During sleep, our bodies should be working to support healthy brain function and maintain our physical health.

How is that working for you?

I hope very well! But, if not, I hope something in this article can help you! There are few things in life more frustrating—and more detrimental to our health—than lying awake, so very tired, but unable to sleep. Not getting enough good quality sleep is, however, more than just frustrating because sleep is a very essential function! Without sufficient rest/sleep, it is impossible for a person to be well either physically or emotionally! As you sleep, your body and mind get a chance to recharge. If that ‘recharging’ gets accomplished, you should wake up refreshed, energetic, and alert. If not . . .?

During childhood and into the teenage years, sleep also supports growth and development. Getting inadequate sleep over time increases the risk of chronic (long-term) health problems.

Studies show that when we don’t get quality sleep or enough sleep, our immune system gets disrupted and weakened. This, of course, makes it more likely that we will get sick when we have been exposed to any sort of illness. Our bodies need sleep to fight infections that are passed from one person to the next. Long-term lack of sleep also raises our risk of obesity, diabetes, depression, high blood pressure, stroke, and heart disease.

I could go on and on here, but let’s just get on to possible solutions!

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In This Issue

Magnesium Liquid Mineral
November Essential Oils
Featured Herbs
Featured Blessed Waters
Blend – ^LeEverlasting
Blend – ^LeDreams
Single – Daffodil
Coconut Carrier Oil
Featured 3-Oil Kits

Magnesium Liquid Mineral

Describing even some of the benefits of supplementing with a quality magnesium source without taking up pages and pages of space is going to be a really big challenge! But here goes!

First, because it is relevant to today’s topic of “Sleep”, I want to point out that sufficient magnesium intake helps regulate the production of melatonin and the proper distribution and usage of what magnesium is available in the body. Melatonin is a vital part of a person’s ability to quiet the mind and fall asleep, sleep deeply, and awake feeling refreshed and ready for the day. Magnesium also helps maintain healthy levels of GABA, a neurotransmitter that also promotes quality sleep.

Magnesium also plays a role in serotonin production as well as the production of dopamine and norepinephrine—both of which can decrease the physical effects of stress. Stress, as we all know, is a risk factor for so many physical and emotional health issues. This includes migraine headaches.

Magnesium is also beneficial to heart health. One of the reasons for this is that magnesium affects the nervous system and helps regulate the electrical system that is important to the effective beating of the heart.

A smooth muscle relaxant, magnesium can help relieve cramping, whether menstrual or from any other source.

Magnesium has also been shown to reduce the risk of depression and lessen or relieve the symptoms of anxiety in those who are prone to anxiety attacks. Magnesium also plays a major role in maintaining healthy blood sugar levels.

The majority of magnesium is stored in the bones, where it works closely with calcium to support bone health. Magnesium influences bone-building cells and helps lower inflammation that can damage bone and lead to such bone breakdown issues such as osteoporosis.
Magnesium also ‘revs up’ the production of the active form of vitamin D in the body. Vitamin D is essential to a healthy immune system.

Last, but not least: Magnesium plays a major role in the production of glutathione and its effective use in the body. Perhaps you have seen some of my recent Facebook posts about the role of glutathione in detoxing the bodies of children (and adults) from the toxic metals absorbed from many sources in our modern-day environment. This includes those, such as aluminum and a host of others, that are contained in standard vaccinations.

Featured Herbs for Sleep

Elderberry Nighttime

Elderberries and elderflowers have been utilized in traditional medicine for, literally, centuries. A sort list of their benefits would include immune and digestive system support, anti-inflammatory effects, the lowering of blood sugar levels, improving cardiovascular system health, boost energy levels, reduce the pain and swelling of conditions such as arthritis and gout, reduce cold symptoms, and are known to be an effective allergy remedy, and reduce the effects of stress generally on the body and mind. Stress, even when it occurs during the day, can affect our sleep because stress can trigger an elevation in stress hormones. These stress hormones do not simply slip away because we decide that we need to sleep!

