Second Cruise, Baby! // Essential Oils for Sea Sickness and Nausea

In 2010,  I went on a cruise with Jeremy's family, where I had such a hard time with anxiety, sea sickness, and claustrophobia, that I vowed to never, ever go on a cruise again. I wanted to share my experience the second time for anyone out there who deals with sea sickness or anxiety (ask me how come I decided to go on a cruise again - that's a whole 'nother blog post involving faith, and bikram yoga, among others.) 

The cruise the second time was so much fun - I really enjoyed myself! But I know I wouldn't have been able to do it without help from these oils.

On my first cruise, I experienced nausea & vomiting, even though I had patches on. Additionally, I really disliked some not-so-fun side-effects from the patches - like blurred vision. I still threw up 3x on my first cruise with this medicine plus others. I knew that the second time around I was going to have to find something else. 

The following recommendations are based on my personal experience and ideal for someone who is looking for a safe, side-effect free, natural remedy for sea-sickness and anxiety.

Here are the Essential Oils I Used While Cruising:

Ginger - the chemical constituents in this oil can help disrupt the message our cell receptors send to our body, telling it to "throw up." {See this cool study here on how Ginger has been used for post-operative nausea.} I put it in a roller ball with fractionated coconut oil (has to be diluted, so this makes for easy application), carried it with me, and applied each time I felt symptoms (sometimes every 15 minutes, others every few hours). By the 3rd day, I rarely needed to apply (my body just kind of adjusted to my surroundings).

Peppermint Beadlets - these fancy little guys are just like a mint - a tiny bead that contains peppermint oil. I used these in tandem with the Ginger oil. They can help soothe and calm and relieve nausea, plus they are so easy to pop in my mouth - I love the convenience.


Balance - small spaces, new noises, rocking, tons of people, new environment, disaster drills - just a few things that caused my anxiety on the cruise. I used balance oil - it's so calming to me - the smell almost instantly calms my whole body and especially my mind. I kept this one with me in a roller ball as well for easy application.

Additional oils I used as needed:

Lavender Oil-  to help me calm down; it can help with 'fight or flight' feelings.
Coriander Oil- for when I felt dizzy.
Digestzen Oil - for my upset stomach from some of the "cruise food" (not the real food diet my body is used to...)
Terrazyme Digestive Enzymes - helps me digest food
Peppermint Oil - helps me with headaches
Past Tense - helps me with headaches from dizziness, tension, or eye stuff.

I applied many of these oils directly next to my ear because the cause of my sea sickness is an inner ear problem. Several people in our group never felt the boat move at all - must be nice!

Highly recommend the slide. 

Happy to report - I did not even get close to throwing up on my second cruise. Whenever I felt the urge coming on, it went away so quickly after using the ginger oil.

On my first cruise, I experienced little relief from anxiety and had several panic attacks due to claustrophobic feelings. This time around, oils helped me calm myself and overcome in the moments that I felt those feelings again on the second cruise.

I'm so passionate about Essential Oils because of the many benefits I have experienced in my life. If you want to learn more about essential oils or try a sample, let me know by commenting below, or you can visit my website to explore more on your own.

Transitions // September Happenings

I feel like my posts lately have confused a few people as I post from Dallas, then Austin, then Dallas, then Utah, heck- even I can't keep up! So, here's a quick update on what's been going on in our world lately...

We are now officially living in Austin and loving it. Our little place is coming together nicely, and Jeremy and I are learning how to live out all this Simple Living stuff we've been reading about for months. What fun.

Jeremy and I are actively job-searching, so please keep us in your thoughts and send anything you see our way.

We just returned from a cruise to the Caribbean with Jeremy's family - it was a wonderful vacation and break before starting new jobs here. Previously to that, I had the privilege of attending the DoTERRA Essential Oils Convention in Salt Lake City Utah, which was so much fun!

Dallas friends - we are missing you all SO much! Please text us if you're in the ATX. :-)

Austin friends- hit us up! We would love to hang.

Growth // Simplicity // Minimalism

Word on the street is we're relocating. Moving to a new city. But it's kind of an old city since we were both born and raised there - Austin, here we come.

Jeremy and I just recently found a place to live, deep in the heart of it all, on West Annie St. near S. Congress Ave. Our new place is approx. 400 sq ft.

Say what...? Currently we are living in almost 800 sq ft, and we moved here because our previous place was too small (649 sq ft). I'm excited about the new space - we knew it was the place for us - but it means that we have to get rid of a.lot.of.stuff. 

Since I've been reading a lot of blogs about simplifying and Jeremy reading about the minimalist movement, we aren't at a loss for ideas on storage in a tiny place. That doesn't make this process any easier, though.

Here's how we've been evaluating everything we own...

