When to Use Oils and When to Call for Help

Essential oils and herbs have a long history in home care, but knowing where their usefulness ends is the most important first aid skill of all. This guide is a plain checklist to help you decide whether a situation can be eased at home or needs professional help right away.

Call your emergency number (911 in Canada and the US) immediately for

• Difficulty breathing, choking, or a feeling of tightness in the throat or chest.
• Chest pain, sudden weakness, face drooping, confusion or trouble speaking.
• Severe bleeding that does not slow with firm, continuous pressure.
• Loss of consciousness, seizures or a serious head, neck or back injury.
• Signs of a severe allergic reaction: swelling of the face or tongue, widespread hives, wheezing, dizziness, vomiting.
• Signs of shock: pale, cold, clammy skin, fast weak pulse, rapid breathing, confusion.
• Large, deep or chemical burns, or burns to the face, hands, feet or genitals.
• Suspected poisoning. Call your poison control centre as well. This includes a child or pet that has swallowed an essential oil: do not induce vomiting unless told to, and keep the bottle to show.

Seek prompt medical advice for

• Any injury to a baby or very young child, or an older or frail adult.
• Wounds that are deep, gaping, dirty, caused by an animal or human bite, or that show spreading redness, warmth, swelling, pus or red streaks.
• A fever that is high, lasts more than a few days or comes with a stiff neck, rash or confusion.
• Symptoms that are severe, getting worse or not improving after a few days.
• Any symptom in someone who is pregnant, immunocompromised, or living with a heart, lung, kidney or liver condition or diabetes.

What can be managed at home

Minor, short-lived problems in an otherwise healthy adult, such as a small scrape, a mild headache, a minor bruise, an insect bite without allergy, a small blister or a mild muscle ache, can often be eased with simple measures like cleaning, cooling, rest and fluids. Where it is appropriate, a diluted essential oil or herbal remedy may be a pleasant extra. Our First Aid With Essential Oils page lists traditional suggestions for many of these.

Using oils safely in a first aid situation

• First aid always comes first: stop the bleeding, cool the burn with cool running water, keep the person warm and calm and get help. Oils come last, if at all.
• Never apply essential oils to deep, bleeding, blistered or infected skin, or to the eyes or inner ears.
• Always dilute, and patch test when time permits. See Safe Use of Essential Oils.
• Do not give essential oils by mouth, and do not give them to babies or small children without professional advice.
• Tell the doctor or paramedics exactly what has been applied or taken, including herbs and oils.

Learn real first aid

The best preparation is training. Consider taking a certified first aid and CPR course from a recognized provider such as the Canadian Red Cross, St. John Ambulance or your local equivalent. Articles on this website cannot replace hands-on instruction, and they are not a substitute for professional care. Please read our Health Disclaimer and Information and Product Use pages.