100 Essential Oil Recipes to Reclaim Your Vibrancy
Angela Sidlo
Copyright 2018
Saddle Mt. Healing Arts Press
While attending the National Association of Holistic Aromatherapy (NAHA) conference in 2018 I was fortunate enough to meet Angela. During the conference Angela shared that she was in the process of releasing this book. Being a woman over 40 I know that I soon will be experiencing symptoms of perimenopause and menopause so I was looking forward to getting a copy.
Angela is a diversified healer with certifications in holistic aromatherapy, health coaching, reflexology and Reiki. She is also the NAHA director for Oregon.
Like many natural health practitioners Angela became frustrated with the traditional medical model of symptom treatment for menopause. Although Angela did have some aromatic plant medicine knowledge it wasn’t until she was in her mid 40’s that she reconnected with that knowledge from childhood. As she began to take a variety of courses in several modalities she utilized her growing knowledge of essential oils and the endocrine system to help re-balance her hormones.
Part 1
This section provides a brief overview of how Angela discovered essential oils and other holistic modalities to support her journey through menopause. For anyone new to essential oils there is a description of how essential oils are acquired. Also, a description of how they work within the body. This part also includes the safety overview. For me ensuring that appropriate safety information is provided signifies an aromatherapy book is written by a qualified individual.
Part 2
Understanding your hormones. For any women getting ready to enter this time of life needs to understand our hormones. We may have learned the basics of these at some point, but Angela explains how these are being affected by our transition into the crone years. I found this quote interesting “In my opinion cortisol and adrenaline are more likely to adversely affect your health than estrogen or progesterone.” That points to how traditional medicine only educates us on one aspect. We really do have to dig deeper to educate ourselves on these changes.
Within this section Angela changed the margins of the writing allowing readers space to make notes. As a bibliophile I had mixed feelings on this but do appreciate the space to make notes. Personally, I filled this space with sticky notes full of notes and used as page markers. Do you write in your books?
Part 3
Quick reference guides. As the title suggests these few pages are tables that break down symptoms and what hormone will create the symptom. The other table is an essential oil “mapper” which provides a guide related to the hormone and which essential oil may assist in balancing that hormone.
Part 4
As promised by the title is 100 essential oil recipes. Having read quite a few aromatherapy books and attended hundreds of hours of certification courses I appreciate the wide variety of recipes provided. Angela put a lot of thought into each blend and how it can sooth an individual.
My education has suggested adding a dispersant to bath salts, so I adjusted some of her recipes to include that. Again, this section has the space to add notes. If you are new to essential oils reach out to Angela or a qualified aromatherapist to discuss the specific oils. If you plan to experiment with the recipes, I would encourage you to take notes.
In conclusion
I found this book full of good information to help a woman in her menopause journey. I would consider the recipes portion not for a beginning essential oil user. You do need to have a basic understand of the various oils and their safety precautions when using them. This book is a quick read at 150 pages.
Angela plans to write a series of books about Menopause Success. I am looking forward to reading the next one. To learn more about Angela Sidlo visit her site at AngelaSidlo.com. If you would like to get a copy order on her site here.
If you have questions for me or a book you would like to review, please contact me or leave a comment.
