CASTOR OIL PACKS FOR FERTILITY AND MORE

BodyVideo

Jun 25

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Castor oil packs are great for painful periods, miscarriages, and so much more.

Have you heard of ‘castor packs’? Depending on who you talk with they’re either a panacea of magical detoxification — or total bunk. But the actual truth lies somewhere in-between.

Do castor oil packs help detox?

Um. No. Let’s get crystal clear on the bogus concept of “detoxing.” While it’s smart to think about our overall chemical burden and what we put in and on our bodies, our bodies do NOT need help detoxing. That’s not how they work, and I’ll be sharing more in a new article all about this topic soon.

Are castor packs just ‘woo-woo’ placebo?

As far as being total bunk, things that have been used for thousands of years and have been found to be helpful by countless people are categorically not just bunk.

Castor packs have been around for nearly 6,000 years and originated in Egypt, Greece, and India. And while there might not be anyone paying for loads of research to prove their efficacy or figure out how they work — as no one is going to make money on castor packs — there’s definitely some cool things we now understand plus loads of experience and observation based wisdom in traditional medicinal treatments!

Castor pack science.

Castor oil is mostly ricinoleic acid (RA) which has been shown to possess remarkable analgesic (pain relieving) and anti-inflammatory effects when used topically. Mediators In flamm. 2000; 9(5): 223–228.

Castor oil is deemed safe and tolerable, with strong anti‐microbial, anti‐inflammatory, anti‐nociceptive (pain perception), analgesic, antioxidant, wound healing and vaso‐constrictive properties. Clinical and Experimental Optometry Volume 104, 2021

Castor pack safety.

Bottom line: Castor packs have stood the test of time and are a very safe thing to try!

As the saying goes, “The proof is in the pudding … er, should I say pack!” Since castor packs are simple, totally DIY, super cost effective, and have very low risk of any adverse effects, why not try them and see for yourself if they’re helpful for YOU!

Important Safety Note: Don’t do castor packs if you are pregnant. Don’t take castor oil internally. And don’t apply over infected or broken skin.

Make your own castor oil pack.

Here’s What You’ll Need

An absorbent disposable piece of fabric or paper towel
Castor oil — usually purchased in the laxative section at the store
A bit of plastic wrap, scarf, or wrap to hold the pack on your abdomen
A hot water bottle or heating pad
Grubby clothes or sheets — castor oil stains, so don’t wear your best or sit on your fancy sofa without putting down a towel first

Step-By-Step Instructions

Start by drizzling some castor oil on an absorbent material so it’s well coated but not sopping or dripping
Gently place the oily material topically over the abdomen where you want to get the effects (ie. less cramps, bloating, pain)
Cover the pack with a little plastic wrap or scarf or binder to keep it in place
Add some gentle heat to aid in the absorption of the oil through the skin
Watch a good show, do a meditation, read a book — basically hang out for 30+ minutes

Once I’ve rested, I often get up and work or clean with mine on for another couple of hours. It won’t hurt anything and can only help!

What castor packs are used for.

Castor packs are great self-care. They’re an amazing way to treat menstrual clots and cramps, bloating, constipation, and almost any type of abdominal discomfort, stagnation, or inflammation. And although they’re not needed by everyone, they can be great for specific situations like digestive pain, period pain, miscarriage cramps, and more.

Let me know how it goes for you!

Oh, and if you’ve heard these scary castor oil pack concerns: “Organic cold-pressed oils are the only oils to use,” or “Plastic is toxic and will poison your body,” or “You have to find oil sold in glass bottles,” or “Unbleached organic flannel is the only fabric to use,” — none of this is true! It’s all fear mongering and black and white thinking which is never holistic or helpful. So be sure to watch this video where I break those ideas down and I give you a much more balanced and sustainable way to think about them in a healthy way!

I hope you find castor oil packs helpful and easy!

