Episode 278: Internal Use of Essential Oils

Using essential oils internally can feel intimidating if you've never done it before. So today we're going to give you all the tips and tricks you need to start using essential oils internally. Welcome back to Essential Oil Solutions with doTERRA, the podcast where you'll hear exciting, useful and simple everyday uses for essential oils from experts in the field. Today's episode is brought to you by the doTERRA Healing Hands Foundation.

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Today, we're excited to talk to Terri Pace all about using essential oils internally.

doTERRA: Terry, thank you so much for joining us today.

Terri Pace: Thank you so much for inviting me to talk about a subject that is one of my favorites using essential oils.

doTERRA: Yes, it is one of my favorites as well, and especially using essential oils internally. I feel like there needs to be a lot more information out there about that. So, let's dive right in. What are some of your favorite ways to use essential oils internally?

Terri Pace: So, I have a number of ways I will actually say, lately at least, it seems like I use my oils internally more than I use them in the diffuser or topically. I love using essential oils internally for three different reasons. The first is it's quick, like when I have something going on, I know that the fastest way to help shift my body into a different terrain is to use my oils.

I put a drop under my tongue and all of a sudden boom, boom, boom. You know, within 30 to 60s, I am enjoying comfort again. The second reason is there's often times when I'm using the essential oil, because I am trying to drive my body to a particular response, and I want to be precise in my dosing. So let's say when you put a drop or two on your hands and you're going to rub it in on the bottom of your feet or the back of your neck.

Well, how much actually got into my body? I don't really know. If I put two drops in the diffuser, well, how much did I actually get into my body? How big is the room? How far away am I from the diffuser when I want to be very precise? When I put two drops in a capsule or under my tongue? I know I got two drops. So you know, when I am looking for precise dosing, I'm going to go internal. That'll be my first go to. When I want it to be quick, when I want it to be precise.

And the third reason is sometimes it's just so much more convenient. Like, I'm in the middle of my day, I don't have time to sit down and rub it on someplace in my body and just popping a drop using the beadlets, I love popping a drop because the beadlets are already like a quarter of a drop, ready to pop in your mouth.

Or one of my favorite things that doTERRA does is that they put these amazing essential oils into softgels or into other products that I do take internally like the fiber, the greens, the protein, my meta power, collagen, like all these things have essential oils in it, including my lifelong vitality. So I'm able to have all of these essential oils delivered into the systems that need them without having to think about it.

doTERRA: Absolutely. And I want to focus on one of the things you mentioned there, which is the ability to be precise with how much oil you're putting in your body. How is it that we can ensure we're ingesting the proper amounts of essential oil? And is there such a thing as ingesting too much oil?

Terri Pace: Well, I believe that with anything, there's always a sweet spot. There can be too much and there can be too little. So when I'm using essential oils, I look for the advice of other people who have used the oil in the way that I'm looking to use it. There's lots of really great resources on the doTERRA website to use it safely, and when I'm using it internally, I look at taking a small amount more frequently rather than taking a lot all at once, and then nothing else for the rest of the day.

I often compare it to breathing. I don't take all my breath or all my eating in one sitting. I do small amounts throughout the day and move my body in the direction that I want it to go. I think that with internal use, I shoot for somewhere between a few drops in my water. Like I love taking a citrus oil in my water to help, you know, cleanse the body and I love the smell of it. It makes water fun to drink. And you smell the essential oil, you get the aromatic benefits that hit the limbic brain and just send new chemistry to change my mood. I love using the capsules, the softgels and the Lifelong Vitality Vitamin supplement pack. These already have essential oils in it that have been precisely measured by doTERRA, by scientists and botanists and chemists and nutritionists, and they get it right. So I really I rely on all of that wisdom to tell me how much is the right amount to take.

doTERRA: Absolutely. And I love what you mentioned, that there are so many different resources out there to make sure that we're all doing what is best for our bodies, and that we're not unintentionally creating any issues.

