My ‘freshly baked’ first grader Arvydas is a child who processes everything silently. All emotions, anxieties, fears, insecurities and other difficult things. I notice there’s something wrong and ask him “How are you feeling? What are you thinking about? Do you want to talk?” And all he does is says that everything is alright, snuggles up and tells me he doesn’t want to talk. Today the reasons for reluctance to talk appeared.
“Mommy, I couldn’t fall asleep tonight because I kept thinking about tomorrow,” he said.
“What were you thinking about?”
“Everything. How it’s going to go, if I’ll know what to do… and, mommy, my tummy hurts, it feels bad. I tried pooing many times, but I couldn’t get anything out.”
Did you know that the stomach is the epicentre of our emotions? All unsaid, buried emotions and anxieties live in the stomach. I can remember clearly my teenage years, when I would get a stomach-ache before every test. That’s how tension expresses itself. Arvydas’s tummy reminds him of the anxiety he feels about his first day in school. Anxious and fearful people often face an unpleasant problem – stress-induced diarrhoea – which usually ends as soon as the tension or fear goes away.
These days, when a lot of children go to kindergarten or school for the first time, we get a lot of questions about tummy problems – nausea, gas, aches of unclear origin, diarrhoea and constipation. If you are sure that the child is not experiencing stomach issues due to intestinal infection or a poisoning, but due to emotional swings, aromatherapy can definitely help. Arvydas knows that when he’s having tummy issues, retained gas or nervous diarrhoea, he has to rush to the fragrant first aid kit and look either for the blend “Happy Tummy” or for mandarin essential oil.
Several options to help an anxious tummy:
1. If you don’t want to think too much about mixing stuff yourself, simply take our oil blend “Happy Tummy,” which consists of mandarin, lavender and chamomile essential oils. This trio is usually used to reduce stomach and intestine malfunctions. Those who think that “Happy Tummy” is only for babies are very wrong. This blend is meant for the entire family! It doesn’t matter what kind of stomach problems you’re having – the attention to a child’s experiences, a gentle touch of mom or dad’s hands, a gentle clockwise massage, the properties of the essential oils and the pleasant aroma of the blend will certainly increase the well-being and soothe a moody tummy.
2. If you have pure essential oils at home, you can make the blend yourself. As always, we will gladly share the recipe:
1st option
50 ml sweet almond oil
5 drops of mandarin essential oil
5 drops of lavender essential oil
2 drops of chamomile (no difference whether german or roman) essential oil
2nd option
50 ml sweet almond oil
5 drops of mandarin essential oil
7 drops of essential oil blend „Sweet Dreams“ (it contains both lavender and chamomile!)
If you don’t have anything with chamomile, a lavender and mandarin blend will be enough: add 5 drops of each essential oil into 50 ml of almond oil.
Lavender essential oil: Lavender Essential Oil (naturegrowth.co.uk)
Mandarin essential oil: Mandarin Essential Oil (naturegrowth.co.uk)
Essential oil blend „Sweet Dreams“: Sweet Dreams Essential Oil Blend (naturegrowth.co.uk)
Sweet almond oil: Sweet Almond (naturegrowth.co.uk)
2. An aromatherapy bath will help alleviate tension and anxiety. It can also be prepared with above listed essential oils. Do not forget that you cannot add pure essential oils into the bath. They must be diluted with salt, milk or vegetable oil. If you will bathe with mandarin essential oil, I recommend diluting it with vegetable oil, as mandarin essential oil has a natural chemical substance furocoumarin, which may irritate sensitive skin. Diluting it with vegetable oil (such as, for example, sweet almond oil) will help avoid it.
Add 4-5 drops of essential oil into a teaspoon of almond oil and add the blend into the bath. Bathe the child for 10-15 mins.
3. Do you know which essential oil is called “child saviour” by French aromatherapists? Mandarin! This essential oil is unique due to its balancing properties. This means that it doesn’t soothe, nor stimulate. Citrusy mandarin harmonizes and balances, which is why it’s perfect for small children with mood swings. That’s why we recommend vaporizing mandarin essential oil in children’s rooms. And mandarin aroma is simply essential for children who are anticipating a new start and are anxious about it! You will see the miracles this oil can do. There’s a reason it is one of the most purchased essential oils from our fragrant assortment. Add 6-8 drops of mandarin essential oil into an electric essential oil diffusor and leave it to vaporize until the diffusor turns off automatically. By the way, mandarin, different than all other citrus fruits, can be vaporized during both day and night.
You can find mandarin essential oil here: Mandarin Essential Oil (naturegrowth.co.uk)
Do you know what a sensitive child who is experiencing a new start needs the most? They need their parents’ love, gentleness, undivided attention, encouragement, a story that starts with “You know, when I was little, it happened to me too!” and your stability. To everyone who is emailing us about how difficult it was for their child to stay in kindergarten or school, how much they cried and how your heart shattered into a million pieces – we send you a motherly hug and wish you peace of heart and understanding that everything goes away eventually. Sooner or later, our children will have to embark on new paths and they will be hurtful. No way to avoid it. However sad, however hurtful it is to see your child cry in the arms of someone else, you must understand that this experience is unavoidable and necessary. This experience makes us and our children stronger. Don’t look back, don’t dwell on your decisions and don’t change your opinion: a child who’s starting something new thinks that their world is swinging and they need something stable now more than ever. Let’s be stable – let’s help our children bravely step into a new stage full of new experiences. Our calmness, stability and confidence (even if fake) transfers to our children. Have an easy new start!
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