The Elderberry Nighttime formula also contains chamomile, lemon balm, and passion flower. These three herbs are among the very best herbs for relaxation, anxiety reduction, and the general calming of an overstressed nervous system. This formula, whether taken by spoon or added to water as a tea, is an excellent (and rather pleasant-tasting for an herbal formula) remedy for general relaxation and to promote better sleep.

Lemon Balm

Lemon balm, like Echinacea, has been used as far back as the Middle Ages for a host of uses. As an essential oil, lemon balm is referred to by its Latin designation which is Melissa officinalis. I have so much respect for this plant as both an herb and an essential oil that I have struggled for several years to grow it in my personal herb bed! It is, finally, this year, thriving!

Besides being one of the strongest antimicrobial oils and herbs, Lemon Balm (Melissa) has a definite affinity for the nervous system, the thyroid, and for calming rapid heartbeats. (I can attest to the tea and the essential oil slowing rapid heartbeats personally!) I can recommend this wonderful herb (and essential oil) personally and joyfully as a remedy for relieving anxiety, restlessness, a chattering mind, and problems falling or remaining asleep!

Valerian

Valerian was known as “all-heal” in the Middle Ages and is still referred to by that name in older herbal texts.

Valerian’s main impact is on the nerves, brain, liver, and heart. Because it heals and rebuilds in these areas, people feel calmed, strengthened, and uplifted by this herb. This is one of the best herbs in the world for helping people sleep and helping them cope with high levels of stress. Valerian reduces mental overactivity and nervous excitability and helps people who find it hard to stop the mental chatter and get to sleep. Valerian is beneficial for almost any stress-related condition and has a calming, rather than heavy sedative, effect on the mind and body.

Valerian is not suitable for everybody and should be used with particular caution with children. Indications of this situation would be that the person, instead of being calmed by Valerian, feels wired, agitated, or nervous. Simply discontinue use. While I, personally, love Valerian, Butterfly carries nervine formulas that do not contain Valerian. BBL, NT, or NS would all make good choices. Please do not let this information scare you away from the use of this wonderful herb. Valerian, in both herbal and essential oil forms, is one of the world’s greatest healers. It is one of my favorite and most relied-on remedies. Reactions to it are rare.

Catnip/Chamomile

Chamomile and Catnip are both very relaxing herbs, making this formula good for those who are having trouble sleeping. This gentle glycerite formula has proven its usefulness time and time again over many, many years with three generations of family members, as well as friends and customers!

This formula is made as a glycerite because it is typically used for colicky, cranky, or teething infants. It is also excellent for babies, children, and adults suffering from bloating and/or gas. Every new mother should have this remedy around for those, sometimes or often, long nights with baby!

NVC

NVC, as the former name (Children’s Nervine) implies, is a formula created especially for children. Although it contains only the gentlest of nervine herbs, it is a very effective formula. While beloved by many adults for its ability to gently relax them into sleep, it was especially formulated for use with infants and children.

Originally created for a baby that frequently startled from sleep during naps or during the day, it is also useful when a baby is fretful with colic or when teething. This formula is especially suitable when used with CC (formerly Children’s Compound ) if you suspect your child may be coming down with a fever, a cold, the flu, or any other such acute illness.

Wild Lettuce

Wild Lettuce is considered to be a safe sedative that can be given to adults and children to encourage a restful night’s sleep. I would strongly recommend beginning with very small doses, as this herb is quite potent! Even a small dose can calm over-excitability in children and nervous tension in adults that may be preventing them from falling asleep, or sleeping well and soundly.

Wild Lettuce is analgesic and anti-inflammatory and is used to soothe respiratory conditions such as coughs, asthma, and bronchitis.

Featured Blessed Waters for Sleep

Insomnia #1

This low-potency remedy consists of three members of the Phosphorica (Phosphate) family of remedies. These are Ferrum phosphoricum (iron phosphate), Kali phosphoricum (potassium phosphate), and Magnesium phosphoricum (magnesium phosphate).

