I was recently turned on to doTerra essential oils at my Chiropractor’s office. One of the best things about moving to Albuquerque (for me, the “big city”) has been the availability of all sorts of different health practitioners that I didn’t have access to in a smaller town. I feel super lucky to have found Dr. Kelly Coogan at New Direction Chiropractic. She is amazing and has really helped me a lot, as well as referred me to some other great health practitioners.

She practices Ayurveda and Chiropractic, and sometimes uses essential oils in her practice. One day I had super bad cramps and as I was waiting for her to come into the office I was lying on the table, trying to breathe through the pain, and fully intending to head straight home after my appointment and lay around in pain watching movies and eating chocolate for the rest of the day. When she finally came in, I mentioned my cramps and she rubbed some peppermint oil on my back and - I swear to god - I felt better within minutes…well enough that I was able to stay for the hour and a half essential oils class afterward. And now I am hooked.

Nothing has ever been helpful for me for cramp pain (i.e., midol, raspberry tea, etc). From just this one experience I am totally and completely sold on the use of oils - for cramps if nothing else. But I am excited to learn more because I have a feeling that this may be a whole area of health that I don’t yet know about that will prove to be really useful and effective. I now have the doTerra “Family Physician Kit” which has all the most commonly used household oils, and I am trying to use them in different situations to see how they work. The peppermint oil is a great all-around pain reliever. I have been rubbing it on my neck and shoulders when they hurt. It has a really pleasant cooling effect too.

So this is what inspired me to start writing about some of the life changing experiences and discoveries I am having as I take this journey into Integrative Nutrition and becoming a Holistic Health Counselor. I am learning a ton about my body, about food, and about all the different aspects of what encompasses “health.” So I am psyched to share what I find works for me and hopefully some of it might speak to you as well!