Story submitted by J.W.

During my fourth pregnancy, I had some bleeding issues at about 32 weeks.

Maren, the baby, was annoying the placenta and I was bleeding because of it.

Bleeding during pregnancy

At the time, I really struggled with what to do to help her move away so it could heal. I finally settled on Peppermint oil!

Earlier in the pregnancy, she would engage her head in my cervix SO much that I could not walk for the sciatic pain…and I would rub peppermint LOW on my belly, and she’d move up enough for me to be comfortable.

So I did it again when I needed her to move away from the placenta. Again…worked GREAT, BUT, she turned FRANK BREACH instead of just moving a bit. So, I have had a baby head in my LIVER for about five weeks, let me tell you, quite uncomfortable!

Last night, I decided to communicate with her again that it was time to move BACK to head down, so we can get this show on the ROAD and decided once again to use peppermint oil. I put it all over the top of my belly, and went to bed.

Let me clarify for you that there was NO DOUBT that she was breach. Her HEAD was in my stomach…hard as a ROCK! This morning, at my doctors’ appointment, she is once again head down, engaged. ALL BECAUSE OF PEPPERMINT OIL!

What a blessing these oils are! Just wanted to share!

Breech Baby

by Anthony Stewart

“Did you happen to bring the Myrrh?” I asked Sarah as we headed to Tennessee with our two children, Caleb and Joseph. “Got it right here!” answered Sarah.

We also had with us our unborn baby who was about 36 weeks along, and who happened to be turned breech. (This means that the buttocks or a foot would be born first rather than the head.)

We had been planning all along to have the baby at home, as we had with our two previous children. However, the baby being breech gave us some concern, since certain complications can arise during childbirth with a breech that probably would not happen with a vertex baby.

We had been trying for about a week to turn the baby by using the slant board technique. This is where the mother tilts an ironing board at about a 45 angle and lies down with her head toward the floor.

Often times the baby will automatically flip around after the mother has lain like this for ten or fifteen minutes.

We did this three times a day and also tried playing baroque music with headphones at the area of the abdomen where we wanted the baby’s head to be.

We prayed. We even talked to the baby trying to convince it to turn on its own. All the while we were applying Myrrh to Sarah’s abdomen two or three drops at a time.

After about a week the baby still had not turned. We had been in contact with Ina May Gaskin, a midwife who lives on The Farm, a community near Summertown, Tennessee. Ina May is author of the classic book entitled Spiritual Midwifery.

She is, perhaps, the most experienced person in the country in successfully dealing with breech babies. Thus, on an early Monday morning, September 17, 2001, we were headed to The Farm, about six and a half hours from where we live, to have Ina May do an external version which is manually turning the baby head down.

When we arrived, Ina May felt around on Sarah’s tummy and confirmed that the baby was definitely still breech. Ina May wanted Sarah to be able to relax completely while she was doing the version and not be worried about kids running around.

So we brought Caleb and Joseph to one of the guesthouses where they laid down for a nap. Sarah then went to Ina May’s house.

Before doing the version, Ina May wanted to do an internal exam just to be 100% sure and to assess exactly how the baby was lying in the breech position.

l’ll be back in a little while, she told Sarah. I need to leave for a few minutes to get a sterile glove from the clinic.

Meanwhile, Sarah made herself comfortable at Ina Mays home. She took the myrrh she had brought and proceeded to douse herself with the oil. She used much more than usual, and rubbed it all over her tummy.

She then lay down and went to sleep a very deep sleep.

When Ina May returned, she decided not to disturb Sarah and let her sleep until she woke up on her own about an hour to an hour-and-a-half later.

When Sarah awoke Ina May proceeded with the internal exam. Feeling slowly and carefully, she looked up suddenly and said: “I think this feels like a head down here! “

The baby had apparently turned on its own sometime during Sarah’s deep sleep only moments before Ina May would have done the external version! Ina May then felt around on Sarah’s abdomen and could easily identify the baby’s little butt near Sarah’s ribs and the head down low just like it was supposed to be.

It was both a miracle and a relief that the baby turned on its own. We had been trying for some time to get the baby to do this, but without success. Then, only moments before the midwife was going to step in, and shortly after Sarah had applied a generous amount of myrrh, the baby decided to turn.

Did the myrrh assist in the baby’s turning? We do know that myrrh was a popular oil used by pregnant and laboring women for many centuries during Biblical times. It was even one of the two oils brought to Mary and the Christ Child by the wise men.

For this reason alone, I believe it to be a very important oil for women to have during pregnancy and birth.

The key is that we prayed and followed what we were led to do and we felt guided to apply myrrh which seemed to be just the thing for this very sweet and very stubborn breech baby.

Two weeks after this turn of events, on the morning of October 18, 2001, a tornado swept through our county. As the winds howled and the rains poured down, our Perfect, healthy nine-pound baby boy,

Thomas, was born safely in our home.

He was fully alert (Apgar 10), born into the loving presence of his parents, his brothers, and his grandparents. Today, March 2003, Thomas is a robust toddler who walks, is just starting to talk, and whose stubbornness and will, manifested while still in the womb, still shows itself daily.

