When I told my husband I was writing up a bath salts recipe he said, “Aren’t those illegal?” Not those bath salts!

Whether you’re sore from an intense workout, pregnancy, or a strain or sprain, these homemade bath salts are a great natural remedy to help melt away the pain and encourage healing. Bonus? You can choose whatever essential oils you like for this recipe to give it a therapeutic aromatherapy boost.

This recipe makes enough salts for four baths – you’ll want to add about 1/2 cup to the tub each time. If you are using these to soothe pregnancy aches and pains, just remember that super hot baths are a no-no when you’ve got a baby in your belly. A warm bath is A-OK, though, and an Epsom salt bath can help with the sore back and legs that often come with pregnancy.

If you have an injury, just make sure your doctor is cool with you using heat on it before you take an Epsom salt bath. When you first sprain an ankle, for example, the doctor will often recommend treating it with ice rather than heat, since the warmth can encourage swelling.

For minor soreness or aches and pains, you can soak to your heart’s content in water as hot as you like.

5 Minute Bath Salts Recipe

All that you need to make your own bath salts are:

• 2 cups Epsom salts
• 10-20 drops of your favorite essential oil or essential oil blend

Combine your ingredients in a small bowl, and stir well to get your salts nice and coated with the oils of your choice. Transfer to a clean container – like a pint-sized Mason jar – for storage.

Epsom salts are very easy to find. Check out the pain relief section of your pharmacy, near other muscle pain relief products. Epsom salts are a totally natural product – they’re just a different sort of salt called magnesium sulfate. You can use them in a bath or hot compress to soothe aching muscles, and you can take them orally to help ease some gastrointestinal issues. Just don’t take these orally once you’ve mixed in the essential oils! Not all essential oils are food grade, and you could end up making yourself sick.

Are you new to essential oils?

Here are a few essential oils suggestions for your bath salts:

• Calming: 15 drops lavender, 5 drops chamomile
• Energizing: 20 drops tea tree
• Grounding: 5 drops rosemary, 5 drops patchouli, 5 drops Texas cedarwood or sandalwood
• Balancing: 10 drops tea tree, 10 drops lavender
• Anti-Inflammatory: 10 drops grapefruit seed, 10 drops chamomile
• Mood-Boosting: 10 drops lavender, 5 drops chamomile, 5 drops peppermint

The trick with essential oils is that they don’t just have unique smells and properties, but they differ in strength. A little rosemary or patchouli goes a long way, for example, but you can put a lot of lavender into a recipe without getting things too overpowering. Experiment with different blends until you find one that works well for you.

Have you made your own bath salts before? What essential oils did you put into your recipe?

Image Credit: Creative Commons photo by nomadic lass

The post Make Your Own Essential Oils Bath Salts Recipe appeared first on EcoSalon.

Therapeutic gardening has become a method of recovery, both physical and mental, for Alzheimer’s patients, the physically handicapped, injured or ill patients, and troubled or abused children. According to the Methodist Respite Care Center in Williamsburg, VA, “All [of their therapeutic] projects use gardening and horticultural activities to improve physical health, mental health, expand recreational options and generally improve one’s health and well-being.” This method of therapy is reported to reduce stress, stimulate the senses, and creates bonds with nature and other people.

Brightly colored annuals, such as marigolds, impatiens and cosmos, are a few flowers of choice in therapeutic gardening to provide a sensory experience for patients. Vegetable and herb gardens are also planted and tended to add taste and scent to the experience.

Participants have the pleasure of tasting the “fruits of their labor,” plucked straight off the vine, or can take home fresh, fragrant herbs to cook with.

All in all, this new form of therapy provides a cost-effective, relaxing, and sociable way to improve health for many people, while providing volunteer positions for gardening enthusiasts who desire to give back to their communities.

Article by Emily Wallace for DivineCaroline. First published March 2010.

Related DivineCaroline posts:

• Living a Sensual Life Through Farming
• The Taste of Summer: Tips for Growing Delicious Tomatoes
• Blades of Glory: Tips for Growing a Lusher Lawn

Image: Rich Legg

The post Therapeutic Gardening: A Natural Approach to Health, Healing, and Recovery appeared first on EcoSalon.