I first heard about using essential oils around 2003 when I began my journey into natural health and alternative healing. This was before I knew about companies like Young Living Essentials and Doterra, which are the main two essential oil companies out there.
A quick “aside”…
I want you to know, I have no financial affiliation with either of those two companies. I don’t like network marking. If I link to anything, it’ll be to Amazon where if you purchase it will support my work but there’s no cost to you and no obligation to buy anything. I’ll just link to products I use myself in case you want to check them out.
When I first heart about using essential oils for insomnia I thought that was crazy. How could a concentrated oil help you sleep?
Didn’t make any sense.
But then (as with most everything) once you start looking into the research literature and scientific studies it’s pretty eye opening. Since essential oils are relatively safe (there are a few things to know about how to use them) they’re a great addition to your night time routine and as an item to have in your sleep sanctuary aka bedroom.
The other cool thing is that there a ton of different ways to use essential oils for insomnia that are quite unique that I’ll share below!
I’ve used many types of essential oils over the years. I like trying different natural healing methods and sharing what my experiences are with them. Some people call this biohacking, others call it modern day shamanism. I prefer the term “health nut”. 🙂
I’ll share my favorite 3 essential oils for insomnia below but first…
What Are Essential Oils?
This history of essential oils is pretty crazy. Since they’re really popular right now, people think of them as a modern health trend. Essential oils go back thousands of years to ancient civilizations like Egypt, India and China. You know, all the civilizations that have a rich history in herbalism and using natural remedies to heal people? Unlike the West where we use toxic drugs and a cut, burn and poison approach to healing.
Back in the day, it was through rudimentary methods like pressing (using a mortar and pestle) and the steam distillation of flowers, roots, buds and stems where essential oils were discovered. Essential oils use a hyper concentration of plant matter compressed into a small amount of liquid.
For example it might take 3000 flowers to make one single drop of rose essential oil. One, one ounce bottle could represent hundreds of thousands of rose flowers. Essential oils are powerful because it’s hyper concentrating the medicine in the herbs and plant materials into a single drop.
If you think about it, it’s kind of like a magnifying glass when sunshine hits it. It’s super concentrated.
To make essential oils, they’ll extract the volatile aromatic compounds (I call them medicines, while other call them alkaloids) from leaves, bark, fruit, flowers and roots. Steam distillation happens when steam is used to release these plant oils from the plant matter.
Once extracted they can be used in tons of different ways which is really great. I like to use some creativity when using essential oils.
Ancient Egyptians were the first known civilization to use essential oils for insomnia (and in general) on a daily basis. They’d include essential oils in their religious rituals, their medicinal practices and even their cosmetic “enhancements” as it were.
They became so popular they began trading them via their trade routes which help spread essential oils all over the world.
What is Aromatherapy?
How is aromatherapy different than using essential oils? Or are they the same? Can you use aromatherapy and essential oils for insomnia?
Aromatherapy is a holistic alternative medicine practice that uses essential oils in a bunch of different ways to help your body physically, emotionally and mentally. This therapy mostly involves inhaling essential oils through your nose along with using essential oils topically on the skin.
It doesn’t usually involve ingesting essential oils.
So using aromatherapy with essential oils for insomnia is a great way to help promote relaxation, sedation, and improving your mood before bed. I’ve notice that specific essential oils for insomnia help to quiet my mind before bed.
Ancient cultures use aromatherapy like the Egyptians, Greeks and Romans would use them for medical, spiritual and cosmetic purposes. There are also references in the Bible to essential oils used in the time of Jesus Christ.
When inhaled and breathed into your lungs the molecules seem to interact with your olfactory system, the brain and your limbic system which is in control of emotions and memory. That’s probably why when I use essential oils for insomnia, I get in a better more calm mood before bed. Combined with red lights in our home, essential oils have been a game changer.
What’s cool is that I’ve seen essential oils in massage rooms, homes, spas and even hospital waiting rooms. The other day I was in a doctors office and I looked at the counter and there was a diffuser, diffusing lavender essential oil into the waiting room.
Like Bob Dylan once said, “Times are a changin!”
How Do Essential Oils Promote Sleep?
What I personally love about using essential oils for insomnia is that they work so well for most all sleep conditions. You can use them many other ways but man do they really help calm me down and get me in a relaxed mood when I’m getting ready for bed.
Essential oils help with sleep by impacting your nervous system and brain, through inhalation. Aromatherapy is the way that these oils can impact your limbic system. I notice my mood seems much more calm and my mind stops racing. I notice my stress levels going down and anxiety seems to be marginalized.
