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DIY Shower Disks to Help Support the Lungs

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If you are struggling to make it through cold and flu season unscathed, take a moment to read through this great DIY shower steamer tutorial from my good friend (and blogger extraordinaire) Kayla. She and I share a love for essential oils. I can’t wait to tell you guys what they are doing for me! 

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I am so not a fan of cold and flu season. This winter has been one for the record books and it’s certainly brought along it’s fair share of the sniffles. I’m currently on the lookout for products that can help support the lungs and sinuses, so when I saw a few tutorials online on how to make a DIY version of shower steamers I thought that would be a great place to start! After all, a steamy shower is my go-to weapon for supporting the immune system, and especially the lungs.

If you’ve never seen these, they are basically little pods that dissolve in the shower and they may help clear your head (and your nose!) You can totally whip these up quickly at home with ingredients you most likely already have on hand. I played around with the recipe a bit until I found one that worked well for us. The whole project only took 30 minutes, start to finish!

Here is what you will need:
Mix 1 cup of baking soda with 1 tablespoon of cornstarch and about 1/3 cup of water until it forms a thick but slightly pourable paste. You might have to add a little more water, just go slowly until you reach the consistency you want.
Mix with a fork and spoon in to muffin tins. I typically fill them about 1/4 full.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 15-20 minutes. Let cool and then add about 3-4 drops of each essential oil to the top of each disk. I had peppermint oil on hand and added a drop of it to each because I really love the smell of it.

When dry, remove the shower disks from the tin and store in an airtight container. Like a mason jar. I’m southern. We put everything in mason jars, y’all. We drink sweet tea straight out of them. We just can’t help ourselves. But look how cute!

 

At the first hint of the need for some nasal function support, pop one of the shower disks onto the floor of the shower when you get in. There is nothing like the scent of eucalyptus in a steamy shower when you aren’t feeling well!

I use the lavender essential oil in our diffuser every night to help promote a relaxed feeling so that was one I already had on hand and I plan on making some DIY chest rub with the eucalyptus oil so I should get some good use out of it! Packaged up in a pretty container, these all-natural shower steamer disks would make a great “Get Well Soon” gift to accompany a bowl of chicken soup to a sick friend!

 

And of course, you can always leave a comment here with any questions you might have and I’ll try to get you an answer or follow up with you directly over email. I’m new to using essential oils myself, but so far, I’ve been quite impressed with what I’m able to do with them!

*I am not a medical professional, I’m just sharing a natural remedy that has worked for our family. As always, if you have any allergies or medical conditions, consult a physician before use.

** Eucalyptus is generally not recommended for children under the age of 10. Therefore, these shower disks are best for older children or adults. 

You might also want to give this homemade vapor rub a try for after the shower.

DIY vapor rub

Need another cheap and easy DIY gift idea? Try these gorgeous peppermint bath salts with candy cane stripes!
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  2. Hi there, You’ve done a fantastic job. I’ll certainly digg it and personally recommend
    to my friends. I am confident they’ll be benefited from this web site.

    Reply

  3. I haven’t tried making these yet but I will soon. Just a heads up; I saw on different site to use SALT to hold them together

    Reply

  4. I mixed oil in the batch and added a few drops to the outside. I pressed foil into the cupcake pan since I didn’t hear good things about paper liners. They still came out a crumbly mess both times I made them. I used one in the shower this morning and it seemed like I smelled it the best when it was right in front of me with water running around it but not beating down on top of it. I didn’t think it cleared my sinuses but it’s just nice to smell. I smelled my shampoo most of the time though, so I don’t think I’ll make these anymore. They are also too ugly to gift so I’ll just use what I made. I think I’ll just stick to making sugar scrub!

    Reply

    • I have tried 3 different recipes for these and they simply don’t smell in the shower. They hold together fine but no smell. And I’ve used a ton of essential oil thinking I just needed to add more. These recipes are all over the internet so I really don’t know what my problem is. My mom didn’t raise an idiot so 3 tries is all I’m gonna give it.

      Reply

  6. i looked at many recipes and started with this one. i halved the recipe to 1/2 baking soda, 1/2 tbsp corn starch, 5 tbsp water this made 4 disks. as each muffin cup was filled the mixture in the bowl became more and more moist. half of the disks crumbled completely, 3 out of 4 stuck to the foil baking cups. i added 5 drops of lavender and 3 drops of eucalyptus to each disk. the scent is noticeable only if standing directly over it. the disks disintegrated almost immediately under direct running water. if the disks sat in a puddle of water without any direct water streaming over it, the disks took a few minutes to disintegrate.

    Reply

  7. I am trying these for the first time this weekend. Fingers crossed they work. Tiffany I am interested in joining the facebook group!
    Please and thank you!

    Reply

  8. I followed this recipe as well. I had the same problem that a lot of people have. They baked perfectly but the paper liners stick to the discs so I just put them in the shower with the paper on. I used the same eucalyptus oils that the author used but there was smell in the shower. Now I did use a mini muffin pan so maybe the bigger muffins would be better. I am going to try the silicone pan liners to see if they will remove more easily but I need to figure out how to get these to release the oil smell. If anyone has figured that out please let me know.

