So in my short time of working to build a business with Young Living Essential Oils, I have had people ask me if I have an oil for this or that so many times!  I love when this happens because it gives me the opportunity to research whatever they have asked me about and learn lots of great new information about these wonderful, healing oils.  It seems to be a recurring thing – ask Val, she’ll help you!  And if she doesn’t know the answer, she’ll make it her business to find out.  And so, the “Val Finds Out” category of my blog is born.

I have a co-worker at the spa I work at who has debilitating migraine headaches.  She’s had them since she was 16 years old, and she’s just recently been put on a new medication by her doctor to help with the migraines.  Just yesterday, she was in our break room, feeling light-headed and trying to figure out why.  From what I gather, she hasn’t been feeling all that well since she went on this medication, and she ended up with a terrible migraine anyway just a few days ago.  I asked her if she would like me to research some alternatives with essential oils for her, and as I expected, she was open to it.  She’s used my stress-away roll on before, and I’ve done Gary Young’s Headache Relief Technique before with Peppermint Oil.  She’s had some relief, but nothing has been able to take away the pain yet.

So here’s what I found out for her:

According to the Essential Oils Desk Reference, “the vast majority of migraine headaches may be due to colon congestion or poor digestion.  The combination of ICP/Comfortone/Essentialzyme is most important for cleansing the colon”.  All three of these are available in the Cleansing Trio Kit:

Essentialzyme™ is an advanced multi-enzyme complex that promotes digestion and assists in the assimilation of nutrients, and contains enzymes that support healthy pancreatic function.

ICP™ helps keep your colon clean with an advanced mix of fibers that scour out residues.  A healthy digestive system is important for the proper functioning of all other systems because it absorbs nutrients that are used throughout the body. ICP provides ingredients such as psyllium, oat bran, and flax and fennel seeds to form a combination of soluble and insoluble fibers. Enhanced with a special blend of essential oils, the fibers work to decrease the buildup of wastes, improve nutrient absorption, and help maintain a healthy heart. ICP provides three grams of soluble fiber and one gram of insoluble fiber per serving.

ComforTone® (capsules) is an effective combination of herbs and essential oils that support the health of the digestive system by eliminating residues from the colon and enhancing its natural ability to function optimally. Because it supports normal peristalsis (the wave-like contractions that move food through the intestines), ComforTone is ideal for strengthening the system that delivers nutrients to the rest of the body. It also contains ingredients that are beneficial to liver, gall bladder, and stomach health.

Young Living also has some great options for oils to be applied topically for immediate relief of acute symptoms.

M-Grain is the absolute first recommendation in the desk reference for relief from migraine headaches.  It is a blend of several pain-relieving and muscle relaxing ingredients: Basil (Ocimum basilicum), marjoram (Origanum majorana), lavender (Lavandula angustifolia), peppermint (Mentha piperita), Roman chamomile (Chamaemelum nobile) and helichrysum (Helichrysum italicum).  M-Grain™ is calming while promoting a sense of well-being, particularly in the head and neck areas when applied topically.  The majority of testimonials on Oil-Testimonials.com also praise M-Grain for its ability to bring almost immediate relief.  Wintergreen oil is one of the first recommendations in the desk reference as well.  Wintergreen has deep, muscle soothing abilities that can greatly reduce discomfort from the tension headache piece of the migraine puzzle.

Also, never discount a simple combination of Lavender and Peppermint.  Peppermint is a vasoconstrictor, so it will take that pounding vascular constriction away.  Lavender is deeply relaxing, and may help to relieve the tension causing the headache or caused by the headache.  The combination is magical for tension headaches, and for some, can even relieve symptoms of migraine headaches as well.

My advice for my co-worker?  Start from the inside and work your way out.  Cleanse first.  It seems to be always the best place to start, no matter what the ailment.  When we are not getting the proper nutrition, and especially when our digestive system is not working at optimum levels, nothing else can work correctly.  Seems to be that most things at least begin to improve when we improve our body’s ability to absorb nutrients from healthy foods.  And then?  M-grain for those extra powerful migraines.  Nothing works faster than essential oils that can work directly on our brains and even right down to a cellular level in the rest of our bodies.  I hope she will take the information to heart, and that she can find a natural, side-effect free solution to her migraine problems.  No one should have to live with pain like that.