The other cool thing I love about essential oils for insomnia is that when these molecules come in contact with your olfactory system to your brain, it can stimulate the production of GABA and other neurotransmitters like serotonin. Serotonin converts to melatonin through a series of steps inside your body.
It kinda looks like this…
Tryptophan → 5-Hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP) → Serotonin → N-Acetylserotonin → Melatonin
If you use them while taking a bath it can create a peaceful and tranquil environment right before bedtime. I find that adding them to the bath water along with diffusing them in the air in the bathroom and bedroom works wonders for promoting a super restful sleep.
I think if you started using essential oils for insomnia on a regular basis (I’ll share how I use them below) you’ll find they help with your sleep in a major way.
The Top 3 Essential Oils For Insomnia
Lavender for Sleep
Lavender is the defacto essential oil for insomnia. It’s been revered for thousands of years for helping people calm their mind and increase relaxation in their body. It seems to be incredibly sedative (in my experience). It has been shown in research studies to help with insomnia.
The oils in lavender contain compounds like linalool and linalyl acetate which are known sedatives and impact your nervous system. If you try it, you’ll know what I’m talking about. What’s crazy is that lavender essential oil for insomnia is also helpful for reducing anxiety, lower blood pressure and even slowing your heart rater, all ideal things when you’re trying to get tired and fall asleep.
How I use Lavender
I like to use lavender in a diffuser but I also add a few drops to my magnesium, baking soda and boron baths. I’ll take a bath with those three items and put a few drops of lavender in my bath. Make sure you have red lights in your bathroom. Then when I get out of the bath I’ll apply 1 drop to the bottom of both feet as well as behind my ear lobe. Then I’ll bring the diffuser into my sleep sanctuary…aka bedroom.
Roman Chamomile for Sleep
Roman Chamomile aka Chamaemelum nobile, I just call it chamomile is also my “go to” when it comes to choosing an essential oil for insomnia. It’s been used for thousands of years to calm both mind and body. If you struggle with anxiety, restlessness or insomnia, I think you should definitely give this particular essential oil a try.
If you look into the literature it has high amounts of apigenin which can bind to receptors in your brain and reduce night time anxiety and induce sleep. If you have a hard time turning your mind off and falling asleep this essential oil might be the thing that helps you.
Traditionally it has also been used on children and helping them calm down before bed.
I’ll apply a drop to each of my wrists before I go to bed. You can use it in a carrier oil like coconut oil but I don’t like oils like that rubbing off onto my sheets and bedding. Most times (unless I run out) I’m combining it with lavender into my oil diffuser in my bedroom.
It has helped me improve my sleep tremendously since I’ve been using it.
Ylang-Ylang for Sleep
Ylang Ylang aka Cananga odorata comes from the tropics. It has a rich sort of floral fragrance (not as bad as Rose essential oil in my opinion, I don’t like that one) and it helps relax you and improve an inner feeling of tranquility. Sounds kind of cheesy but it’s true.
It works really well when diffused and inhaled and can balance emotions and regulate stress levels. You need a sense of calmness in body and mind if you want to learn to relax and be “taken over” by the waves of sleep.
It seems to influence your autonomic nervous system (this is your rest and digest part of your nervous system). As such it can be a powerful essential oil for insomnia. It also helps lower blood pressure and heart rate. Hard to believe this happens from breathing it but it does.
If you feel stressed or have an overactive mind before bed, this is another essential oil that can be used for insomnia. I find it works extremely well for helping me to fall asleep. The sweet, exotic aroma of Ylang Ylang not only enhances your sleep environment but it also helps you drift off into a peaceful, restorative slumber.
I’m a fan.
I like to apply one drop to my neck (right below my throat) and one drop just below my belly button before bed.
Works like a charm.
Conclusion
Using these three essential oils for insomnia for me, has been a complete game changer. I notice that it took a few weeks for me to notice a difference in my ability to fall asleep and be rested when i woke up. Using these essential oils for sleep purposes didn’t change either way, waking up in the night. But it was much easier to fall back asleep with the diffuser on and inhaling those oils.
Before bed, I use all three at the same time for better sleep. I put some in the bath (2 or 3 drops each in a full tub), then I’ll put a couple drops of each into a diffuser and inhale that while taking a bath. Then I’ll apply two drops of these three essential oils for insomnia to my body. My wrist, my throat, my earlobes, just below my belly button and on the bottoms of my feet.
Questions:
- Do you use essential oils for insomnia? If so, which ones?
- Did they work?
- How long did you use them for?
Comment below.
