Nature's Therapy: Discover 5 Soothing Herbs for Your Spa Shower Routine

July brings heat waves and sticky summer afternoons,long days spent outside and probably a sunburn or two even among the most sunscreen-conscious among us. For me there is nothing more satisfying after a long day of work in the garden than taking a long herb-infused shower with botanicals picked fresh from the garden.

Adding herbal and aromatherapy elements to your bathing ritual has been a long standing tradition in cultures around the world, but there’s just something extra rewarding about it when you grow those flowers and herbs yourself. So head out to the garden and clip a few sprigs of whatever calls to you - we’ll go over some of the easiest ways to include plants in your shower routine.

Learning about how different herbs can provide different benefits for the skin and body can bring you closer to nature and yourself, as well as offering a ton of ways you can support yourself through a self care ritual not rooted in consumerism (hard to find these days). You’re probably familiar with using fragrant botanicals like eucalyptus and lavender in your spa shower routine, but here’s a few more herbs and flowers you should consider including next time you’re looking for a soothing sensory experience in the shower:

Best herbs for use in a spa shower routine

Peppermint: Peppermint has a cooling and refreshing scent that can help alleviate headaches, improve digestion, and boost energy levels. Sharp and energizing, perfect for hot days.

Rosemary: Rosemary has a woody and earthy scent that can help improve focus and concentration. It can also help boost the immune system and relieve stress. I love using rosemary in the winter, but for summer showers it adds a deep element that can’t be replicated.

Chamomile: Chamomile has a calming and soothing scent that can help reduce stress and anxiety. It can also help promote better sleep and alleviate skin irritations. This is my go to for chaotic weeks where work seems like it will never be done.

Lemongrass: Lemongrass has a fresh and citrusy scent that can help uplift the mood and relieve stress and anxiety. It can also help alleviate pain and inflammation in muscles and joints. Chronic pain baddies take note: lemongrass is a hard worker in your herbal medicine cabinet.

Frankincense: Frankincense has a warm and woody scent that can help promote relaxation and spiritual well-being. It can also help boost the immune system and improve respiratory health.

How to Create an Herb-Infused Shower

The options for ways to include herbs in your spa shower routine are practically endless. But here are a few simple methods you can make quickly and easily:

Herbs for Exfoliation

Including herbs in your sugar scrubs can support skin health and boost healthy glow while providing antimicrobial benefits that could help reduce blemish and acne. Smaller flower buds work best for blending into sugar scrubs. My favorites are Rosemary and Lavender for this technique. I would avoid brittle leaves that can break into lots of tiny pieces. To make a sugar scrub, combine 1 cup white or raw sugar with ¼-½ cup carrier oil of choice. I like to use almond or jojoba oil. To this mixture, add approximately a tablespoon of your dried herbs of choice and 15-20 drops of essential oil.

To use your DIY herbal scrub, scoop out a small amount and slowly massage into your skin in a circular motion. Rinse with warm water. Be careful - this can make your tub slippery!

Rinsing with Herbal Tea

An herbal tea shower rinse can make your shower feel like a spa instantly, and all you need is herbs and water. Use soothing chamomile for a relaxing shower after a long day or uplifting lemongrass in your shower rinse when you need to wake up and energize for a busy afternoon. To make an herbal rinse, just steep 2 tablespoons of your herbs of choice in 2 cups of hot water and allow to cool slightly so you don’t burn yourself. Pour over your body slowly at the end of your shower, after rinsing off with your usual soap of choice. Don’t rinse this off! Just pat dry and enjoy the subtle effects for the rest of your day.

Herbs for Aromatherapy

By now, most of us are familiar with the benefits of aromatherapy. This is one of my favorite ways to enhance my shower routine so it really feels like a spa day at home, and one of the longest lasting. In the summer I almost always have a bundle of fresh herbs drying on my shower head, which means I’m almost always enjoying the benefits of aromatherapy in the shower.

There’s a good reason shower aromatherapy is so popular. Botanicals like eucalyptus and peppermint can help alleviate respiratory issues and ease congestion, while the steam from the shower can also help open up the airways and promote better breathing. The use of aromatherapy in the shower can help uplift the mood and improve mental clarity and focus. It can help boost energy levels and promote a sense of positivity and well-being. Overall, aromatherapy in the shower can provide a relaxing and rejuvenating experience that promotes both physical and mental health.

The easiest way to use aromatherapy in the shower is by hanging a simple bundle of botanicals from your shower head using twine. You can also place loose herbs in a cloth sachet and steep this in your tub for a botanical bath with no cleanup necessary. The steam from your shower will release the active fragrance oil compounds in the plants into the air. To reap the benefits of this method, avoid turning on the vent fan in your bathroom if you can so the room can fill with steam (don’t do this often though and make sure you run it when you’re done to avoid mold and mildew buildup on your bathroom walls!)