What is a phosphate? Briefly, phosphate is a type of electrolyte. The body needs phosphates—and needs to uptake presented ones properly—for many important functions. Among them are controlling fluid levels in the body, achieving a maintaining proper pH levels, the formation of strong bones and teeth, and the proper use of both carbohydrates and fats. They are necessary in order for the body to make proteins needed for growth and for the maintenance and repair of cells and tissues.

Homeopathic remedies containing phosphorus do not provide actual phosphorus. Rather, they encourage the proper uptake of the nutrients they are made from.

In addition, homeopathic phosphates (often referred to as Phosphoricums) share some similar emotional characteristics to one another. Among them are:
~ The ability to communicate openly and clearly
~ Competence in anything related to language and learning
~ A great deal of curiosity about the world and a desire to travel and see the world
~ A great deal of sympathy and understanding of another’s pain or problems
~ When out of balance, may put other people’s needs before their own to an unhealthy extent
~ May feel out of touch with people and unable to respond appropriately to their needs
~ There may be a tendency to homesickness when away from loved ones

Insomnia #2

This low-potency remedy is a composite of 9 different remedies. These remedies, like all Blessed Water/Homeopathic remedies, affect the entire system in various ways. The individual remedies found in Insomnia #2 were chosen to cover just about every type and reason for insomnia that can be imagined. In low-potency, this is an effective way to deal with minor insomnia. However, if this remedy works for you to any degree, I would recommend learning about each remedy separately, looking for the remedy that describes you the closest in as many ways as possible. Then, take that remedy in higher potency—according to the theory and practice of Blessed Water/Homeopathic theory. This will bring about deeper and more complete balancing of the body and removal of uncomfortable symptoms.

A list of the remedies in this combination can be found on the website Butterflyexpress.net. A description of the action of each separate remedy in Insomnia #1 can be found in my book, ­Butterfly Miracles with Homeopathic Remedies II.

During particularly stressful times in my life, I have kept one or the other of these remedies (according to my needs at the time) on my bedside table!

Rest

This combination remedy is meant to soothe the mind and body to assist with the ability to achieve deep relaxation and peaceful sleep. It contains only three remedies: Chamomile, Lavender, and White Chestnut.

Chamomile: Indications of need include: Easily upset. Moody. Irritable. Inability to release emotional tension. Inner weather is “stormy” and easily “clouded”. A remedy that is especially useful for children (or anyone else) whose myriads of stomach complaints are often emotionally based.

Lavender: Indications of need include: Nervousness. Insomnia from being over-stimulated. Depleted physical reserves. Low energy. Stressed. Prone to spiritual, emotional, or mental emergencies.

White Chestnut: Indications of need include: Insomnia and other symptoms brought on by a chattering mind and/or repetitive thoughts. These thoughts keep the person awake. There may also be compulsive behavior and some interesting obsessions. Anxiety is a keynote.

Sleep

This wonderful aid to getting a good night’s sleep should be beneficial for just about everyone because of the variety of symptoms found in the 5 homeopathic remedies it contains. There is something for the person who cannot sleep due to pain, anxiety, or bad dreams. There is something for those recovering from illness, and those who feel a deep longing for sleep they cannot seem to achieve. There is even an ingredient for the very exhausted who fall asleep at inappropriate times and in inappropriate places.

^LeEverlasting Essential Oil Blend

This blend is an unusual and very unique essential oil. It is a blend of 5 other essential oil blends: ^LeDreams, ^LeHeartSong, ^LeTrust, ^LeUnity, and ^LeWisdom. Each blend must be allowed to rest and meld together before combining with the other blends to make this powerful emotional/spiritual blend!

Each of the five blends contained in ^LeEverlasting is in the mid to very high frequency range. Each one targets a specific range of emotions. Combining these five blends together into one essential oil blend is an amazing example of synergy. Interestingly, when the 5 higher-range blends are combined, they create a blend with a lower frequency—able to impact the body on a very physical level.