Terri Pace: Exactly, exactly.

doTERRA: Now, you touched on this a little bit, but what are some of the benefits that we can get from using essential oils internally as opposed to topically or aromatically? And is there a time when that internal use is the best option?

Terri Pace: Yes, there's often times that the internal use is the best option. When you go on the doTERRA website and you pick a particular essential oil, there are different benefits that you get when you're using it topically and you're using it aromatically. And relying on the doTERRA science community, there are words that strike me with emphasis on the doTERRA pages, when it says this benefit when taken internally. And so those three words signal to me that that particular benefit is only available when we're taking that oil internally. You might get all the other benefits that are listed, but that particular benefit is only available when you're taking it internally. So there's absolutely an appropriate time, like with Copaiba essential oil, I put it on topically and I take it internally, I put it in the diffuser. All three of those methods are going to give me different types of benefits. And so using your oils in all different ways actually creates a synergy inside your body. We're sending the same messages through different highways. And I'm actually expanding the outcomes that are possible for me.

doTERRA: Yes. I think that's so important to remember that there are specific benefits tied to internal use and to pay attention for that when you're looking at trying these new products. Now, Terri, I think internal use can be intimidating to some people that are just getting introduced to essential oils. Are there certain oils that you would recommend to someone who's just getting used to using essential oils internally?

Terri Pace: Yes. Start with the ones that you like. The simplest. You know, I teach this with topical use or aromatic use. Same would go for internal use. Pick oils that you like. The aroma that you like. The flavor you like. The mood it creates inside of you. So for example, there are probably 12 different citrus oils that you can put in your water, right? So pick the one that is the most attractive to you.

Do you like Lemon? Do you like grapefruit? They all have different personalities and different flavors. While they all will have similar benefits that each like, Green Mandarin has many different chemical constituents that are going to give you different benefits than, let's say, Grapefruit. So the first rule is start with something that you're leaning into that you're going to enjoy and only put a drop. Get yourself used to putting it in your water and taking it slowly.

There are oils that have very pungent flavors, so using them internally, like Peppermint, is going to be kind of like a blast of mint in your mouth, even when you're taking a quarter of a drop with the beadlet or let's say the SuperMint beadlets, you know, they're going to be overwhelming. And so if you're looking for a gentle slide into using oils internally, well, those might not be the ones I would start with. But they're great when you just don't want to pick on the food in front of you.

doTERRA: I think those are great recommendations, and I think what you touched on is so key to start where you already have interest, start with things that sound really good and build up from there and explore and try new things. And there are so many different ways that essential oils can help support, and we want to make sure that you tailor it to exactly what you need and what you like.

Terri Pace: Do you want to know a routine that I have? It is locked and solid that every single night before bed, I put two drops of Copaiba and two drops of Frankincense under my tongue because it helps me settle down the day, decide what to keep and what to move out, and put me in a state where I fall asleep quickly and stay asleep longer.

doTERRA: That sounds amazing. And those two together are such a powerhouse.

Terri Pace: Yes, we love Frankincense as the great instructor. Kind of, you know, our process overnight. Your body is doing a lot of cleanup of the party that went on all day. And so Frankincense is like the GC that you hire to oversee everything that went on that day. And Copaiba is so good for the peripheral nervous system, all those little nerve endings everywhere that need to just quiet down a little bit, the mind chatter that goes on in my head that prevents me from falling asleep is like suddenly there's silence, and I can actually know that I'm safe and ready to close my eyes and fall into a deep slumber.

doTERRA: I absolutely love that. Terri, thank you so much for sitting down with us today, for talking about how we can use these essential oils internally, and sharing some of your favorite ways.

Terri Pace: Thank you for inviting me and I look forward to talking about this more.

doTERRA: Thanks for joining us and congratulations on living a healthier lifestyle with essential oils. If you want to try any of the products you learned about, click on the link in the episode description or find a Wellness Advocate near you to place an order today. And remember, if you liked what you heard today, rate, review, and subscribe wherever you listen.

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.