I am allergic to mosquito bites, so I need a good insect repellant, but I hate pesticides of any kind. Pesticides are the only known cause of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, which killed my mother. So I don’t like to wear insect repellant with any pesticides like DEET in it. What to do? I mix my own essential oil insect repellant, which I found to be very effective, and much better smelling than store bought bug sprays. I mix 5-10 drops of as many of the following oils as I can in a 2-ounce darkglassspray bottle:
You can also add any of the following that also have some repellant properties:
The more oils you use, the stronger your repellant will be. You must put these in a glass container because the essential oils are strong enough to break down plastic, and it needs to be dark to keep the sunlight from breaking down the oils.
Because essential oils alone can irritate the skin, you need to add a little carrier oil to the mixture. Add about 10-20 drops of a light oil, such as fractionated coconut, almond, or avocado oil, to the bottle. The lighter this oil, the better, so that it won’t clog the sprayer. I use fractionated coconut oil, but I have that on hand. In addition, you may want to add 5 drops of glycerin. Fill the rest of the bottle with witch hazel. This will thin the spray, keep the sprayer clear, and distribute the oils evenly on the skin. About half of your mixture should be witch hazel. Shake well before use, and reapply frequently. Caution: citrus oils can make your skin more sensitive to light. And some of these oils may not be pet-friendly.
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Massage therapy is priestly in its ministrations. As I prepare for a massage, I methodically set the table, turn on its heater, warm the stones, heat the towels, choose appropriate essential oils, and light candles with prayer for our work together. I’m often struck by how similar my massage preparations are to readying a space for worship.
I bear witness to your desire for healing and bring that to God. I also hold space open for your burdens to be released, as you will, so you no longer have to carry them forward. I listen to the new life that is longing to be born in you, body and soul, and I pray as I work that Holy Spirit will minister unto you and that Christ bear your pain away. It can seem like we’re just chatting away or quietly working to free your body from pain, but what is happening is as sacred as what occurs in a confessional, as together we contend with the forces that bind you and seek to allow God to release them so that you might be free to be all you were created to be.
I usually end massage with a brief blessing. After the massage, I clean up, tracking what happened in a medical chart as a kind of spiritual discipline of watching and waiting for the Spirit of God to appear on the horizon of the future. As I wipe down the room with disinfectant, I pray that Christ will transform all the garbage that’s come out during our time together, composting it for the flourishing of your new life. I put essential oils in the diffuser that serve to clear the space and let it arise like incensed prayer arising with the evening’s sacrifice (Psalm 141:2). Some might say that massage serves the god of narcissistic hedonism, and that can be true. But for those who live in chronic pain, those with trauma and abuse in their lives, and those dealing with the ravages of stress, massage is a divinely healing touch that enables the extension of God’s compassion to the world through their continued and better service to others. Massage ministrations are ultimately not just for the person on the table, then, but for the flourishing of the world to the glory of God. And you thought you were just getting a massage! No one has a normal body. Normal is a construct based on what's most frequently found among a myriad of variations. Yet too often, medical professionals expect us to conform to what they learn is normal. I don’t want to bad-mouth doctors; they heal us. But their education is based on a heuristic norm, a standard that can be taught. Massage therapists are also licensed by the Ohio Medical Board who learn anatomy like medical doctors. We have the anatomical charts that indicate where all the muscles are. Except--when you get your hands on people, you find that no one is exactly like the person in the anatomy charts.
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AuthorTeresa Eisenlohr is a Christian theologian, Presbyterian pastor, and licensed massage therapist. And, no, that's not the start of a joke. Or is it? |
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Location778 Old State Route 74
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