Nicole

Nicole Lange

LICENSED ACUPUNCTURIST
HOLISTIC FERTILITY EDUCATOR

I mentioned castor oil packs in my Can You Induce A Period video, and I said there that I was gonna share my extra special method of doing them in another video. So that's what we're gonna do here. This is the Cheap and Easy Castor Oil Pack video.
For those of you who don't know about castor oil packs, here's a very quick lowdown. Castor oil has literally been used in many cultures for thousands of years. It's sometimes taken internally as a laxative or to induce labor. But when you put it topically on your skin, it absorbs into the body and seems to do really cool stuff like decrease pain and inflammation, and helps smooth out period flow and bowel movements in a really nice, gentle way.
We now understand that about 90% of castor oil is ricinoleic acid. And that is a particular fatty acid that combines with one particular receptor in the intestines and the uterus. That receptor is usually for prostaglandins, which is one of the things that makes the intestines churn and move and the uterus squeeze and move out period blood, miscarriage tissue, even a baby being born.
Fun fact. Some of the main medications used to induce childbirth are lab-made prostaglandins.
Of course lab-made, high levels of prostaglandins are intense. And swallowing castor oil is also gonna have a much stronger effect. I would not recommend it. But putting castor oil on your skin, letting it soak in, is a much more gentle more comfortable way to just nudge your body in the right direction.
So here's how I do castor oil packs myself. And I love 'em for any abdominal or period issue where some movement would be nice. Like if you have clots, or cramps, or dark sluggish flow, or haven't had a bowel movement in a while. And I would definitely avoid castor packs when you're not sure if you're pregnant or not.
What I do is I just take paper towel and I make about three or four layers the size of the area that I'm gonna treat. So for my lower abdomen, I'd make it like this. Then I drizzle some castor oil on the paper towel. You can buy castor oil online or in the laxative aisle at many many stores.
A little side note. Some people are gonna tell you you have to use cold-pressed organic hexane-free oil and unbleached organic wool flannel fabric. And I say go for it if you wanna spend more money per pack and it's not a big deal for your budget. But I think it's so much better to actually do these if you need them and not break your bank. So if it matters to you, don't worry about doing it my way. It'll still get the job done just fine.
So, you wanna drizzle that oil so that your paper towel or your fabric has a good amount but it's not soaked all the way through to the backside. And so it's not gonna slop all over when you tip it to put it on your body. And then you're gonna wanna kind of massage it in a bit.
Then, you're gonna put the paper towel across your very lower abdomen and put either a piece of plastic wrap or a cut up plastic bag over the top of it.
Now, you might see that you can buy these special plastic-lined covers with belts on them for like 50 to a hundred bucks online. But they just get kind of oily and stinky. And I think they're kind of a waste of money. I literally only own this role of plastic wrap for doing castor packs. So a roll lasts a really long time.
I'm really about the environment. I try to avoid plastic and packaging wherever I can. But I guess my take on this is you gotta pick your battles.
Now, once you've got the pack in place and a layer of plastic to keep that oil from slopping all over, you can either take a cheap back brace like this one from a drug store and put that over the top of it, or you can take another longer strip of plastic wrap around your whole body to hold it in place. You could also use a long fabric scarf. But just be warned, castor oil is going to stain any fabric it's gonna get on. It's really thick. It's an oil. And for that reason, you should also wear some grubby clothes and be sure to put an old towel or some sheets down if you're gonna sit on your couch and relax with your castor oil pack on.
You can definitely add some heat over the top of the pack once you have it on. Or not. I want you to really listen to what feels right to your body. If you crave heat, go for it. And listen to your environment too. If it's 90 degrees outside and you're already hot, I'm not gonna put a heating pad on top of it.
I try to sit and relax for at least a show or two. And then you can immediately take the pack off after that. But honestly, once I've got one on, if I'm not gonna go anywhere, I'll just keep it on and go about my day and take it off later.
As I mentioned, it is an oil here. So it'll leave a little bit of oil on your skin when you take it off. You might wanna use a mild soap to lift that oil before you put on nicer clothes if you feel like it hasn't absorbed all the way. Use your good judgment.
So that's it. Quick, cheap, easy, castor oil packs. You could do the fancy organic way for about a hundred dollars of investment, or you could do my version for 15, 20 bucks. And with those supplies you'll have enough to do lots and lots of castor oil packs in the future if you need them.
Remember, do not do these packs if you may be in the early stages of a wanted pregnancy. They're great to slap on once your period flow is just starting or it's on its way if you know for sure you're not pregnant. It's also great for helping medical abortions and miscarriages happen more smoothly and painlessly. And I hope this video helps whatever you're using it for. I've seen such cool results in my own body with castor packs. And I've heard so many stories from others on how beneficial these can be for their body. So give it a try. See how your body does and feels with them.
As always, thanks for watching. Please like and subscribe. Leave me a comment. Share your tips and stories if you've got them, and I'll see you again soon.
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