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Navigating the world of childhood anxiety can be challenging for both parents and children. In this blog post, we explore the calming power of essential oils and how they can alleviate anxiety in children. From the citrus scent of bergamot to the floral notes of jasmine, we explore the unique properties of different essential oils and how they can help your child find comfort and calm. This is a natural, non-medicated approach that can be a great help to your family. Remember that every child is unique and what works for one may not work for another. So, are you ready to discover the potential of essential oils to treat anxiety in children?
9 Essential Oils for Anxiety in Children
Are you looking for the best essential oils for anxiety in children? Seeing a child suffer from anxiety is quite disturbing. Especially when they can not tell you what’s bothering them or why they are not their normal, happy self. Children have unique personalities. The last thing you want to do is put them in a position where they have to deal with adult problems at a young age.
Anxiety is not something your child should experience or go through. Children face issues that you, as a parent or guardian, have no control over. Events like a death or a change in school can greatly affect how your child spends their days and nights. Anxiety disorders can cause extreme fear, panic, and worry. There are different types of anxiety and disorders, all of which require different resources and methods.
- Are you looking for the best way to calm your child’s anxieties down?
- Perhaps you are looking for a non-medicated way to soothe your restless child.
- Or maybe you have heard about the power of essential oils and want to try them out, but you do not know where to start.
Suppose you notice that your child is particularly clingy, cries inexplicably, or is more afraid of normal situations than most children. In this case, he or she may be suffering from some form of anxiety. While the signs and symptoms may be clear on paper, it is more difficult to diagnose in practice, so many children are misdiagnosed or dismissed without any treatment or therapy. In this article, we look at the different essential oils on the market that can help children with anxiety, whether occasional or daily.
When searching for the perfect essential oil, there are a few factors you need to consider. You would educate yourself on the oil composition you are considering buying. If you buy oil for the first time, you will probably need help understanding some of the terminology.
Do not be afraid to ask the seller or read the label so you know what you are researching. Make sure you know about any allergies the child may have. You want to be as safe as possible and not escalate the situation. Your goal is to help the child calm down if he or she has an attack or, better yet, avoid it altogether. You can accomplish this by having the right essential oils with you.
Get to know their composition. In general, avoid buying essential oils that are all the same price. Also, avoid buying essential oils in plastic bottles. They should always be in dark, amber or other dark-coloured glass bottles. If they are in a clear bottle, there is a risk that they are already spoiled.
Unfiltered light tends to do this, so keep oils safe. Stay away from plastic bottles as they tend to dissolve the plastic, which can contaminate the product. It is also advisable to stay away from oils that are diluted with vegetable oil. You can only tell by reading the label or testing the oil yourself. You can drip some of the oil onto a piece of paper. If the drop leaves a ring, it is probably vegetable oil.
Bergamot
Bergamot is known to promote restful sleep, which makes it suitable for treating a child with anxiety. One of the main reasons it is ideal for creating contour moods is its scent. Due to the aforementioned properties, bergamot oil is often used in aromatherapy. It is used to treat nausea, pain, and the aforementioned anxiety. Another indication of its effectiveness is that some extracts treat schizophrenia. The aroma of bergamot is sweet and citrusy. It has calming and uplifting properties. It can help relieve anxiety and stress. Bergamot essential oil helps a child calm down, relax and fall asleep before bedtime.
Chamomile
Those of us who love tea will tell you about the magic of chamomile. Most chamomile tea drinkers will tell you that it relaxes and works together to ease your child’s anxiety. Therapeutically, chamomile is known to have a calming effect on smooth muscle. This is why it is often used to treat nervous stomachs and menstrual cramps. You may not know that chamomile also contains some natural anti-inflammatories. Of course, an added benefit is that I like some essential oils that can be ingested. Chamomile is great for children who are anxious or prone to tantrums. Chamomile essential oil helps to ease their worries and calm their tense nerves.
Lavender
Lavender is one of the most popular oils in aromatherapy and essential oils for anxiety in children. It has a calming scent. It helps to alleviate fears and worries, as well as to reduce anger and stress. It can be useful when dealing with nightmares and sleep difficulties.
You probably already know that lavender is highly regarded as an essential oil with a soothing effect. This is backed by research carried out in the UK. When loving was tested on patients who had struggled to get sleep to the extent of needing to be medicated, great results were recorded. In some cases, patients could be taken off the sleeping medication they have been using once they started using lavender oil.
Another interesting experiment was conducted in Japan, where mice were used in this test. Oil was able to stop convulsions in mice once it was inhaled. You can use lavender oil by diffusing it, inhaling it, and massaging it. All of these methods are perfect for delivering the desired results. The two things you can expect from using your lavender oil are calmness and sleep.
