Let’s talk about essential oils for fertility! From what oils are recommended and supportive to your hormones, to the ones you should stay away from.
In this post I will outline 4 ways you can add essential oils (EOs) into your life to benefit your fertility as well as some of my favorite blends and recipes. I often recommend in my fertility yoga classes that students diffuse some essential oils while they are practicing – to help bring ease and calm into their space, bodies, and minds. They love it <3
And before we go any further – let’s put this out there right at the beginning – essential oils are not going to miraculously cure you of infertility. If someone tries to tell you this, consider it a red flag and run the opposite direction…immediately.
However, essential oils can be supportive to your fertility through secondary pathways.
So let’s explore Essential Oils and fertility!
PS – there are some affiliate links in this post!
What Are Essential Oils?
Here is the quick and dirty – because I know that you want to get on to the good stuff! But – this is important – because many people don’t understand how powerful and potent oils are.
- Essential oils are powerful plant extracts
- Depending on the plant, all or some parts of the plants may be used (roots, leaves, flowers, stalks)
- Oils are extracted using steam distillation or pressing
- Pounds of plants can be used to produce one single bottle of essential oils – so it is HIGHLY CONCENTRATED plant power
- Each essential oil has different chemical compositions – they don’t just smell good, but they can also affect the body through multiple chemical pathways.
Essential Oil Delivery Pathways
Inhalation: molecules travel from the olfactory nerves directly to the brain – the scent molecules strongly affect the brain’s emotional center, the amygdala. Diffusing essential oils or using an EO inhaler are ways we inhale molecules and is generally a safe means of gaining the effects of the oils.
Transdermal: Or through the skin. Many soaps, body oils and lotions have essential oils added, for the amazing benefits they may have on your skin. Specific oils can be used in massage that will help to relax the muscles.
Ingestion: swallowing essential oils is practiced by some – but I would highly recommend NOT ingesting any essential oils. They are highly concentrated plant extracts and can be toxic when ingested.
When using essential oils for fertility, we will only be working with the Inhalation and Transdermal Pathways.
Which Essential Oils Are Good/Bad for Fertility?
Let’s start with the big picture with which essential oils are recommended for fertility and which to avoid. This is based on their chemical structure and that they can be balancing to hormones.
The following information and recommendations are based on this chart – so no worries – I won’t recommend oils from the ‘No! For Fertility’ list.
4 Ways to Use Essential Oils for Fertility
1. Hormonal balancing with essential oils and fertility massage
Essential oils can directly affect reproductive hormones – therefore, use them wisely when massaging your pelvic area. I recommend to my students to only do fertility massage during the follicular and ovulation phase – and stop during the luteal (2 week wait) phase. If you’d like to try doing fertility self massage – I recommend reading this first and following the instructions.
These are common oils that have been used specifically for topical use for fertility massage:
Clary Sage – estrogen balancing, relieves cramping
Geranium – estrogen balancing
Ylang ylang – reduces cramping and muscle tension
Lavender – relaxing and lowers cortisol levels
Other oils that are used to help with female fertility and can be included in a massage blend include:
Chamomile, Cardamom, Frankincense, Ginger, Lemon, Cypress, Melissa (Lemon Balm), and Coriander.
The recipe below is my favorite blend for a fertility abdominal massage during the follicular phase (menstruation up to ovulation) – from Valerie Ann Worwood’s The Complete Book of Essential Oils and Aromatherapy.
During the follicular and ovulation phases only! Start by massaging the lower back with both hands, then move over the hips and around the whole abdomen, the upper thighs, and buttocks. Apply twice a day during the follicular phase and ovulation – do not use during the luteal phase or if you think you might pregnant, or after an embryo transfer.
2. Going non-toxic with essential oils to benefit your fertility
One of the best ways to utilize essential oils to support your fertility, is to use them as a non-toxic alternative to many household and body care products.
If you’re dealing with fertility issues, you know that many of the products that are commonly used and sold in the stores are endocrine disruptors and mess around with your estrogen. Not to mention carcinogenic substances and irritants also found in our products.
The FDA is failing us with what is allowed in/on our food and what is considered ‘safe’ for our bodies. For fertility – changing to non-toxic products is paramount.
Here are ways I use essential oils in the home.
Counter spray, body wash, shampoo/conditioner bars, lotions with EO, body oils with EO, washing my floor, dish washer detergent, laundry detergent! I also make my own bathroom spray. Basically – anywhere I get the chance to use them, I will!
Many essential oils – like the citrus oils and pine or fire oils have antibacterial and antimicrobial properties.
One of my favorite ways to use essential oils for the body is using them as your signature scent. I use a solid essential oil aroma from Sea With Botanicals – I love the Faie Ring scent (Bergamont, Patchouli, Orange, and Neroli). You could also make your own scent with a roller bottle – just add some jojoba oil and your favorite fertility friendly scents (from the yes column above).
There has been a surge of amazing smelling paraben free roll on perfumes that use essential oils. BUT many of these still contain perfume oils which is what ‘fragrance’ is made from. Fragrance often contain phthalates which is a known hormone disruptor. It matters – and here is a great article about fragrance.
And…did you know…and please don’t shoot the messenger – that Mrs. Meyers uses ‘fragrance’ oils in their products – not just essential oils. Plus a whole bunch of other ingredients that are considered irritants? I love this article that breaks it all down for you. I know so many people love their Mrs Meyers products and believe they are being non-toxic. Even the EWG gives most of their products a moderate hazard scores.
My rule is: if something is very intensely aromatic (like Mrs Meyers products), then it’s not using only EOs – it may contain some, so they can claim on the label that it contains EOs! Read your labels – if there is ‘fragrance’ listed then take a pass.
There are now so many great companies doing amazing things with face and body products that are non toxic and scented with only EOs.
