13 Best Essential Oils to Help You Get More Sleep
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Updated
January 25, 2023
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1 in 3 adults doesn’t get enough sleep. As per the National Library of Medicines Study, aromatherapy is an excellent option to fight your sleep-related problems. What are essential oils? Natural oils, which are secreted from plants, are known as essential oils.
Aromatherapy oils are used for ages in various cultures for health, fragrance, cooking purposes, and more. In recent years, they are gaining popularity, especially as aromatherapy for sleep. If you are one of the people who struggle with sleep, calming essential oils can help you. Many people believe they are a great solution.
Does aromatherapy work, what do essential oils do, what essential oils are good for sleep, essential oils effects? Here we are going to discuss various essential oils that can help you sleep better.
Best Essential Oils for Sleep
Below are the best essential oils for sleep and anxiety.
1. Bergamot Essential Oil
Bergamot helps in lowering blood pressure, heart rate and improving mental health. Due to these calming effects, bergamot can help you sleep well during the night. According to a study conducted on women, it was found that 64% of the participants who used a mixture of sandalwood and bergamot essential oils witnessed improvement in sleep quality. You can inhale the bergamot oil or diffuse it throughout the room.
2. Lavender Essential Oil
This popular essential oil is known for calming our minds and reducing our stress levels. This oil may not make you sleep quickly, but it can assure you good quality deep sleep. Various people can experience benefits of lavender oil for sleep:
- People with insomnia
- Students who have sleepiness throughout the day
- Ischemic heart disease patients
- Middle Aged Women (45-55 years old)
- Postpartum Mothers
A few drops of lavender oil, alone or with other essential oils, can improve your sleep quality.
3. Clary Sage Essential Oil
Clary sage is known for its antidepressant effect and reducing cortisol levels. Cortisol affects your circadian rhythm and is related to alertness. Hence reducing cortisol levels can make you feel sleepy.
This natural sedative can also help you in reducing stress and anxiety by lowering your BP.
4. Vetiver Essential Oil
Vetiver oil may not have the best smell, but it offers excellent results, especially if you want quality sleep. It has a deep, earthy scent, but it can be helpful if you can’t stop thinking. Vetiver oil can slow down your thoughts and put you in a deep sleep.
5. Chamomile Essential Oil
Chamomile essential oils are of two kinds: Roman and German. Roman is known for reducing anxiety, while the German type is more famous for relieving pain. With reduced stress or discomfort, you can quickly doze off into a deep sleep. Chamomile essential oil is among the best essential oils for anxiety, especially in pregnant women.
6. Cedarwood Essential Oil
If you love woody essential oil scents, you cannot miss cedarwood essential oils. Due to a chemical compound called cedrol, it has a soothing effect. Inhaling cedarwood essential oil can improve sleep quality among young as well as older people with dementia. Use it for at least 20 nights to see the effects.
7. Valerian Essential Oil
Valerian essential oil is used for a profoundly calming effect. It not only helps you in falling asleep but also in sleeping well.
8. Jasmine Essential Oil
Jasmine oil can help to tackle insomnia. It enables you to deal with restless sleeping and improves your sleep quality.
9. Ylang Ylang Essential Oil
Like lavender oil, Ylang Ylang Essential Oil lowers blood pressure and heart rate and makes you feel sleepy. It has a fruity and pleasant smell that is calming in its way.
10. Peppermint Essential Oil
Peppermint is an excellent choice for relaxing your head. Its pleasing scent calms your mind and sets you to sleep. Other than that, it’s a perfect choice if you are suffering from cold and seasonal allergies. A nasal blockage may prevent you from sleeping, and peppermint oil helps you get relieved from it.
11. Sandalwood Essential Oil
Who doesn’t love the rich scent of sandalwood? It is costly, but it is worth it if you are struggling with sleep. It promotes deep rest due to its mood-balancing properties. It’s an excellent essential oil for anxiety. It can be used for aromatherapy for anxiety. Use it with or without other essential oils to sleep well.
12. Marjoram Essential Oil
Marjoram essential oil helps you get the best sleep. It soothes you both physically and mentally to produce a deep sleep that allows you to get genuinely recharged. When buying a marjoram essential oil, remember, the sweeter, the better.
13. Eucalyptus Essential Oil
Along with relaxing benefits, it also has sinus-clearing properties. If you are troubled with excessive phlegm production during the night, eucalyptus will help you clear the congestion and relax your mind.
How to Use Essential Oils for Sleep?
- You can apply the oil on your wrists and feet when you wake up and sleep.
- Make sure before using you dilute the essential oils with carrier oils like olive, coconut, jojoba. An undiluted essential oil can irritate your skin. Generally, one drop of essential oil is used for one tablespoon of carrier oil.
- You can also use essential oils with a diffuser. Add 2-3 drops to a diffuser, and witness the calming scent in your surroundings.
- You can also add 2-3 drops of the essential oil to your pillow before bedtime.
How Do Essential Oils Work?
Essential oils make an impact on your olfactory system and limbic system. As you inhale essential oils, the molecules reach your brain and affect the amygdala or emotional center of your brain.
What essential oils are good for? Essential oils also make the brain secrete neurotransmitters like dopamine and serotonin, known for elevating mood. Serotonin can boost melatonin production, making you feel sleepy.
That is why essential oils for relaxation are perfect. Essential oils not only make you feel relaxed and calm but sleepy as well.
Risks and Caution with Essential Oil Use
Everyone talks about the benefits of essential oils, but are there any risks and cautions you should worry about?
To check the suitability, apply the essential oil to a small area of your skin. If it works fine, you can use it in large areas as well.
- Dilute the essential oil with a carrier oil of your choice.
- Apply the mixture to a smaller area, like the inside of your arm.
- Wait for 24 hours.
- If you don’t feel any irritation on your skin, it’s safe to use it on other areas of your body as well.
Don’t swallow essential oils. This can result in side effects like upset stomach, nausea, and more.
Conclusion
Try and figure out the best essential oil for sleep for you. Remember, essential oils are great for sleeping problems, but it’s advised to see a doctor for severe issues. Take care of all the risks and cautions, and sleep peacefully with a few drops of essential oils.
Happy sleeping!
FAQs
If you are using a diffuser, it usually takes 15-20 minutes. If you are ingesting essential oils, the effect might be felt within 30 minutes.
- Add 2-3 drops of essential oils in a diffuser.
- Apply 2-3 drops of essential oils on your pillowcase.
- Apply on your feet, behind ears, and wrists.
Lavender aromatherapy is most famous for making you relaxed and asleep. It has a pleasant smell, and it lowers your heart rate and blood pressure, making you ready to sleep.
With one tablespoon of any carrier oil of your choice. Add one drop of the essential oil.
Sandalwood, clary sage, is excellent for anxiety and depression. Remember, the essential oils are not a cure to these diseases but provide relief from your symptoms.
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