Deep Pain Relief Gel
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OH yea. You know the feeling. The I’m-so-sore-I-can’t-pull-my-pants-up feeling. Or is that just me from doing a little too much yoga? HA!
Now I’m really not a fan of pulling the ol’ “I’m getting older” ploy, but seriously you guys! Once you hit your thirties apparently your body decides to rebel a little!! Both my hubby and I have been having some weird things happen. From seriously stiff necks, to spasm-ing shoulders, our bodies are not loving us right now. I have a hunch that some of it is directly correlated to the stress of moving and settling into a new place—but it’s so frustrating!
All the pain led us to get serious about Chiropractic care (again) and also join a gym to get back in shape. Racquetball is our favorite gym activity to do together. So funny and such great cardio! But boy was I crazy sore after the first time we played!! This gel helped to calm my poor muscles down a bit and get them on their way to serving me better.
This gel is so beautiful to use because it absorbs super quickly unlike most creams. No waiting 15 minutes for it to absorb. Give it a few seconds and it’ll soak right in.
This is a 3% dilution of essential oils, which is a bit higher than normal, and definitely not for kids. If you feel you need an even more potent gel, you could go up to a 5% dilution—but I would start at the 3% and see how that does. Remember to check out our dilution chart to learn more!
And yes! You will need a scale! The most accurate body care products are made by weighing out the ingredients. For more details on how to weigh ingredients, check out the video tutorial here.
Now let’s get on with it—those muscles are waiting to be soothed!
Deep Pain Relief Gel
Ingredients
65 grams aloe vera gel
17 grams St. John’s wort herbal oil (or chamomile)
14 grams bay laurel hydrosol (or juniper)
0.7 grams peppermint essential oil (about 17 drops)
1 gram birch essential oil (about 22 drops)
1 gram bay laurel essential oil (about 28 drops)
0.3 grams helichrysum (about 8 drops)
1 gram natural preservative
Directions
In a small bowl weigh out all the ingredients except the essential oils and preservative. Mix well to combine.
You will notice that we are attempting to mix water and oil together, which generally doesn’t work well. However, the aloe vera has both lipophilic and hydrophilic tendencies which means it loves both oil and water. This allows both of them to stay suspended in the aloe vera. As you mix they will slowly begin to come together and create a somewhat creamy looking gel.
Once you have a smooth looking consistency, do a quick test on your arm to make sure you like how it absorbs. Sometimes it can feel a bit tacky so feel free to add a teensy bit more water or oil if you feel it’s necessary. Just be sure to adjust the other ingredients accordingly so you still have a 100 gram final product.
When you are happy with how it feels on your skin, go ahead and add in the essential oils and the preservative. Mix well to combine.
Transfer the gel to a small glass jar with a lid.
Use as needed for pain. Just be sure you are not using this on open cuts or wounds and not while pregnant or breastfeeding.
Store in a cool dark place, possibly even the fridge, although I don’t think applying a cold gel would necessarily be pleasant on painful muscles. Use within a couple months and be sure to discard if it starts to smell funny.
It is possible to make this without the preservative, however, that will dramatically decrease the self life and you would want to use it within 1-2 weeks. Totally up to you, though!
Benefits of the ingredients
Aloe vera gel
For this recipe the main purpose of the aloe vera gel is to dilute the essential oils as well as to combine the herbal oil and hydrosol. It’s general properties of being soothing to the skin, while always a benefit, isn’t our top goal for this recipe. So really, we are using this as a “carrier” for all the other ingredients.
St. john’s wort infused herbal oil
St. John’s wort has nervine, anti-inflammatory, vulnerary, antispasmodic, and antimicrobial properties which makes it a powerful healer for muscle pain, bruises, and even sprains. It helps to reduce pain, swelling, and inflammation. As a nervine it can actually help relieve nerve pain including sciatica and rheumatism. Some questions have been asked about the dangers of photo-toxicity and St. John’s wort so here is a quote from Rosalee de la Forêt on this matter:
After using this plant regularly for over a decade and reviewing this literature, here’s what I’ve learned: Regular internal use of St. John’s wort in whole-plant form (tea or tincture) does not appear to cause photosensitivity. Internally using large amounts of hypericin, an isolated constituent of St. John’s wort, increases the likelihood of experiencing photosensitivity. When cows eat pounds and pounds of St. John’s wort, they experience severe negative effects. (This is why St. John’s wort is considered a noxious weed in much of the western United States.) Topically using St. John’s wort infused oil can be a mild protectant from the sun. However, it would be ill-advised to attempt this on someone with fair skin who is suddenly getting unusual amounts of sun exposure. Be aware that there are reports from herbalists of people using St. John’s wort in normal amounts who have experienced photosensitivity. I think it’s prudent to keep this in mind and to slowly test out someone’s personal level of sensitivity.
Text from https://learningherbs.com/remedies-recipes/st-johns-wort/
Copyright © 2018 LearningHerbs.
That link also shares how to make an herbal infused oil from St. John’s wort. Only the fresh plant material should be used, which is different from most other herbal oils. A good St. John’s wort infusion will be a brilliant red color.
Chamomile infused herbal oil
If you do not have access to fresh St. John’s wort to make the infused herbal oil, then feel free to substitute chamomile infused herbal oil. Chamomile is a powerful antiinflammatory which helps relieve muscle pain by helping them to relax.
Bay laurel hydrosol
Bay laurel is an analgesic which means it is a pain reliever. This makes is very useful for muscular pain, rheumatism, and neuralgia.
peppermint essential oil
Peppermint essential oil is a powerful analgesic and antiinflammatory. It is often used for migraines. Peppermint helps greatly to reduce muscle pain and inflammation in the body.
Birch essential oil
Birch essential oils is analgesic, antiinflammatory, and antispasmodic. It helps relieve pain, relax tight muscles, heal painful joints, and soothes rheumatism.
Bay laurel essential oil
Just like the bay laurel hydrosol, the essential oil is also an analgesic which helps relieve muscular pain, rheumatism, and neuralgia.
Helichrysum
Helichrysum is antiinflammatory, antispasmodic, and nervine. It helps with all types of muscular aches and pains, arthritis, rheumatism, and sprains.
Where to purchase the ingredients
I appreciate you taking the time to read my blog! By purchasing through one of my affiliate links you will not spend a penny more, but you are allowing me to receive a small commission. This allows me to keep posting great content for you. Thanks for your support!
If you are unable to grow your own herbs, or find ingredients locally, then here are two of my favorite places to buy bulk ingredients:
Some of the ingredients you can make yourself such as the infused herbal oil and hydrosol if you have access to the ingredients. Check out the tutorials I’ve made!
And my favorite essential oil brand is Garden Essence.