To this day, more than a year later, the scent of Myrrh always brings up the memory in my mind of Sarah’s pregnancy and birth of our son, Thomas. It probably will for as long as I live.

Breast Milk

By Jessica

February 3, 2002

Subject: testimonial–fennel oil

Okay, let me preface this with…I know I shouldn’t be taking oils I don’t need, but I wanted to test this one!

I have a friend who just had a baby and has not been able to make enough breast milk for him. I have been providing her with raw goats milk from our goats to supplement. She received a recommendation to try fennel oil to boost milk production.

She got the oil and had been applying it to her chest for a few days. She had seen an increase and was thrilled.

I went over to visit and we were discussing fennel oil. I decided to try it. I put a few drops of it in my glass of water and slammed the water. (I don’t especially like the taste of fennel.)

Now, please keep in mind that I have been breast-feeding for the past six months, (this time…this is my third baby in three years.) and am also donating milk to a milk bank. I have a very well established milk supply. I haven’t had “too much ” since my baby was a few days old.

The morning after taking that fennel oil, I woke up totally ENGORGED. Like, brand new baby, engorged. Quite literally spraying milk!

I was floored! Three drops of oil did that? So, I waited a few days and did it again. Same exact reaction.

I will never meet a new mother without recommending fennel oil to help with breastfeeding!

Jaundice in newborns

Date: Thu, 4 Jul 2002

By Jessica

Brace yourselves, this one is cool! (to a young mother at least!

I had one of those “now no one can tell me that EOs don’t work” experiences, and just had to share.

Please note, this might be long, and there will be reference to prayer, so read on knowing that!

One of my college roommates recently had a baby.

*Note* This is not a natural woman. She and I are really like oil and water when it comes to…well almost everything.

We are, amazingly, the best of friends despite our vast differences, so she patiently puts up with my ‘radical ramblings.’ We share religions and both are very spiritual. (I was supposed to act as doula for her at the birth, but she allowed the Dr. to induce her under the contrived thought that she has fast labors and she lives an hour away from the hospital.

Rebekah (the baby) was horribly jaundiced at this one-week visit. Her billirubin level was 21.6.

The Dr. told Kris (the mom) that brain damage occurs at 25 and that she would have to leave her baby at the hospital. They then told her that while they had room for the baby, that there was not room for her to stay, and that she would have to leave her baby.

She adamantly refused, reminding them that she was breastfeeding, and told them that there must be another way.

The hospital staff finally relented and agreed that if she would stay in town, that they would loan her a billirubin light and blanket.

She took it and went immediately to her sister’s house a few miles from the hospital and plugged it in to see if it would help.

She called me in a panic. I went over with my Peace & Calming and my White Angelica. I am out of Trauma Life, or would have taken that too.

I got there and listened while she cried and stressed over her new angel. (I put Peace & Calming on before I walked in, under the thought that she might not let me put any of the oils ON her, so at least she could smell it. I was right.)

She refused all offers of oils because they might make Rebekah not want to nurse. I didn’t argue.

She asked me for advice, and I said that what I would do would be to pray and ask Heavenly Father to tell her what to do to help Rebekah, and reminded her that as a mother, she is ENTITLED to Devine guidance, because they are HIS children too.

She thanked me and said that just talking had made her much calmer, and that she felt better (Peace & Calming, anyone?

The next morning, Rebekah’s billiruben count had climbed to 22, despite staying in the blanket except while nursing. Kris commented that she was looking sicker.

I asked if she had prayed and she said ‘yes, but nothing is coming.’ I told her to listen, and accept the answer, even if it was confusing to her.

(She had felt for a few days that Rebekah needed a chiropractic adjustment, but her Dr REFUSED to allow it, so now she was desperate.)

My phone rang at 10:30 that night. Kris said: “I have an embarrassing question to ask.” I said, “Shoot!”

After hemming and hawing for a minute and me assuring her that we had gone through enough together that I would not be offended at whatever it was, she finally asked:

“Do you know what an enema is?”

I about died laughing! I said. “Of course I know what an enema is, my whole family uses them when we are sick!”

“Oh, then you know how to give one?”

“Of course!”

“To a baby?”

“Of course!” I said.

Quiet on the line…”Well, that is my answer and I have no idea what to do.”

I then told her how to give a baby an enema with a nasal aspiration bulb and she asked if I would come over after church the next day and help her if she didn’t have the courage to do it that night. I said, “Of course!”

After church, I went to a drug store and got the best enema bag I could find and headed over (with every oil I have and my EODR in hand…and a prayer in my heart that she would let me use them).

I got there and she started gushing…”I did it, and she felt better, I could tell! She was so patient, and felt such relief, I am so glad I did it!”

I asked her what Rebakah’s stool had looked like and she told me it was still meconium  AT TEN DAYS OLD!!!

My babies stool are mustard like, breast milk poop at 48 hours old at the most! We talked about it and she agreed that her others had cleared their meconium a lot sooner, and that this might be ‘part of the problem’.

