My Story: Essential Oils

Well, friends — I drank the kool-aid, or should I say the… oils? 😂 The girl who thought she was for sure allergic to any scent that came from the earth now can’t imagine a good night’s sleep without lavender in the diffuser. This story is so close to my heart, and my hope is that you learn a little bit more about me, but even more so that someone reading this is able to see a part of themselves in my story and feels less alone. 

I’m gonna take you way back to a place you’re probably not expecting. Like, before Emmy was even born (aka another lifetime). Right before we got pregnant with Em we suffered a miscarriage — it was my first pregnancy, and I’ll say this forever, but the moment you see that positive pregnancy test you become a mom. Losing that baby had so much more of an effect on me than I honestly ever realized. That was the start of my journey with depression. 

When we found out we were pregnant again we were obviously SO excited, but also incredibly guarded. My heart had just been completely broken only a few months before, and I was sure that this was too good to be true. I was grateful every single minute that I carried Emmy, but that didn’t stop the intense worry from flooding over me. I was walking on eggshells and living my life through horror stories I read on those awful internet forums… I had morning sickness for nine months, and didn’t do a whole lot during my pregnancy outside of what I had to do (along with obsessively listening to her heartbeat with a doppler I found on Amazon). I isolated myself, pretty much stopped showing up online, and just focused on making sure Emmy was ok. I didn’t trust my body to keep her safe. That was the start of my anxiety.

After Em was born happy and healthy, I was so thankful. It will literally forever be engrained in my mind as the happiest moment of my entire life. This baby girl is absolutely everything to me. Having her safe and in my arms didn’t make the worry stop, though. When we got her heart defect diagnosis when she was 2 months old it intensified even more, and I felt like I was trapped in my own mind. I didn’t recognize myself anymore — the optimistic “everything will work out” girl I knew myself to be was nowhere to be found, and instead I was torturing myself day in and day out replaying the worst case scenario of made up situations in my head over and over again.

I feel like I simultaneously lost myself and found myself in motherhood... I was searching for my purpose in life, seeking a safe haven, and wondering if becoming a new mom was this hard for everyone. Feeling the typical overwhelm with a brand new baby on top of the anxiety that wouldn’t let up. But while all of this was stirring in my head, I had never felt more sure of anything in my heart. I felt confident in one thing — that I was created to be her mama, and what I wish I had figured out sooner is that’s all that truly matters. ️

I tried to combat all of the noise in my head by pouring myself into new projects and work. Because somehow spreading myself really thin seemed like an awesome idea at the time... After coming down with stress induced shingles, and a trip to urgent care thinking I was having a heart attack (pretty sure it was anxiety), I decided I needed to make a major change in my life. Not just for my sake, but for my family, too. I wasn’t at my best which meant we were all running on fumes. I needed to really slow down for the first time in my life, be present, and focus on the personal growth I had been avoiding for over a year. I honestly had no idea that what I was going through was anxiety and depression… it was like stepping out of a deep fog I didn’t even realize I was walking through. 

This is where my story turns around. I was scrolling through instagram when a now dear friend of mine popped up on live. I clicked over, and she was sharing her postpartum story… and I hung onto every single word she was saying. Her story mirrored mine completely. I was praying that she would share how she was managing her anxiety, and she did. The answer was essential oils… and I kind of thought she might be crazy 😂, but I also thought… what do I have to lose? So, I asked Sean if this could be my Christmas gift from him, ordered a Premium Starter Kit from Young Living (12 oils + a diffuser), and I haven’t looked back since.

That was the start of our family’s wellness journey that we kind of unintentionally stumbled into... Within a week of incorporating essential oils into our daily routines Sean and I both felt a shift. The energy in our house was just different. These oils aren’t magic, but what they did do right from the start was make our heaviness feel lighter. Now, when I start to feel anxious I have my oils to reach for to interrupt the repetitive thoughts and stop overwhelm in its tracks instead of spiraling… 

This starter kit has changed my life. Please hear me when I say that I don’t speak those words lightly. I literally thank God for these tools, this community, and this new light that He has brought into my life daily. Creating daily habits and incorporating oils into every aspect of our lives has brought a sense of renewal back into my life since the first day I plugged in my diffuser. It was like taking a breath of fresh air, creating routines where there weren’t any before, and feeling empowered to reach for something tangible that supports my body when I start to feel overwhelm creeping in. I literally carried my diffuser from room to room those first couple months because I didn’t want to be without it! We now have six spread out all around the house so I’ll let that speak for itself. 😂

I’m the kind of girl that when I’m excited about something I don’t shut up about it. Y’all — I’ve been excited about these oils since the start! What started as a search for emotional support has turned into finding that and so much more. Oils have completely transformed the way our family approaches wellness now for all three of us. We’re reaching for them multiple times a day for everything from sleep to head tension, stress and worry, hormone support, teething for em, to make our house smell super dreamy, and so much more. What I’m trying to say is, if you need an essential oils hook up, I’m your girl. This stuff works, you guys. It really does, and when you stop to think about how amazing it is that God has given us these tools straight from the earth that work so beautifully with our bodies… its incredible. 

If you’re reading this and feel like these oils are something you need in your life — please send me a message. I’m a distributor for Young Living now, and it would seriously be an honor to be a small part of your wellness journey. We have the most life giving community ready to walk alongside you in getting started, and I can plug you into all of our team exclusive resources to make this new experience so easy and fun! I’d love to talk with you, get you all the info on how to get your own Starter Kit (seriously SO simple), hear your story, share even more of mine, and just connect. ❤️ Thank you from the bottom of my heart for for taking the time to read my story… there’s so much moreI still have left to share so stay tuned. I love you all so much!