Well, this second testimony is out of order for me but I wanted to share it early! I'll be honest, I didn't apply oils to myself very often in the beginning because 1) I never had time 2) I didn't want to waste the oils on myself 3) I was too busy with "life" to think about what I needed help with.
When my son was about 6 weeks old I developed this awful pain in my right shoulder. I've never been someone who got "knots" anywhere and whenever I've gotten a massage it's been purely for relaxation and pampering, never for an ailment, etc.
Husband gave me a gift certificate for a spa 2 Christmases ago and I still hadn't used it. This pain in my shoulder was hurting BAD...at dinner I just put my head down on the table one night in pain. He started rubbing my shoulder and found a ton of knots!!! I tried ice, heating pads, hot showers, tennis ball between me and the doorframe, husband working them out nightly but nothing seemed to be working. I finally called the spa and said I need help. They recommended a deep tissue massage focused on that area. I'd never had one and heard that they hurt but at this point I was willing to try anything.
I figured the knots were coming from feeding my little one and always holding him more with my right arm + looking down, etc.
I went for my 90 minute deep tissue massage with 60 of those minutes dedicated to my shoulders and specifically my right one. I was prepared for it to hurt and focused on it as "good pain." The gal was pushing on my shoulder with her elbow and hands and stretching my arms all over. She said I had way more knots than she expected but none of them were huge, just a ton. I learned that you have to apply direct pressure rather than rub and the knot should release.
The massage ended and I felt good (any mom will tell you 90 min in a quiet dark room will make them feel good in itself!) but I wasn't in pain....when she elbowed my rear end a few times that hurt but nothing really hurt my shoulder as bad as the pain normally does. I went home expecting this to be one of those "feel worse before it gets better" things. The next day I was in pain EVERYWHERE but my shoulder felt the same and I kept thinking, "why doesn't it hurt worse?" I felt like I had bone bruises on other parts of my back, my butt hurt and my legs were sore but my shoulders had no change. I called the spa and they said to give it a few more days. Nope. Everything else got better and no change in the shoulder. Called back and they said I must have a severe case and they recommended weekly deep tissue massagess....WEEKLY??? Seriously? It took me over 2 years to use this gift certificate and you think my schedule has now opened up MORE since I had a second child? Fat chance.
I'd had my oils for a several weeks at this point and never used them on myself really (other than diffusing). I had a rollerball on my Panaway oil because I'd been using it on my husband's back and one night after a few tears he suggested he try it on me....duh!! He rolled it on my shoulder before I went to bed and I smelled like toothpaste/mint gum. I woke up the next morning and I was AMAZED!!! I could move my neck and arm (both of which had been so bad I had limited range of motion) and it felt GREAT!! I felt so stupid for not trying it earlier. I was so productive that day that my shoulder was especially angry that night and Panaway again was my relief!! There was no "maybe it was the oils" with this one!!!
Now, I should say that I still have these knots. I haven't tried anything else on them or gotten another massage because I'm a mom and haven't dedicated the time....BUT...when the pain flares up I FINALLY have something that gives me relief. And I smell great!
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