Alaska Institute of Oriental Medicine

This course is open to the general public and to professional health care providers who are interested in using essential oils to complement their healing work.

ALL ESSENTIAL OIL COURSES IN THIS SERIES ARE GREAT AS A STAND-ALONE. TAKE AS MANY AS YOU WANT, OR TAKE ALL 12 AND APPLY FOR CERTIFICATION.

Essential oils are herbs, and herbs are awesome! They are also powerful medicines that have to be respected and used appropriately.  While death by essential oil use is extremely rare, it is possible to cause an unpleasant skin reaction, trigger an allergy or asthma response, and clean out our digestive system much faster and more harshly than anticipated.

If you're going to use essential oils, you MUST learn the basics about safety and know when to question something, how to determine when a situation really needs some research first, and when to say NO.

Each course in this series includes a beautiful, informative Workbook that you can download and keep, plus one or more instructional videos.

Actual phone call that I received from a local nurse: "The patient says they poured Tea Tree essential oil into their ear to help an earache. We're not sure if this was safe and how much it is contributing to their original pain." I told them that putting a drop of essential oil on a Q-Tip and swabbing the ear should be safe and should normally help, but pouring the essential oil into the ear should be treated by them as coming into contact with a hazardous substance. In this case, the hospital was the best place to be.

Actual patient comment in clinic, when we suggested drinking lemon water to help recent digestive issues: "I do drink lemon water. I add 6 drops of Lemon essential oil to my water every morning, and I've been doing this for at least 4 months."  We determined that the excessive amount of essential oil ingestion was contributing to their digestive issues and suggested they stop immediately.

Actual question asked by a new essential oil kit owner: "I want to help my neighbor who got over cancer and now they have kidney failure. I looked up essential oils that are good for kidneys, so do I just have them drink some, or how should I use them?" And this is why we have safety courses. When someone is being medically treated, it is best to leave the situation alone unless you are a trained herbalist familiar with drug/herb interactions.

Safety Considerations You Must Know - Course Overview    

In this course, you will learn:  

• Why research is important
• Essential oil safety considerations
• What to look for in a good essential oil resource
• Recommended resources
• Essential oil chemistry and toxicology
• Some essential oils to avoid
• Toxic oils, cautions, and contraindications
• Antibiotic properties of essential oils

For a more detailed list of course topics, check out the Workbook Table of Contents in the Course Curriculum section below. The Table of Contents can be viewed for free by enrolling in the FREE PREVIEW.

Essential oils are very safe when used properly and with an appropriate method. The key point is to know how and when to use an oil, and especially to know when NOT to use a certain oil.    

This course will explore research methods to ensure that you are using your essential oils safely and getting the effects that you are looking for from the oils. Knowledge and safety will increase your level of confidence in using the oils and will help guide you through this wonderful world of plant essences.  

We will compare the information received about essential oils through direct intuition with the actual hard research available and discuss why it’s important to use a variety of resources. We will also look at important notes to keep when using essential oils, go over basic information about the known actions of oils based on their chemistry and toxicology, and examine general cautions and contraindications.

BONUS: One of the highlights of this course is a video in which I demonstrate how to make a highly effective essential oil topical blend for treating skin infections. The recipe is provided in the video and in the course Workbook for your own use.