So my idea of “indoor fun” with my daughter during the cold winter months might be a little unconventional. We do things like create recipes, make herbal remedies, and come up with cool products for our natural minded lifestyle.

One of our recent rainy day projects stemmed from a conversation about snot. Kids love snot right? Maybe not IN their noses but snot is kind of cool in a gross way.

Nasal or sinus congestion is the result of inflammation of the nasal passages or sinus cavities.

The inflammation can be the result of a number of different issues such as a common cold, the flu, sinusitis, or allergies. These bacterial or viral infections or the allergens cause the irritation to the membranes which in turn causes the body to produce excess mucus. The combination of these two gives the stuffiness and discomfort most experience.

There are a lot of natural ways to combat congestion. Personally, I like to use steam! It always works for me and I get a good hour or more of relief.

Over the years I have tried various products meant to help clear the sinuses. But nothing really worked great. And then I discovered bath bombs. Hmmm…that gave me an idea which is actually now pretty popular with the DIYers.

Can you guess what it is? In 5, 4, 3, 2, 1….

Shower Vapor Discs

These are so incredibly easy to make. Seriously. My daughter and I had a ton of fun making these shower vapor discs. They take mere minutes and they work very well. You can choose from several essential oils which all are known to aid in opening up the nasal passages. Mix and match to your heart’s delight.

I suspect that most children will love helping make these vapor discs. It makes for an amazing indoor project that can double as a science experiment too! Plus sniffing essential oils is all kinds of olfactory fun!

Let’s get started!

First, the essential oils. Here are the EOs that are known to help with congestion.

• Eucalyptus
• Lavender
• Lemon
• Lime
• Oregano
• Peppermint
• Pine
• Rosemary
• Thyme

And now, let’s make these bad babies.

Congestion Be Gone Shower Vapor Discs

Yield: 6 discs

Prep Time: 2 minutes

Active Time: 3 minutes

Additional Time: 12 hours

Total Time: 12 hours 5 minutes

Difficulty: Easy

Estimated Cost: $5.00

Make your own soothing shower vapor discs to get rid of troublesome congestion. These come together in minutes and work better than a lot of vapor rubs.

Print

Materials

• 3 cups of baking soda
• 1 cup water
• 45 drops total of your choice of essential oils (I use 3-4 oils in each batch)

Tools

• Muffin tin (I use this one)
• Muffin liners (like these)

Instructions

1. Put the baking soda in a mixing bowl.
2. Slowly mix in the water to create a thick paste.
3. Add a total of 45 drops of your essential oil selection to the mixture.
4. Spoon mixture into lined muffin tin and let it sit out to dry for 12-18 hours.
5. Once the mixture is set, unwrap the disc from the liner and place in on the shower floor.
6. The disc will melt away while the warm water runs over it, creating a soothing vapor mist to relieve clogged nasal passages.

What essential oils do I use and love? Several brands actually.

• My hands down favorite brand is Rocky Mountain Oils (also known as Native American Nutritionals). These are seriously the BEST brand I have ever used. They are strong. And I mean strong. I have seen some amazing things happen when using this brand.
• I am really enjoying Plant Therapy essential oils as well. They are easy on the budget as well as being a high quality oil.

Give these nasal passage opening shower vapor discs a try! They are safe for the entire family.