Blend recipes
Essential Oil Blends for Sleep
A good bedtime blend is quiet. It should smell pleasant at a low level, fade gently and never be so strong that it keeps you awake. The recipes below lean on lavender, vetiver, cedarwood and Roman chamomile, oils traditionally used for winding down, with a little bergamot for lift. Small studies suggest inhaled lavender may help some people relax, but no oil replaces good sleep habits or care for a sleep problem. Run a diffuser for 30 to 60 minutes before bed rather than all night, keep skin blends at about 2% for adults, and read the pet notes if a cat or dog shares your bedroom.
Diffuser
Lavender and cedarwood
| Oil | Note | Drops |
|---|---|---|
| Lavender | 3 | |
| Cedarwood (Virginian) | 2 |
Run it for 30 to 60 minutes while you get ready for bed, then switch it off. A veterinary toxicologist lists lavender among oils harmful to cats, so keep cats out of the room while it runs and air it before they come back.
Diffuser
Bergamot, lavender and vetiver
| Oil | Note | Drops |
|---|---|---|
| Bergamot | 2 | |
| Lavender | 2 | |
| Vetiver | 1 |
Bergamot's sun warning applies to skin, not to the air, so it is fine in a diffuser. Bergamot is a citrus oil and both it and lavender are flagged for cats: diffuse with the door open and the cat in another room.
Roller bottle
Bedtime roller
| Oil | Note | Drops |
|---|---|---|
| Lavender | 2 | |
| Roman chamomile | 1 | |
| Vetiver | 1 |
For adults: 4 drops in a 10 ml roller of carrier oil is about 2%. Roll onto the wrists or the back of the neck. For a child over 2, use half the oils (about 1%). People with daisy-family allergies should patch test the chamomile first. Lavender is flagged for cats, so do not let a cat lick or groom where you applied it.
Bath
Slow evening bath
| Oil | Note | Drops |
|---|---|---|
| Lavender | 2 | |
| Clary sage | 1 | |
| Sandalwood | 1 |
For adults. Stir the oils into 1 tablespoon (15 ml) of carrier oil or unscented bath gel before adding them to the water; undiluted drops float on top and can sting. Clary sage is a pregnancy caution, so swap it for Roman chamomile if you are pregnant. Oil makes the tub slippery, and lavender is flagged for cats, so keep cats out of the bathroom and away from the bathwater.
Sources
- Safety guidelines, Tisserand Institute
- Dilution for essential oils, Tisserand Institute
- Safety, National Association for Holistic Aromatherapy (NAHA)
- A scent-sitive subject: essential oil diffusers and your cat, Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences
- Lavender and the nervous system (Koulivand et al., 2013), PubMed Central (NIH)