Jasmine
Jasmine’s aroma is soft and floral, slightly sweet, with a hint of spicy, woody notes. It can help to calm and relax a child. You can also use it to help children with depression or sadness.
The new herb Bible refers to Jasmine as a mild nerve sedative. That alone tells you off the currency of this plant and oil in treating anxiety. You probably already know that anxiety is resultant or presented by one’s nerves being unsettled. The ability of jasmine to calm your nerves is a great remedy for this problem.
Jasmine has long been used in tea. This is one of the ways that you can prescribe it to your child if they’re feeling anxious. It has a calming effect. If the nerves are persistent, you could even consider giving them to the child soon after dinner as they get ready to sleep.
Vetiver
Vetiver essential oil is known for its grounding effects. It is wonderful for children who are easily over-stimulated or need a bit of a boost to concentrate.
Vetiver is known to induce a feeling of calmness. You will often find it used to promote restful sleep and three things: feeling restless or anxious. For these reasons, it is a great pick for children struggling with anxiety. It is also known to stimulate circulation and rejuvenate the body and the skin.
As far as use is concerned, it is used cosmetically as a scent and medicinally. The cosmetic perspective is used as an anti-inflammatory, antiseptic and for hydration. The medicinal standpoint is where it is used as an antiseptic. It is also known to stimulate the immune system. Medicinally it is also an anti-inflammatory. The odour that it produces is known to be a sedative.
Mandarin
Mandarin essential oil has a citrus aroma that can improve your mood and make you feel happier. It can be useful for children going through stressful situations or who have a general lack of energy and motivation.
Mandarin is known to be the most calming among essential oils from citrus plants. It is also considered to be uplifting. Another great thing about it is that it blends quite easily with other essential oils, which allows you to mix it up. If your child struggles with getting some sleep or is generally anxious, Mandarin oil can be diffused in the evening before bedtime. Other common uses for mandarin oil include the treatment of acne, oily skin, scars, wrinkles and stress.
Frankincense
Frankincense essential oil is known for its ability to uplift your mood. It is also calming and helps to relieve depression. Frankincense can help young children who are struggling with feelings of self-doubt, unhappiness, or low self-esteem.
Perhaps the most famous user of frankincense is Jesus Christ. The Bible tells of how the wise men used frankincense as one of the things they presented to baby Jesus and his family. If you are not religious, this gives you perhaps a historical look at the value of this oil. It produces a woody and aromatic scent.
This is what induces a feeling of relaxation. If your child is struggling with anxiety, frankincense or certainly helps. This is one of the reasons why it is often used for meditation and mindfulness. Other common uses include antidepressant properties that have been proven in testing with mice. It also has the properties to deal with bacteria and germs. From a cosmetic perspective, it is used to heal skin and in several anti-ageing products.
Clary Sage
Clary Sage is perfect for balancing emotions. It can help children struggling with anxiety or stress and those who may be fidgety. Clary sage essential oil can also help improve concentration. Clarice sage is often used by women hence the name “woman’s oil”. It is particularly beneficial to women when dealing with issues such as menstruation and menopause. Properties are not particularly useful to a child.
Not to worry, other properties are particularly suitable for treating anxiety. Clary sage is used in aromatherapy treatment because of its sedative properties. It is known to induce feelings of calmness and relaxation. It is also used in cosmetics because of its cooling properties that help treat inflammation. Medicinally, Clary sage is perfect for dealing with bacteria. As such, you often find it used in wound healing and dealing with muscle aches, joint pain and similar strains.
Patchouli
Patchouli essential oil is great for calming your child down after a period of worry, disappointment, or frustration. It is also helpful to relieve stress and anxiety. This means it can be ideal for children with ADD or ADHD.
Historically, as far back as the 1800s, patchouli was known to be used to protect fabrics from insects. The name is derived from the Hindi word “pacholi”, which means “to scent”. As you can imagine, this insinuates that there is something about this essential oil that is fairly pleasant to the nostrils.
The Botanics among us would probably class patchouli as part of the aromatic plants family. What makes it suitable for treating your child for anxiety is that it is known to produce a calming scent. For this reason, it is also used in aromatherapy and cleaning products. Eastern medicine has used patchouli to treat various conditions such as dandruff, oily skin, and skin irritation linked with skin dryness and eczema.
How to Use Them
You can use essential oils in different ways. Some use essential oils in diffusers that are made especially for essential oils. If you want to use them with your clothes, then make sure to test the oil on a small inconspicuous patch before using it in the entire fabric. You can also massage the essential oils into the skin, ensuring that you or whoever uses it are not allergic to the oil.
You can also mix essential oils into bath salts or lotions. These are some of the ingenious ways essential oils can make a difference in your home and life. Your child does not have to live through anxiety. Essential oils can make nights much more restful and the days easier. Happy shopping!
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