Sliced Thumb Heals Quickly with Essential Oils

While washing dishes in early December, a ceramic plate broke apart in my husband Bill’s hand ~ slicing his left thumb completely across the pad quite badly ~ 1/16 inch deep or more. He yelled out in pain, which he rarely does. We wondered if we might have to take him to the Hospital Emergency Room for stitches…?

Using Basic First Aid Techniques, our first concern was to stop the bleeding:

~ We applied direct pressure with a clean paper towel (his hands were already clean from washing dishes).

~ Bill sat down and propped his elbow on the dining table, elevating his hand higher than his heart.

~ I retrieved an iced freezer pack (one of those ‘blue things’…whatever they’re called?) so he could hold it against the towel covered thumb to chill the injured area and slow the blood flow.
NOTE: Do NOT put ice or an ice pack directly on damp bare skin…it will freeze the tissue, which may stick to the ice, and suffer more damage.

~ Then I assessed the seriousness of the injury by observing how much blood he was losing, asking Bill how much pain he was feeling, checking his responses and emotional condition.

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Only then did I go get my essential oils.

My first criteria were: What would stop the bleeding / ease pain? and What would prevent infection / speed healing?

HELICHRYSUM Essential Oil to the Rescue!
Helichrysum is a versatile therapeutic essential oil with compounds that may either increase or stop bleeding, depending on what the body needs to heal. It’s anti-inflammatory, known to stimulate cell regeneration and heal nerves, plus it has an emotionally calming effect. Helichrysum is also non-toxic, non-irritating, and non-sensitizing. A wonderful essential oil for your first aid emergency kit.

After fetching the Helichrysum essential oil bottle and a box of bandages, I put a single drop of Helichrysum on Bill’s sliced thumb, He continued to apply pressure and when the bleeding slowed down, I prepared a bandage with another drop of Helichrysum on the bandage pad before wrapping it snugly around Bill’s cut thumb.

Follow-Up Care
We used Young Living Essential Oils excellent anti-infectious blend ~ Melrose made from Tea Tree essential oil (‘MEL’ for Melaluca alternifolia) / Rosemary (‘ROSE’ for Rosmarinus officinalis)
 / Clove & Niaouli essential oils ~ on pads of clean bandages, which we changed once or twice a day for several days in a row until the cut edges sealed.

It was important to keep the wound covered while the skin was still fragile from the injury. We didn’t want Bill accidentally tearing it open or getting an infection.

A few days ago, I suggested Bill use – Trinity™ to prevent scarring and speed his skin’s healing. It’s one of my custom healing essential oil blends available at GAIA’s PHARMACOPEIA, our on-line shoppe.

As of this evening – a short week later – the cut has healed completely without any hint of infection, swelling, or bruising! The damaged skin is peeling a bit. There’s still some residual tenderness when Bill applies direct pressure to his thumb pad….most likely from damaged nerves.

There are therapeutic-quality essential oils for minimizing pain and assisting nerve regeneration, if Bill wants to use them. EOs I might suggest would be: Young Living Essential Oils blends Aroma Siez or PanAway, Trauma Life or Three Wise Men, and single EOs like Balsam Fir, German Chamomile, or Peppermint.

12-11-10 A year later
Bill’s thumb has absolutely no trace of a scar. I asked him to press all over his thumb pad to see if he could perceive the least bit of numbness. Nope. His thumb healed completely and beautifully! Therapeutic essential oils are truly healing essences. We recommend them highly.

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If you are interested in purchasing Young Living Oils & Blends, read more on ‘Buying The Best’.