Maximizing the benefits of the herb-infused shower

Want to go deeper? If you’re in need of a true mental reset, there’s a couple ways you can maximize the benefits of these herbal spa shower techniques

Breath Work

Breath work is a practice that can bring you into the present moment, allowing you to clear your head and fully notice what is happening around you. Box breathing, also known as square breathing, is a deep breathing technique that can help reduce stress and anxiety. Here's how to practice it:

• Close your eyes and take a deep breath in through your nose for four seconds.

• Hold your breath for four seconds.

• Exhale slowly through your mouth for four seconds.

• Hold your breath for four seconds.

• Repeat steps 2-5 for several minutes, or until you feel calm and relaxed.

Remember to breathe deeply from your diaphragm, rather than shallow breaths from your chest. You can also try visualizing a box or square as you breathe, with each side representing one part of the breathing cycle. With practice, box breathing can become a useful tool to help you manage stress and feel more centered.

Acupressure

Acupressure mats are excellent for relieving joint pain, and if you’re wondering if acupressure for back pain is effective, it is! Two studies were funded by the European Union in 2014. In this study, 97% observed total muscle relaxation, improved posture, and a stronger-feeling spine, 93% observed a total elimination or significant reduction of back pain. But what does this have to do with your shower routine? Acupressure significantly increases the intensity of blood flow in the circulation of the skin and accelerates cell metabolism. Your skin will be bright red for 15-30 minutes after an acupressure session, and a bit hot to the touch as though you’ve already taken a hot shower. You’ll just have to trust me on this one - if you see how my skin looks after using the acupressure mat in this post, you’ll understand why this increase in circulation can improve the intensity and effectiveness of your spa shower experience.

Adding essential oils To Your Shower for extra relaxation and benefits

If you’re experimenting with aromatherapy in the shower using herbs but you’re finding the effect isn’t powerful enough, adding a few drops of essential oil to your herb bundles can dramatically increase the scent and intensity of your aromatherapy shower experience. I always keep a few bottles nearby - orange and lavender are my favorites.

Lastly, I want to encourage you to experiment with different herbs and techniques to find the best fit for your individual needs. The most gratifying thing about herbalism is finding the plants that you personally connect with the most, that resonate with your body's needs, and your list may look very different from mine. I’ve always said if I was a plant, I would be rosemary - it feels like my ultimate plant friend, designed for exactly what I struggle with. But your answer will most likely be different. The herbs I mentioned here are just a few of the hundreds you could grow, harvest and use in your herb infused spa shower routine.

The Power of Nature: How To Make Infused Oregano Oil for Your Health and Wellness [Recipe]

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Last fall, I woke up with a deep earache - an ear infection the likes of which I had not experienced since I was a child. As a result, I found myself standing in front of the bathroom mirror with my head tipped to one side dripping a mysterious oil from a jar into my ear. Anyone walking by probably would’ve died laughing, but no one was laughing when a few days later I happened to have my yearly physical and asked my doctor to see if the infection had fully cleared as I expected - and it had.

Oregano oil is so trusted and well understood that even this western medicine professional said to me “I’m not surprised that it worked, because oregano is very anti-bacterial”

Oregano is probably one of the safest, most widely studied, accessible and effective herbs for any beginner herbalist to begin experimenting with. Not only can you easily grow an abundance in your own backyard, it’s readily available at nearly every grocery store if you can’t grow it yourself. And truly all you need to make an infused oregano oil is oregano, and olive oil.

Benefits of oregano oil

So what is oregano oil good for? According to the NIH, “Essential oils of oregano are widely recognized for their antimicrobial activity, as well as their antiviral and antifungal properties…recent investigations have demonstrated that these compounds are also potent antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antidiabetic and cancer suppressor agents.”

Oregano oil is high in compounds that are potent antioxidants, such as carvacrol, thymol, and triterpenes. Antioxidants may protect your cells against free radicals, which may play a role in heart disease, cancer and other diseases. Free radicals are molecules produced when your body breaks down food or when you're exposed to tobacco smoke or radiation.

Oregano oil is also excellent for fighting against fungal and bacterial infection thanks to its antifungal and antimicrobial properties (that’s why it helped me with my ear infection!)

It is known that oregano oil may help with acne, asthma, psoriasis and wound healing. And the best way to get these oregano oil health benefits is through infusing your oregano in olive oil to extract the essential oils packed within.

What is oil of oregano?

Oil of oregano and oregano infused oil are the same thing. They are both, however, different from oregano ESSENTIAL oil, which is much more concentrated and not safe for consumption. Oil of oregano is a more diluted oregano oil that is safe for all applications.