A person using ^LeEverlasting receives the emotional impact of each separate high-frequency blend. At the same time, the lower frequency of the whole carries the healing more deeply into the physical body. The negative emotions are released clear down to the cellular level, and the physical symptoms related to the emotional stress also begin to subside and even to heal!

^LeDreams Essential Oil Blend

Sometimes, when I look back at the ingredient list of the blends that I created so many years ago, I wonder, “How did I know—at that time in my life—to put those particular oils together in a blend! Juniper berry seemed so out of place, based on what I thought I knew about it as an herbal remedy! Of course, being a plant that is useful for the kidneys—and the accompanying emotion of fear and uncertainty—I came to realize that it is a key ingredient in this very powerful blend. Juniper adds a layer of trust in Heaven and an awareness of and reverence for divine aid in our lives.

Whether for frightened children or stressed adults (or anyone in between), ^LeDreams is the first blend I think of when insomnia has become a problem! Of course, it is absolutely essential when persistent nightmares are being experienced.

Daffodil Essential Oil

What an amazing essential oil! The aroma of this essential oil is every bit as pretty and uplifting as looking at a patch of daffodils as they announce the ‘new-life’ energy of Spring. Diffusing or wearing this essential oil gives me a renewed sense of purpose when I need one and the confidence to move forward. I feel less need to stress and worry about things and just enjoy (as one of my favorite sayings says) “bloom right where I am planted”!

I am finding the effect of daffodil on my emotional state difficult to define—just as stated in the book about essential oils that I wrote. Daffodil makes me feel peaceful in a deeply penetrating way while, at the same time, I feel energized, content, and just plain happier and more grateful for all that I have and enjoy!

Daffodil is especially renowned for helping a person relax into sleep, particularly if the previous night’s sleep has been disturbed due to pain or stress.

Coconut Carrier Oil

This carrier oil is the one most frequently used by my husband and me, even though we have, of course, every carrier Butterfly Express has within easy reach! Why?

First, during my husband’s recovery period from serious burns, the very emollient carrier oils and the burn salve (Miracle Salve) we were using for their specific healing properties got warm when applied to his burned skin very rapidly. No matter how often we changed the dressing all over his upper body or how often we changed the bedding (not often because it was very painful for him) on his reclining chair or huge what we called “puff-ball” seating pillows, he swore he could smell the carrier oils and the salve going rancid!

Second, we simply love coconut oil as a carrier. It is odorless and colorless, does not stain clothing, and easily washes out of clothing and bedding. Although it absorbs rapidly, carrying chosen essential oils into the body with it, it has its own skin-moisturizing properties. It also has the added advantage of a long shelf life at room temperature without going rancid in the least! I can keep one by my bed with a few oils. I can even safely leave one in my car for months to be used with whatever essential oil I have stuffed into my purse as I left the house.

Clove, Orange, Pine 3-Oil Kit

What an interesting combination of essential oils to put together into a kit!

Clove Bud

The aroma of Clove Bud is, literally, heart-warming. It helps us to look away from ourselves and our own needs, so we can see the needs of family members and friends, while providing us with just a little bit of extra energy to get up and help meet those needs! What does this have to do with sleep? I know that I certainly sleep better when I know that I have seen and met the needs of someone around me who needs a little bit of a lift!

Clove Bud oil lifts depression, leaving behind a feeling of optimism and lightness. Clove Bud oil can create and sustain a positive outlook and attitude—and there are some days lately when I seem to need that more than in the past!

Orange

The aroma of Orange oil is simply delightful! It promotes feelings of well-being and happiness. Whether by itself or as part of a blend, orange oil promotes restful sleep. My favorite description of the emotional aspects of Orange oil is that it brings peace and happiness to the mind and body and joy to the heart. In addition, I find that the aroma of orange oil makes even the most mundane practical task seem enjoyable. That is a good thing since one of my favorite uses for orange oil is in cleaning sludge and fingerprints off the fronts of my kitchen cabinets, and removing sticky residues from any surface safely.