Infuse Organics, in Leavenworth WA (my friend and neighbor) makes the best products that are natural, effective, and organic! Check her out – she’s the real deal – I highly recommend her bar shampoo and conditioner – they actually work and they smell AMAZING!
Here’s my favorite counter spray recipe that is safe for your fertility.
3. Mental/emotional support with essential oils during the fertility journey
Essential oils have amazing mental/emotional effects that can enhance relaxation & concentration, ease stress, and be a sleep aid.
The best ways to get the mental and emotional benefits of EOs is through inhalation – diffusion, inhaler, or a roll on.
Below are some common fertility mental/emotional areas that can be supported with essential oils.
Stress Relief & sleep during the fertility journey:
Much of the research on essential oils has been done on the power of essential oils for stress relief – and the research says – EO’s can really help!
Here are my fertility friendly suggestions:
- Bergamot
- Cardamom
- Sweet Orange
- Cedarwood
- Clary Sage
- Frankincense
- Lavender
Diffusing or using a roll on before meditation/prayer/or bed can be extremely helpful to relieve stress and get a good night’s sleep.
Anxiety, worry, & fear – both have to do with the future and are so common when dealing with fertility – because there is so much unknown.
In these instances you can use essential oils to calm the mind and emotions.
Earthy stabilizing scents that bring you back to a grounded space and the present moment are amazing for anxiety. These are called base notes:
- Sandalwood
- Frankincense
- Cedarwood
- Patchouli
- Tobacco Flower
- Vanilla
- Ylang Ylang
- Lavender – technically not a base note
Essential oils for a broken heart: Fertility journeys often come hand in hand with loss – pregnancy loss, embryo loss, loss of time, loss of a cycle. To help with heartache – heart centered middle notes are lovely:
- Lavender
- Geranium
- Chamomile
- Lemon balm
- Neroli/Nerolina
When you’re feeling sad or slow to start and need to get moving – try bright top & citrus notes
- Ravistara
- Peppermint
- Eucalyptus
- Bergamot
- Orange
- Lemon
- Lime
- Grapefruit
One of my favorite books is Aromatherapy for Healing the Spirit: Restoring Emotional and Mental Balance with Essential Oils, by Gabriel Mojay. He explains in great depth the uses of the essential oils as well as how they restore emotional and mental balance.
4. Essential oils as an aphrodisiac to benefit fertility
Always welcome if you’re trying with a partner! Diffusing or making a massage oil with some of the following might make for a romantic evening.
- Sandalwood
- Neroli
- Clary Sage
- Cinnamon
- Vetiver
- Geranium
You can also find pre blended aphrodisiac essential oil blends.
Precautions and Best Practices for Essential Oils
The Importance of Dilution
When we’re putting essential oils on our bodies – dilution is very important. Here – more is NOT better, nor is putting oils neat (or undiluted) on the skin recommended. Even before putting diluted oil blends on your body, it is recommended to do a patch test first.
For a blend that you would use often – an appropriate dilution rate would be 2-5 drops in 1 tsp carrier oil.
A carrier oil can be as simple as organic olive oil from your kitchen or jojoba oil which is easy to find and affordable. If you’re feeling like spending more money, you can find many different carrier oils that have their own chemical make ups! I just use organic olive oil from Costco for all my body oils!
Other Things to Consider:
PETS: Please be aware that many essential oils are not recommended for small pets. For example these oils are considered toxic for pets – eucalyptus oil, tea tree oil, cinnamon, citrus oils, peppermint, pine, wintergreen, and ylang ylang.
SMALL CHILDREN: It is generally recommended that essential oils not be diffused in a house with children under 3 and there are certain oils to avoid in general. Therapeutic use of essential oils for kids is a whole other topic of discussion and beyond the scope of this post – but something you should definitely be aware of.
PREGNANCY: If you think you may be pregnant – stick to the pregnancy safe practices of essential oils. Again this is beyond the scope of this article – but here is some great information concerning pregnancy and EOs.
BUY ORGANIC AND SUSTAINABLY HARVESTED & PURITY TESTED OILS: Think about the amount of plant that goes into one tiny 1 oz bottle – it’s powerfully concentrated and takes up pounds of plant matter! We don’t want toxins concentrated in our EO’s nor do we want to decimate plants in the wild. That being said, many plants that are harvested sustainably from the wild, you can get away with them not being organic.
Where to buy good quality essential oils:
Please don’t buy cheap EOs on Amazon – like the other products I was mentioning earlier – if there is ‘some’ essential oils in there, they can market it as essential oils – but often they have fillers and perfume oils added. Yuck.
Here are my go to places for essential oils:
Mountain Rose Herbs
Aromatic International
Eden’s Garden
But what about my friend who does DoTerra or Young Living MLM? It’s great to support your friends – just know that you will be paying a higher price for the oils and supporting questionable business practices and medical advice. You can read a little bit more here and here.
Your Fertility Friendly Essential Oil Starter Kit
So now you know all of these amazing ways to use essential oils to support your fertility – but where is one to start. What do you need to get going?
- A diffuser (preferably not plastic)
- a couple inhalers
- a few roll on bottles
- amber apothecary bottles
Grab some organic olive oil from the store and if you’re planning on making some household cleaning supplies, some castile soap is a must! It’s amazing what you can do with some vinegar and and baking soda.
I suggest starting small with 1 oz bottles of essential oils until you know what you like and utilize!
As you can see there is more to essential oils than meets the eye – or meets the nose 😉 There are many ways you can use this plant medicine in your life to support fertility.
If you’d like to really dive into the chemical composition of essential oils for fertility and work deeply with hormonal balancing – please seek guidance from a clinical aromatherapist.
I hope this sets you on the safe and fertile path of essential oils!
XO
Kerry