1. Essential to Life: This is an item that we would have a very hard time functioning without - something we use regularly, probably daily. (cups, plates, etc)
2. Non-Essential but Useful: Great example of this is the lemon squeezer (thank-you, whoever invented that!) We could definitely survive without it, but why chunk it when it's useful? These items get to be out only if there's room after all of the 1's.
3. Not Right Now: Things like our Fiesta Ware that we love and use, but we have 12 place-settings. Someday we hope to be entertaining 12 people at once, but not right now. These are getting boxed up and put up high.
4. Get Rid of It! These are the items that are weighing down our lives, we never use them, they just take up space. Or items that just cannot fit into our tiny space (like our kitchen table, king-sized bed, extra pots and pans that we never touch)!

We literally took everything out of our kitchen cabinets and evaluated each item one-by-one. Then set it in the appropriate pile. Right now we are test-running with our 1's put back in the cabinet for us to use, and our 2's close by (they get to come along if our new kitchen has space).

We generally seem to agree on what needs to go and what we need to keep. Not 100% agreement, though, of course, because certain things are more sentimental to one of us than the other. So we are respecting that and having grace, while trusting that we have both committed to live simply, and that is going to mean giving up some things that are hard to let go of. 


This has actually been an extremely difficult process for me. I didn't realize how much comfort I get from my "stuff." Yet when I let go of items, I feel free, happier, lighter. So, I'm embracing the change, letting myself be sad for things, then let go of them... and remember that happiness doesn't come from them, and that life can be wonderful and enjoyable without tons and tons of stuff.

What I love the most about simple living is that it makes space in my life for things I really, really love - like quality time with people I care about. 


Simple Life = Happy Life.

Best-Ever DIY Deodorant

Tonight I went to make another batch of deodorant, to refill since I ran out, and I realized I've been using this same recipe for over a year, and it's just awesome - had to share! 

I have my good friend Christine to thank for this.

Best-Ever DIY Deodorant - 4 Ingredients!

Prep time: 10 minutes 

1/4 Cup Baking Soda
1/4 Cup Corn Starch (Non-GMO if you can find it)
2 TBS Organic Coconut Oil (Sometimes I add more)

Your Favorite Essential Oil (Usually 4-5 drops for me)
Empty Deodorant Container, like this (or you can use an old deodorant bottle)

Instructions:

Mix baking soda, corn starch, and coconut oil together until the oil and powders have become one (may have to use your hands). Add essential oil until smell is where you like it.

If the consistency isn't right, usually I add more coconut oil. Once that's perfect, pack into deodorant container.


Which Oils to Use: I changed it up and used Geranium this time because I'm just loving how it smells lately, and it's really good for dry/sensitive skin.

But usually I use Lavender since it's one of my favorites, and it's very good for your skin as well.

Last time I used Purify because it helps with odor, and I liked it, but I prefer to smell like a flower. You can really use whichever essential oil suits you best, though I would steer you towards ones known for soothing and healing the skin. 

***

I'm not sure what the best part about this is - could be that it literally costs pennies to make (only had to buy the corn starch and that has lasted me so many batches; everything else I regularly stock), or the fact that I know every single ingredient and am not putting harmful things on my skin. OR maybe the fact that I love how it smells and it really, really works (always a plus). I hope you'll give it a try!

Whole 30 Journey // Day 25 // Healing Diets

If you're reading this, you have probably already seen a multitude of random pictures of food that I have posted, showing how I am living out Whole 30.

I started this journey on June 6th, making today day 25. I probably should have written a blog every few days because I am going to have such a hard time conveying it all here and sharing all the pictures. Life has been so busy the past few weeks (as end of May-June ALWAYS are), that it was hard to fit everything in.

First of all, I decided to do the Whole 30 Program at the urging of a close friend. I was researching Gaps, The Anti-Candida Diet, and a few others in my efforts to choose what I would call a "Healing Diet." When I turned 25 in May, I suddenly became very introspective, thinking much about how I have spent my years thus far, and how I have treated my body. I realized that I needed to do a major reset, let my body do some healing, and that the only way that was going to happen was if I had some tremendous structure... (I have also been trying to lose weight for the last 2-3 months with very little success. The frustration from that propelled this!)

So, what the heck, I went for it. Here is the basic rules of Whole 30 as simple as I can put.

What you can eat:
Fruits
Vegetables (except white potatoes)
Meat
Oils
Eggs

What you're cutting out:
Processed Food
All other Dairy, including Butter
Sugar/Sweets/Natural Sweeteners
Flours/Grains/Rice
Beans
Alcohol

For all the details, check out this very helpful page.
Day 1 for me was just like a good day of eating, making good choices. Days 2-3, however, were brutal. I was in major detox mode and had cravings out the wazoo. I was seriously regretting my decision and all of the ramifications with it (major meal-planning, which I hardly ever do...).

BUT. I woke up on Day 4, a little rushed, grabbed a banana and nut butter, and went out to a meeting. When I left the meeting I noticed it. I realized that I felt absolutely amazing. This feeling continued until Days 8-10ish. At this point, from what I've read and understand, my body was beginning to accept that I was not going to give it what it wanted. It didn't matter how much I wanted the cookie, the ice cream, the pizza.... it wasn't happening. During this adjustment for my body, I felt crappy. I really, really wanted to be done with this deal. It was, however, getting easier to meal-plan and ensure I always had something Whole 30 approved with me to eat.

