If you have recently purchased a Self-Care Shower eucalyptus bundle that comes with a bottle of lavender essential oil, you may be wondering what you can do with it. You're familiar with how use your tried-and-true eucalyptus bundle but when it comes to lavender essential oil, you may not be aware of the wide variety of uses and benefits it comes with. Read along to learn more about this exciting new product! 

What is lavender essential oil?

As you may have guessed, lavender essential oil is derived from the lavender plant! Lavender is an evergreen shrub related to the mint family and is characterized by its deep purple flowers. You may even have some growing in your yard! Primarily native to areas located around the Mediterranean Sea, today it has spread around the globe to virtually every country. 

The essential oil comes through the steam distillation process of the lavender plant to harvest the oils present in its leaves. Steam distillation separates the lavender compounds, allowing the 'volatile essential oils' to be extracted from the rest of the plant material. To learn more about the specifics in this process, check out this article from Lavender Connection. 

Therefore, lavender essential oil is a simplified version of the lavender plant and contains the compounds that provide the most benefits to humans. As one of the most popular essential oils, it is widely used due to its versatile benefits and pleasing scent which come from the presence of terpenoids in its chemical makeup. 

What is lavender essential oil used for?

Now that you are familiar with what lavender essential oil is, it's time to explore why it is so popular! There are a wide range of purposes that lavender essential oil can be used for, so let's dig into just a few. 

Lavender essential oil can improve your hair and skin. 

Research has shown that lavender essential oil can have positive effects on skin issues ranging from acne to dark spots and more. This is due to its anti-inflammatory properties which reduce irritation and swelling. It can also help with growing healthy hair! Studies have shown that applying lavender essential oil to the scalp is associated with decreased hair loss and reduced effects from alopecia. 

It improves sleep quality. 

Everyone can use great sleep quality, and lavender essential oil can help you do just that! Due to its calming and sedative properties, the oil has been shown to reduce sleep disturbances, fight insomnia, and improve the overall quality of sleep. Furthermore, unlike many sleep aids, lavender has not been connected to any unwanted side effects, making it even more attractive. 

It is a natural antioxidant. 

Lavender brings antioxidants into your body to combat free radicals which, when built up to unhealthy levels, can cause damage to your immune system. By reducing oxidative stress, lavender can help prevent illness before you even feel it come! 

Going along with its antioxidant status, lavender also has anti-inflammatory properties. This means it can reduce swelling and help you get on the way to recover after an illness or other physical issue sooner! 

It reduces stress and improves mood and brain function. 

Wow, those are three great qualities! Who doesn't want to have less stress, be in a better mood, and have a higher-functioning brain? Lavender has been proven to reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression without adverse side effects. Specifically, the improved brain function goes back to lavender's antioxidant status. By reducing oxidative stress, it increases cognitive functioning allowing you to be the best you can be at school, work, or at home.  

How can I use lavender essential oil? 

Now that we have discussed the advantages of using lavender essential oil, let's get into the options you have for how to use it. There are several options, but today we will keep it to the three main ways you can use your lavender essential oil.

Use it aromatically. 

This one is the most similar to how you absorb the benefits from a eucalyptus bundle. However, with the essential oil form of lavender, you will want to use a diffuser or some other method of dispersing the essential oil from the bottle to the rest of your house. Most people use an essential oil diffuser but there are some alternatives including adding the essential oil to a spray bottle for use as an air freshener that you spritz your house with or adding a few drops of the oil to a steaming pot of water on the stove. Check out this post from Keeper of the Home for some creative ways to use essential oils without a diffuser! 

Use it topically.

Many people also like to apply essential oils topically. While this is not advisable for all essential oils, in the case of lavender, it is generally considered to be safe. Many people apply lavender essential oil directly to inflamed or painful areas in the hope of stimulating the anti-inflammatory properties. Additionally, if you are looking for skin or hair benefits, you can apply the lavender essential oil directly to those areas. 

You may want to add lavender essential oil to what is called a carrier substance. This is any substance that is used to dilute essential oils as you apply it topically. There are a wide variety of options to choose from in terms of carrier substances or carrier oils. For more information, check out this article which breaks it down into the specifics. 

Ingest it orally. 

Finally, some people choose to ingest their lavender essential oils. In other words, they drink it. Most dilute the essential oil rather than drinking it straight. In fact, you want to be careful with how much you consume so it's not recommended to just chug lavender essential oil. This is another instance where carrier oils or substances come into play. You may also add lavender into your tea or on top of a dish for some added flavor as well as its important benefits. 

No matter how you choose to use your lavender essential oil, it is important to know about the myriad of benefits that it provides. At Self-Care Shower, we are proud to offer lavender essential oil as one of our many natural and sustainable U.S.-based products! 

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