Pine

The aroma of Pine essential oil can bring us true wisdom through the acceptance of what was and the acknowledgment of what is and what can be in the future. In my life, pine helps me establish a healthy respect for my own needs, including the need for rest and the need for an opportunity to slow down and rejuvenate myself. (Sad as I am to admit this to myself and to you, slowing down and meeting my own needs for rest is a struggle for me—always!)

Pine addresses that less-than-wholesome aspect of my personality. It does that by itself or, better yet, in one of my favorite blends of which it is an ingredient. Pine is an ingredient in ^LeGrateful Heart (that one is useful for me almost every day!) It is also a key ingredient in ^LeSanctuary (one of my favorites because it creates feelings of being alone and able to concentrate even in this madhouse I live/work in!). Although ^LeAspire is for lungs and for dissolving bone spurs and calcium deposits, it also brings peace and courage to the soul. Pine is also in the ^LeEnergy blend, which, for so many reasons, is an all-time favorite of mine because it balances both the mechanical and electrical functions of the heart. For me, as the heart settles in, I am able to relax into sleep.

Grapefruit, Rosemary, Tea Tree 3-Oil Kit

Grapefruit

Grapefruit is one of the most upbeat, joyous, and positive essential oils. The role of grapefruit, as a single or as part of a blend, is two-fold. First, grapefruit relieves mental exhaustion and calms that voice in our minds that tells us we are not good enough and never will be. This oil is especially noted for work with eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia which, so often, are driven by discontent with and body-shaming of oneself!

The aroma of Grapefruit is particularly suited to people who, when tense or under pressure, eat as a means of relieving stress or finding comfort. Often, the driving emotion is frustration because their too high expectations have not been met in some way. If they reacted to their frustration with anger or blamed themselves or others, a layer of guilt is added to the frustration.

Rosemary

In emotional work using essential oils, often the influence of the oil is to create a haven of safety from which the person can relearn how to relate to their world. This is not the case with Rosemary. Rosemary fosters an inquisitive spirit. Rosemary sends us out in all directions, looking for light and understanding. Understanding truth is energy in its essential form. Understanding ourselves and what is expected of us by heaven is the most important truth. This understanding is light, and light is knowledge.

People who would benefit from Rosemary oil, or one of the blends that contain it, when balanced and healthy, thrive on work. They rarely become imbalanced because of overwork or even stress. Whatever has taken them ‘off-line’ is almost always emotional and, too often, the hurt or injustice is perception rather than reality.

Rosemary can send any of us, at any time, on a quest to understand ourselves and our circumstances. With understanding comes peace and a return to balanced and productive energy. Rosemary is a key ingredient in a total of 20 Butterfly Express blends.

Tea Tree

As with Rosemary essential oil, the aroma of Tea Tree can help us replace a victim mentality and outlook with a desire to understand and accept the events and circumstances of our lives, past and present. Personally, I do not care for the aroma of tea tree. (That is a gentle way of saying I quite firmly dislike the aroma of Tea Tree!) However, I can be honest enough with myself—and with you—to admit that this aversion is quite likely the result of realizing that whining (or ‘murmuring’ as it is described in scripture) is a less-than-admirable trait of mine that shows up too often when I am stressed or tired.

Blends which contain Tea Tree: ^LeCandila, ^LeExhale, ^LeMelaPlus, ^LePurify, and ^LeSimplicity. ^LeExhale and ^LePurify are two of my favorite blends. How can this be? I surmise that it is because the emotional impact of the Tea Tree is softened—it hits a little less dramatically and gives me a better shot at proper processing of these emotions.

Tea Tree essential oil is effective against some of the nastiest microbes on the planet. Tea Tree is also a mild tissue regenerator, making it a sensible choice for rashes, nail or skin fungal infections, wounds, cold sores, acne, athlete’s foot, ringworm, head lice, vaginal thrush (dilute very well here), and candida.

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