Days 11-25 have been fairly uneventful. My style of eating has totally changed. I have had plenty of challenges in those days, but not nearly as difficult as the adjustment days. Last night I had fantasy dreams that I was eating cheese and bread. I realized today that I had read about those dreams in my research of what to expect. So strange what the mind will do.


Here's what I would say I have learned on this journey so far...

1. How much junk I was eating:

I seriously thought I was doing great before this program. Then I realized that I was consistently eating cookies instead of meals, cinnamon rolls, carbs, etc on the weekends because I didn't pack breakfasts/lunches. I had a major sugar addiction that I was totally ignoring.

2. Meal-Planning:

Can we all just agree that this is hard? Maybe you're a genius and so organized and in control of your life and everything just falls into place for you, but for me, I always push this down on the priorities list... then I reap the consequences of that decision every day. People keep asking me what I eat on this program, and it's really not that complicated to find good things to eat. The challenge is in planning ahead to have those foods readily available, taking the time to hard-boil the eggs, chop the veggies, pack the berries.

3. Blessed with Abundance:

 

On the first full week, I was plowing through all the veggies we had, everything I had purchased at the grocery store, and I looked up on Wednesday (I grocery shop on Mondays), and saw a very empty fridge. Empty as in, half full, because we were actually eating the food we had purchased. I seriously went into panic mood. WE HAVE NO FOOD! I exclaimed to Jeremy. I felt as if I were starving. Reality check, Amber, there are a lot of people in the world who are, in fact, starving. You are not starving. You are blessed, and picky, and ungrateful. Phew - fun thing to realize.

4. Self-Care:

Something very beautiful has happened. I have begun to truly nourish my body, to give it what it needs to function at it's prime, instead of constantly giving into cravings for foods that are the opposite of good for me. Taking this step to heal some chronic conditions has really changed how I view myself and food, my relationship with food.

Self- Care (Pt. 1)

I have been learning quite a bit lately about what it means to really steward my body, to take care of it, to nourish it. I used to think that "self-care" meant being into myself... I accepted my sloppy habits, or lack of habits, because my mentality was that I need to be focused on everyone around me, not myself. Wrong-O.

I think that it felt to me as if it were shallowness. I don't want to be the person who spends hours everyday on her appearance and is always seen looking in the mirror. But perhaps I have been swinging the pendulum too far to the other side.


My curiosity about this whole topic was peaked as I sat across from a friend discussing essential oils. I had been doing some research, had a ton of questions, was super skeptical, and grilled her for about an hour. As she talked and we conversed, I realized that I had quite a few ailments in my life that I put up with on a daily-basis and had accepted as common-place. What do you do for headaches, she might ask.... Care to know? Nothing. How often do I get headaches? Almost daily. I began to look at my life, my health, and things jumped out at me like a flashlight had just been shone into the woods. Chronic digestive issues, anxiety, fatigue, the list goes on.

As you can probably guess, I got some essential oils - stat! I experienced great relief from my headaches and constant nausea! Then I met Wild Orange. Mixed with Peppermint, on the back of the neck, is the most invigorating feeling ever. I started using that frequently and found that my constant state of stressed-out-ness began to fade and overall I was much less anxious. I stepped back and realized that my M.O. was quite unhealthy, and I had ignored it like many other ailments, accepted as commonplace. 


You may have noticed my constant food posts lately as I have been doing the Whole 30 Program.  (Highly recommend it; post to come with more details!) I'm happy to say that this is the biggest step I have ever taken to put my health first, cure chronic problems, and say to everyone else and most importantly to myself, that self-care is so important. What we do to our bodies and put in them has great significance.

What self-care habits do you have in your life? Please share! 

-Amber

Want to learn more about using Essential Oils? Website // Email: hansenamber07@gmail.com

Memories from Turning 25

Confession #1 - I love parties.
Confession #2 - Since I have a bazillion siblings, I never really had a big party for just me (almost always shared with my dear sister Rachel whose birthday is 10 days after mine; I loved that as a child).
Confession #3 - I have some of the awesomest friends ever who threw me a party of epic proportions. They definitely made the standards for any future party quite high. 

Here's some highlights...

Crab + Crawfish Boil - Steven and Jeremy had a little too much fun playing with them

Sweet Christine with baby Norah (the party was held at her house)

Yum!

Life-Size Jenga

Luci Belle having fun with the sacks for sack-racing

We were in foodie, seafood-lover heaven

Linda + Jessica + Baby Dash + Me

The Trio!

The Crew - thanks for the best birthday ever!

Confession #4 - I'm moving to Austin this fall, and it's going to be a very difficult transition for me. Bittersweet. I'm so glad for what I'll gain in Austin and the opportunities there, but I know there will never be another "crew" like my current one, and that every year on my birthday, I will think back to this year and how much fun it was. As I sat in the backyard, enjoying every moment, there was a layer of sadness as I thought and knew that soon I would be sitting the backyard for the final time, saying goodbye, as we embark on a new chapter of our lives. Here's to enjoying and savoring every moment in life and having gratitude for the opportunities to live life fully with those around you.