Belly massage is one of my favorite self care practices for a number of reasons. In my last blog post, I shared those reasons as well as how to perform an easy self massage for your belly. Click here to read that post.
Belly Massage can be done without any extras at all. Wake up, take some deep breaths, and massage your belly, is as easy as it gets if you give yourself the time.
However, in this blog I wanted to share with you some of my favorite ways to enhance the benefits and healing of your belly massage through aromatherapy, oils and herbs.
Let's start with carrier oils.
Carrier oils are the base of the massage oil you might use to massage your belly or any other part of your body. Honestly any carrier oil at all that you love or have close by is perfect to use.
My favorites for belly massage:
Sunflower Seed Oil: is a polyunsaturated oil that is light weight and easy for skin to absorb. Rich in vitamins and high in linoleic fatty acids it is a great oil for the skin. (I love it for my bath). The bright yellow flower that faces the sun is just dripping with positive solar plexus energy. It reminds us of the loving warmth of the sun, happier days, and fans that inner fire of the solar plexus chakra.
Olive Oil: is a monounsaturated oil that is high in oleic acid. It's a favorite of us herbalists and has been used for centuries to infuse herbs for culinary and medicinal purposes. I also love that it is a staple in most American kitchens and therefore very easy to grab on the go. You can also find infused olive oils at many specialty food shops or even your local grocery store. A blood orange infused olive oil is available at mine locally and I LOVE adding a few drops of it to my palms for a belly massage. Olive oil is thick and you usually only need a few drops.
Any Carrier oil will work: Coconut oil, Avocado oil, jojoba oil, Sweet Almond oil and more will do just fine as well. Use what you have nearby or what fits in your budget.
Aromatherapy and essential oils:
A few drops of essential oils go a long way. Be sure to check on the correct dilution before using. Always blend into your carrier oil before massaging onto your skin.
My favorite essential oils for belly massage:
Ginger*
Sweet Orange*
Blood Orange*
Peppermint
Spearmint
Digest Ease from Edens garden*
* Oils with this mark are warming, sunny oils that invoke that energy of the solar plexus chakra as well.
Herbs:
As an herbalist I could spend years just focusing on the studio of our digestive system. Here I am just sharing a few of the herbs that connect us with the solar plexus energy I have been mentioning. These are great herbs to infuse into a carrier oil or you can be on the look out for massage oils that contain these herbs as well.
My favorite herbs for the belly massage:
Ginger: Warming and gentle this is a great herb to diffuse into an oil or balm.
Goldenrod: Often blamed incorrectly on seasonal allergies this is one of my favorite plant medicines. Every year I infuse it into sunflower oil for a wonderful solar plexus massage oil.
Calendula: Has many benefits to the digestive system. This herb is much more soothing and gentle than ginger and is generally safe for children as well.
Check out our Essential Oils Resource Page Click Here. If you are looking for a source for essential oils.