    Reply

  9. I want to make these for my coworkers, but this involves a plane ride! Can I transport them is ziplock baggies (once completely cooled and dried)? and when I gift them, can I place them in a cute basket (open air) or do you recommend putting keeping them in glass jars to seal in potency/effectiveness? I suppose I could ship them to my destination in glass jars…? do you know about how long they last in the mason jars?

    Reply

    • My opinion is that these shower disks won’t travel well (either by plane or via the mail). they are on the delicate side. Sorry I don’t have a different answer, but I would probably head in a different direction if you need to carry your gift on a plane.

      Reply

  11. We made these to give as Christmas gifts from daughter this year. We followed the directions to the letter, but they don’t work. We have tried different methods to use them, keep them in the shower, but not in the water, then just barely in the water, or directly in the water. No menthol like scent and no sinus clearing. Would like to know if others have had success and exactly how they use them. 🙁 thank you.

    Reply

    • Did you use Young Living essential oils? To get the therapeutic benefits and not just a scent, the brand of oil you use is really key. I put mine at the bottom of the tub so the water is running over them the entire time.

      Reply

  12. I am so excited to give these a try! Quick question: did you combine each of the scents (eucalyptus, lavender, and peppermint) for all the shower disk? Or did you do a batch of each scent? I’m going to try to make these for Christmas!

    Reply

    • I’m wondering the same thing. Mine don’t appear to be dry enough. I’m going to let them sit out overnight before trying to take the liners off of the rest of them.

      Reply

      • Mine came out a mess lol. First batch … at 350 for 20 minutes was still soggy in the middle and the paper baked right on to them. 2 batch…. harder … had to put them at 400 for 30 minutes and used less water …. paper still baked on and didn’t come off. Third batch …. even less water… went into tins like playdough this time. 350 30 minutes …. still wasn’t dry and the paper was still cemented on. Just for fun…. I dropped 3 drops of oils on a puck or 2 and it just sat on top and didn’t soak in. Sooooo ….. I am giving up on my domestic homemade gifts hahaha. Any thoughts? Are you using a convection oven? Maybe the zone you are in requires less heat and time? I’m totally lost lol.

        Reply

        • I would try it with less water next time, for sure! Also, is your cornstarch old, perhaps? I’ve learned through experience that cornstarch can actually love its effectiveness over time and needs to be replaced every 8 months or so. Just another thought!

          Reply

    • My batch made 8 discs. I had one foil liner left so I used it and 7 paper liners. I had trouble with the paper liners but the foil liner came right off. I made note to use foil liners only. Hope that works for you as well.

      Reply

  15. Hi, I want to try this, but I have one question, is 350 degrees Fahrenheit or Celsius?? I’m from Chile and we use Celcius (as well as the metric system haha). I hope you can answer me soon!! (I’m pretty sure is F, ’cause my stove just get up to 280C, 536F, but I prefer to be really sure haha)
    Thanks!!

    Reply

  16. This is a wonderful idea! Allergy season is in full swing; I’m hoping this will ward off sinus headaches. I’d love to join the facebook group. Thanks!

    Reply

  17. Would it be ok to take a hot bath with these .. Sounds similar to the bath bombs I make. Whatcha think????????????

    Reply

    • I wouldn’t throw them in the bath. The essential oils in home made bath bombs are diluted by the carrier oil in the recipe. These oils are not diluted. I figure it’s okay for the shower since it runs down the drain and doesn’t soak on your skin.

      Reply

      • If you are using Young Living oils or D’terra oils or Melalueca Pure oils, you can FOR SURE put them in the bath. 2-4 drops per bath of these oils are PERFECTLY safe for baths. They are GREAT for soaking into your skin.

        Reply

  19. I would love to be added to the facebook group! I’m new to essential oils as well and love learning more about them!

    Anywho, thanks for the suggestion on the corn starch! I did almost this exact recipe… just without the corn starch and my disks ended up being super “crumbley”. I’ll have to try again with corn starch and see if that helps hold them together better!.

    Reply

  21. I LOVE (love, love, LOVE) this idea and I am totally going to make these! This winter has been intense, and I’ve been congested and sick for most of it…these totally would have come in handy!

    Thanks for linking up to Wordy Wednesday. I am pinning this and going to try making these, too!

    Reply

    • Sorry so late- I was out of town! I think it’s okay- it’s such a small amount spread through each disk that I would imagine so anyhow. I haven’t had any issues but I’ve seen other recipes that just omit the cornstarch all together. I prefer it because I think it holds together better but you can leave it out 🙂

      Reply

  28. I am sick with a bad cold so I was anxious to try these right away! Unfortunately I couldn’t tell if they were working in the shower – I couldn’t smell the lavender or eucalyptus. But maybe I’m so stuffed and that’s why! Please let me know if I might be doing something wrong. Followed the directions exactly.

    Reply

    • The eucalyptus is pretty strong- I am pretty susceptible to scents so I didn’t use that much but I imagine you could just increase the amount of drops or even add more drops right before you pop it in! Additionally, rather than baking you can just mix the essential oils right in (about 10-15 drops of eucalyptus, 10 of lavender) and let dry overnight – some people prefer to do it that way but I didn’t personally see a difference 🙂 HTH!

      Reply

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