Essential Oils to Help Your Child with Special Needs

There are so many testimonies of people experiencing positive changes to their health or their children's health after using essential oils that I just had to give it a try for myself and for my two sons who both have special needs. I've since fallen in love with essential oils and don't know what I would do without them!

Essential oils are the oils extracted from plant parts (flowers, bark, leaves, etc) used for aromatic or medicinal purposes. Each oil has different benefits for our physical and emotional health.

With essential oils you get what you pay for, and so I only recommend Young Living or DoTerra essential oils, though I personally am a member of Young Living and enjoy a 24% off discount and would be happy to help you get signed up and help answer any questions you have about Young Living and oils for your special needs child(ren) if you are interested. Some companies dilute their oils or add other (potentially toxic) ingredients to keep their cost down, which defeats the purpose of using essential oils for its healing properties.

Disclaimer: I have done a lot of research on essential oils and love sharing what I've learned with others, but I am not a medical professional. Please remember to do your own research thoroughly before using essential oils for safety. Also, Young Living products are not intended to treat or cure any disease or disorder, though they can support general health and wellness.

Our testimony using essential oils and why I love them so much

One day, I was putting a drop of Joy essential over my heart (this special needs parenting journey is hard and oils can help us with our emotions and our health too!) My older son was watching what I was doing and indicated he wanted some. At that time he was about four years old, he only said about 10 words and was in speech therapy. He was always very quiet, very serious, and preferred to keep to himself, rarely playing with others or his two-year-old little brother.

But I figured a drop of Joy (blended into a carrier oil) couldn’t hurt and so I rubbed a drop of Joy on his heart. A few minutes later, I heard him laughing and went to see what was going on–it was a sound I didn’t hear much. He was playing and laughing with his little brother, and that day at his speech therapy appointment, he said a few new words! His speech therapist was amazed at his change in personality. We were too! Joy is now an oil that I apply over his heart weekly and if I miss a week we notice a difference in his personality and his speech. Because of this incredible story, I now call our essential oils our drops of joy. :)

Recommended Essential Oils for Brain Function:

• Brain Power is an absolute favorite of ours for helping with focus. My older son is making huge strides with his speech, his understanding of things around him, and his social skills, and if I forget to apply the Brain Power for a day or two, I notice a slight regression in his speech, so I know this oil is helping and is worth every penny. I use it for my younger son too, and when I forget to put some on him in the morning I notice he's a little bit more hyperactive. I think it's because there's lavender and other calming oils in Brain Power. (DoTerra equivalent is DDR Prime. It has a much different blend of oils, but with same goal of helping with focus and brain function.)
• Frankincense as well as Sacred Frankincense help with mental focus. Frankincense has the ability to go through the brain barrier and help stimulate brain function as well as general healing.
• Cedarwood can help with focus.
• Vetiver is great for calming the mind and body down, this oil is great for children with ADHD (it is a very thick oil though, so I usually add a few drops of Cedarwood to the bottle to help it come out better and both oils together help with focus and calming).
• GeneYus is an oil formulated for children that is similar to Brain Power, but cheaper, if you want to try it rather than Brain Power.  But since we have Brain Power and we've seen amazing benefits from it, we're going to keep doing what we're doing.
• Clarity is another oil that can help with focus and attention. We tried it, but didn't really notice a difference, (and honestly we're not huge fans of the smell) so we're sticking with using Brain Power.

Recommended Essential Oils for Emotional Regulation:

• Peace and Calming does exactly what is says: brings a peace and calm to the mind and body, especially great for hyperactivity or before bed. This is a great oil to diffuse, especially before bedtime. I use it sometimes myself, when I can't get my anxious mind to stop whirling to help me settle down and fall asleep. (DoTerra equivalent is Serenity)
• Valor is one of my personal favorite blends and it helps with confidence and calming. I like to put it on my boys before school or before a therapy appointment, as it helps them focus and be more open to trying new things without anxiety. For me I put a drop on my wrists daily and wear like a perfume that helps me feel grounded and able to accomplish everything on my to-do list. (DoTerra equivalent is Balance).
• Grounding is great for helping one focus on the here and now--great for those who live in their own little world or are so excited by new ideas and possibilities they can't focus on the current moment. (DoTerra equivalent is Balance).
• Lavender is great for calming (and bonus, helps with sleep!)
• Calm is a blend of calming essential oils such as lavender, frankinscence, and vetiver and also contains 300 mg of CBD oil. They are all blended together in a roll-on bottle that I roll on my boys' wrists before school to help them with focus and emotional regulation, and before bed to help them calm down and fall asleep. I'm not going to go too much into the components and benefits of CBD oil, but I didn't want to leave this new blend out of this post. We love it!

Recommended Essential Oils for General Health:

• Digize or Tummygize are great for digestive issues. Digize is a great blend for older children and adults with any digestive issues. Tummygize is specifically formulated for younger children. Rub a drop of Digize or Tummygize in a carrier oil (I like coconut or almond oil) and rub counter clock wise around belly button. (DoTerra equivalent is DigestZen).
• Peppermint can also help with digestion, but it must be diluted with a carrier oil (we use almond oil) on children. Rub a drop diluted with carrier oil clockwise around belly button.  Can also help with concentration and focus for older children by diffusing while doing homework. Peppermint is also great for the respiratory system--diffuse a blend of peppermint, lemon and lavender to help with seasonal allergies. I love this oil and it's multiple purposes.
• The Reconnect Kit has four oils specifically formulated for children. Haven't tried it, but I've heard great things about it.
• Thieves is a blend that is fantastic for building up immunity, as it kills viruses and bacteria in the body if applied topically, or throughout the house if diffused. Any time the kiddos get the sniffles or anything more significant, I pull out the diffuser and diffuse this throughout the house, in their rooms, etc. I also apply to the bottoms of their feet in the morning and before bed until they are feeling better. (DoTerra equivalent is OnGuard) Young Living sells lots of home care products with Thieves essential oils in it (such as hand soap, laundry detergent, cleaning solution and more), so you can clean the home without fear of toxins or unhealthy chemicals, plus your family will get the benefits of the immune boosting essential oils. Plus, with the cinnamon and cloves in Thieves essential oil, it makes your house kind of smell like Christmas year round. :)
• Lavender is great for calming and sleep.  Rub a drop or two on the bottoms of feet or diffuse in bedroom for a great night's sleep.  This is also great for ear infections--put a few drops on a cotton ball and insert in the ears for relief of ear infection pain (never put essential oils directly into the ear canal!). Lavender is also great for putting on cuts, bruises and mild burns to prevent infection and reduce swelling, as well as speeding up the healing process.  Also great for the skin, such as treating acne breakouts or eczema.
• RC stands for respiratory care and that's truly what it does. I love diffusing this when kiddos have a cold, cough, or croup. (DoTerra equivalent is Breathe)
• Lemongrass is great for supporting muscle tone, so it is helpful for children with cerebral palsy, hypotonia etc. Add some lemongrass to a carrier oil and massage into the muscles, or add a few drops of lemongrass to one cup of Epsom salt and add to bathwater when your child is taking a bath.

I hope you see some wonderful benefits to the health and wellness of every member of your family, especially your precious child(ren) using essential oils. Leave any comments or questions in the comment section below, or shoot me an email, I would be glad to help you out! If you want to sign up with Young Living, feel free to contact me with any questions or go ahead and sign up here and I'll help you on your Young Living journey.