Oregano oil uses

So how can you use oregano oil? The simplest application is to just incorporate it into your salad dressings and cooking. This infused oil is entirely edible and adds beautiful depth of flavor to your dishes while also imparting the health benefits listed above.

Oregano oil for colds

In a lab environment (in-vitro) oregano was shown to kill certain cold and flu viruses. We know that this doesn’t always translate to the same effect inside of the body, but while there is limited evidence outside of a lab environment to support the use of oregano oil for colds it may help with a cough much the same way that Vicks vaporub does - minus the petroleum.

Oregano oil for skin

For certain types of acne caused by a buildup of bacteria, using infused oregano oil as a face moisturizer allows you to experience the antimicrobial effects of oregano oil and help reduce the appearance of blemishes. If you plan to use it in this application, choose a non-comedogenic carrier oil for your infusion so you don’t end up just clogging your pores more.

Oregano oil for ear infections

You’ve probably figured this out by now, but oregano oil is great for ear infections. To use, I just dipped my pinkie into the jar of infused oil and allowed one drop to fall into my ear. I did this 3x a day for 5 days until the pain was gone.

Homegrown VS Store Bought Herbs

Store bought herbs don't just look different, they ARE different. So why are homegrown herbs better for you?

Think about the difference between a bagged, pre-chopped salad and the lettuce you picked up from the farmers market.

They're both still lettuce, but one is darker, fresher, and much more flavorful.

That flavor directly translates to compounds in the plant that are nutritionally dense. It tastes better because it's better for you! The older the produce is, the more those nutrients break down.

Herbs are the same way. When you get store bought herbs, there is almost no way to guarantee their freshness or quality. Yes, even dried herbs can be fresh! It's likely that if you're seeing faded colors or a lot of dust in your herbs indicating it's begun to break down, the beneficial compounds within the herbs themselves are not potent anymore.

Growing your own herbs or buying from a small herbalist shop is the best way to ensure the quality of your final herbal preparation. It also eliminates the great amount of waste and emissions involved in packaging and shipping herbs, since even though many herbs like oregano grow all over the country, when you purchase them from a large store they often come from overseas. If you can’t grow your herbs yourself or find a small local shop, I recommend purchasing from Mountain Rose Herbs.

What Type of Oil is Best for Infusing Herbs?

You can use many different oils to infuse herbs depending on your preference, budget and intended use. I used olive oil for this herbal oil infusion, but sweet almond oil, grapeseed oil and apricot oil also will work as carrier oils safe for topical use. Olive oil is by far the cheapest and most easy to find, and has a longer shelf life, but sweet almond oil is affordable as well and has no smell, plus it includes vitamin E and K. Both are good options that I use regularly! I haven’t tried grapeseed or apricot oil myself.

Best Container for Herbal Infusions

When infusing herbs in oil, you should always choose a plastic free container to avoid leaching any dangerous chemicals into your oil. I like to use a glass mason jar to infuse my oil since we always have so many extra on hand and they are durable and cheap, but if you don’t have somewhere dark you can store a clear jar, then a tinted glass jar or bottle is best to keep out sunlight, since UV rays can reduce the effectiveness and longevity of your infused oils.

How to make oregano oil

There are many ways to make an infused oil but my favorite is a simple folk method - this means we won’t be making any exact measurements. You’ll find that many herbalists employ a folk method for their skincare concoctions since accuracy in dosing is not generally a requirement unless taken internally.

To make an infused oil using the folk method, all you need to do is fill your mason jar about halfway with oregano, then cover at least an inch above the herbs with your oil of choice. I usually end up filling the jar almost all the way to the top. Tap lightly on a solid surface to make sure there are no air bubbles trapped in the oil and place the infusing oil jar in a cool dark place such as a closet or pantry (somewhere out of direct sunlight) for about six weeks. You can regularly shake the jar to redistribute the oil, and you may notice that after the first day or two much of the oil has been absorbed into the dried herbs and you will need to add more to keep the flowers completely covered in oil. This is normal and to be expected.

If you would rather not wait a full six weeks to have ready-to-use infused oil, you can speed up the infusion process using your stove top. Place your jar in a double boiler on your stove and simmer as low as possible for up to 3 hours. Your oil will be ready to use as soon as it cools, or you can wait a couple of weeks to allow your infusion to develop and grow stronger. You can also simmer your jar in a slow cooker for 3 hours the same way.

Some herbalists allow their oil to infuse on a sunny windowsill - personally I am against this method in most cases as it causes the oil to be exposed to large amounts of ultraviolet light which can break down the beneficial compounds. It may be fine if you plan to immediately move the jar to dark storage once it is done, or if you allow it to infuse only a couple of weeks on the windowsill before moving to a darker spot to finish infusing.

Will you try this easy and fast oregano oil recipe?