I asked if she wanted me to help her do another enema and she agreed. I then asked if she cared if I used some EO on Rebekah, and she (much to my surprise) said “Sure, if you think it will help.”

I was so happy! I suggested that we start with a prayer so that we would have guidance and know what to do to help she and Rebekah get home sooner. We did.

I rubbed Peace & Calming all over both of us moms first.

I put Valor on Rebekah’s feet and then opened my Lavender. I rubbed Lavender on her head and down the bridge of her nose (I had no idea why, it just felt right.) By the time I could get the cap back on my Lavender, Rebekah’s eyes were FLOWING yellow goop. (I mean flowing, like tears!)

Kris said, “Wait, this is making her sick, it is bothering her eyes.” I said “NO!!! That is the billirubin! Look!”

And sure enough, it was…just yellow gunk, pouring out the closest outlet it could. It ran for a few minutes (while Rebekah laid there totally content and cooing, by the way) then slowed down. I suggested we do another enema to see if that would help.

We got our distilled water warm and I put a few drops of Endo Flex (I was out of Juva Flex, and EF was recommended in the EODR) in the water. We sucked up the oil and did another baby enema. She was still passing almost straight meconium.

While she worked the water out, I rubbed a few drops of Frankincense down her spine then added some Cedarwood. I then did a raindrop technique-like motion with the feathering and pulling away from the spine. (Super gently, no one attack me!)

We then put Release on her liver and Lavender all over her belly (two or three drops of each).

We put Endo Flex on her feet and Rosemary on her back.

When we took that diaper off, she had urinated so much that the whole diaper was almost orange! The billirubin was just FLOWING out of this tiny body!

We did one more enema and that one almost looked green instead of like black tar.

I asked her what oils she wanted to keep, and she chose Rosemary and Endo Flex and Lavender. She rubbed them on Rebekah all evening and whenever she woke to nurse.

Okay, really long story…but the next morning, Kris took Rebekah to the Dr. to check her levels and they were down to 15! He told her that if she stabilized there, that she could go home the next day.

On Tuesday morning, her levels were DOWN again, (to 14) and she got to go home on Tuesday!

By Jessica Wild

January 14, 2003

One of my dear friends just had her sixth baby in Early December. She asked me to come and be her “oil girl” at the birth.

Kristen called at about 8:00 am and told me she was in labor. I drove around the corner to her house (literally) after I had grabbed all of my oils.

(Before I went over, I had knelt in prayer and asked for guidance, and that I would have knowledge beyond my own to help Kristen.)

She was in the shower when I got there, lying over my birth ball, with the hot water on her back…seemingly comfortable. After a few minutes, she felt the need to get out. She did, and was having some intense back labor, I asked her if she wanted oil, and she said yes.

I felt that my first job was to get some oil diffusing…I offered her Grapefruit, Thieves, Lavender and Gentle Baby to smell and asked which one smelled the best to her. She chose Thieves.

I then went to her diffuser and put in 20 drops of Thieves and diluted it with Lemon and Rosemary, to cut the nasal burn that could occur.

I then went to my oil bag and felt prompted to grab PanAway and Peppermint. I put about five drops of each in my hand and rubbed them low on Kristen’s back. Two contractions later, she commented that the back labor was lessened.

The MW checked and told her that the baby was no longer posterior…which was the reason her back hurt less. (MY belief is that the coolness of the oils helped the baby want to turn.)

I then felt prompted to rub Valor on her feet.  She loved that, her contractions became more bearable and she was able to relax THOROUGHLY between them. I then grabbed my olive oil/lavender bottle (an 8 oz. bottle with about 100 drops of Lavender in it.) and massaged her calves to help her stay relaxed and calm.

We would stop during contractions, but as soon as she was through one contraction, she would ask for more calf massage. I think it really helped her relax.

The MW checked her at about 9:00, and she was only 6 or 7 cm dilated. She was discouraged.  I felt an overwhelming prompting that NOW was the time for Clary Sage, so asked her if she wanted me to use it, and explained to her that it might speed up labor…

Was she okay with that? She said that speeding up the labor sounded GREAT!

I rubbed about four drops of Clary Sage on the inside of each ankle, and within a few minutes, she was back to having to REALLY focus during contractions.  Her water broke about ten minutes after we put Clary Sage on her ankles.

After her water broke, she was complete, and ready to push. She chose to push on her bed, lying over the birth ball. I had the peppermint bottle open, as she was struggling with nausea.

She smelled it between every contraction, and eventually, it smelled good enough that she wanted a drop on her tongue.

Brock was born at 10:31 that morning…two hours after I got there! He weighed 8 pounds 8 ounces and was the calmest baby I have ever seen.

We rubbed the same diluted Lavender on him before we got him dressed.

After Kristen delivered the placenta, she got up to go to the bathroom, and asked for a drop of Fennell oil, to help her with her milk production. (I hadn’t thought of that, DUH! *grin*) I dropped about three drops on her tongue, and she finished off her water…

That’s it…kind of anti climatic, I know. It was the most natural birth I have ever seen! No one stressed, no one worried that she couldn’t do it…just calm, support of a laboring and birthing woman.

Just wanted to share!