burns, apply pure Lavender essential oil generously to the affected area, then cool with ice cubes. The next day the skin should look like nothing happened.

Scent children's drawers containing nighttime clothing with Lavender and Chamomile essential oils applied to cotton balls.

When traveling, place a tissue or cotton ball with a few drops of Lavender inside a plastic zip lock baggie. Keep this in your purse or glove compartment and open up and breathe as needed. Try a few drops of Lavender and Lemon to help with Jet Lag. Try this method with other essential oils, perhaps Peppermint and Lemon for long car trips.

Facial Toner For All Skin Types
Add 4 drops of Lavender essential oil to 1/2 cup water. Shake well before using. Apply to clean face with cotton ball.

Sheets scented with essential oil of Lavender help to induce sleep. There are a few ways to accomplish this.
* Add a few drops of Lavender essential oil to the rinse cycle while washing.
* Toss a little bag of dried Lavender in the dryer.
* Store sheets in linen closet with Lavender sachets (or Lavender Bags.)
* Spray sheets with Lavender floral water.

Store stationery and envelopes in ziplock bags with a cotton ball scented with lavender oil. Or in a box with dried Lavender sprigs.

A few drops of Lavender in a watering can will encourage healthy growth in house plants.

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A Simple Face Scrub
This is suitable for all skin types and very easy to prepare.
6 drops Lavender
2 Tablespoons Raw Honey
2 Tablespoons Brewers Yeast
Mix Lavender into Honey then stir in yeast until mixture is smooth.

Aromatic Baby Oil
2 oz. Sweet Almond oil
2 drops Roman Chamomile
6 drops Lavender
For baby massage or diaper area.

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Ease The Stress
Many people are hooked on the excitement of a fast paced life. Being busy all the time is our way of saying we are important and we have our place in society. We are always looking outside of ourselves to make us happy inside. The more we run, the more important we feel. And sometimes it's easier to keep running because it's more comfortable. But this constant lack of time and sense of being out of control can be very stressful and damaging to our physical and emotional well being.

Creating a simplistic lifestyle is basically a matter of choice. Take a little time, search your inner being to discover what changes you can make to develop a simpler, less stressful lifestyle. Decide what you want to change. Do you want more family time, better health, more fun out of life or are you just trying to simply get back to the basics?

The first act of simplifying is learning to decrease the stress in your life. Stress creates complication which is the exact opposite of simplicity. There are many ways to get rid of and even avoid stress. Spend time in nature. Go for a walk, hike, fish, birdwatch, listen. Grow a garden and give away what you can't use. Take a nice warm bath by candlelight with your favorite essential oils. 

Simplify at home. If you can't find things and are constantly moving things from one spot to another, your home life is probably contributing to the complexity of your life and your stress levels. Giving your house a good spring cleaning and getting rid of junk you have been tripping over for years also helps to clean out the clutter in your mind. And by cleaning up the mental clutter, we enable our minds to concentrate on what is most important to us.

Simplify life immediately by being present in the moment. For example, think about eating your favorite ice cream cone on a hot summer day. You can finish it off in 30 seconds while racing to catch the bus and thinking about what to cook for dinner. Or you can slowly eat that same ice cream cone and take notice of things going on around you in the moment - the birds singing, the warm breeze on your face, the sound of children laughing and playing...and yes, you still have to catch the bus and make dinner. Making a concentrated effort to focus on what is going on in the present moment as often as we can is a great way to slow down and simplifying our lives.

Learn to say no to the things that are not important in life. Establish priorities. If something needs to be done and you can't do it, someone else eventually will. Focusing on the essential things in your life will go a long way in keeping it simple.
Simplifying is about letting go of status, material things and excessive activity so you will have more time and opportunity to do what's really important to you. 
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