Products we LOVE!
Clients often ask us what we recommend for this, that or the other so we’ve decided to start this page to share some of our go-to products or services. One of our goals is that the products we recommend are effective, safe, cruelty-free and as affordable as we can find them. We’re adding to this page all the time so check back and If you have something you’d like to recommend, something that’s really been a game changer, please reach out! Send us an email at durangoelementaltherapy@gmail.com.
Moisturizers
Colorado winters are dry in a way you really can’t imagine unless you live here. Below are some of our favorite moisturizers to help soften the edges.
Kiss My Face Goat’s Milk Hand and Body Lotion
This cruelty-free gem not only softens your skin, it restores your microbiome. Made from goat milk, olive oil, aloe vera, and antioxidant-rich liposomal vitamin C. It features a “3xBiotic” complex that provides pre-, pro-, and post-biotic benefits that really help maintain a healthy skin microbiome, not just lube over it. Use this one at night because it absorbs instantly so you don’t have to worry about getting oil on your pajamas or sheets.
This is your post-shower go-to. Collagen-boosting Shea butter combines Lemongrass for deeply moisturizing and nutrient-rich lotion that really does soften & revitalize dull, dry skin. Shea Leaf extract contain saponin, tannins, and antioxidants to protect skin and boost hydration. Lemongrass is known to calm and soothe irritation and is rich in antioxidants. We’ve learned to let this sit for a couple of minutes before dressing after applying…but just watch what happens to your skin after a couple of weeks!
Trusted Health Products Earth & Elm Body oils
Oh, you’re going to thank me for this one. It’s everything you ever wanted in a body oil and you can throw out your primer if you use this. In their Words: “The Nourishing Face Oil delivers gentle skin care by calming irritation, restoring glow, and replenishing hydration with a blend of cold-pressed oils like jojoba, argan, and ylang ylang. Together, they work to protect your natural skin barrier, enhance elasticity, maintain lasting hydration, all without harsh chemicals, parabens, or synthetic fragrances.”
Shampoos and Conditioners
By now, most of us know how damaging Sodium Lauryl sulfate, parabens, etc. are to our skin and hair. The following recommendations are for fine, wavy hair to reduce dryness, encourage hair health and growth, and/or nourish the scalp. First, if you’re washing your hair every day: Stop! Slowly reduce the number of times a week you wash your hair until you are down to 1 or 2 times a week. Your scalp will slowly adjust to not having to fight SLS’s etc (which makes your scalp produce more oil) and it won’t be as oily. If you just need a freshen up, try brushing your hair with a boar bristly hair brush really well, then rinse under a faucet in warm, almost hot, water. Keep an eye on our blog, we’ll be adding ways to keep your hair fresh and clean without shampoo in a blog soon. In the meantime, try some of these great, cruelty-free and nourishing shampoos and conditioners.
Shea Moisture Jamaican Black Castor Oil Clarifying Shampoo & Conditioner
So this shampoo is usually marketed for African American hair, but I am of Irish descent and this stuff works better than pretty much anything else I have tried, including some very expensive brands. It cleans gently, but thoroughly and moisturizers my fine, curly waves without making my hair oily. I also use to have an allergic reaction to almost every shampoo. Not this. The smell is a little different than most products like this, but it goes away as soon as it dries. If you have a sensitive scalp, try this.
Sometimes our scalp isn’t dry because of the climate, but because of the build-up of dirt, hair sprays, gels, shampoos and conditioners. Use this once a month and feel your scalp breathe.
This is the absolute BOMB balm! The only chapstick/lip balm I have EVER used that I don’t have to apply more than once or twice a day—in the Winter!! This is a local Colorado business with big heart.
Red Light Therapy
Red Therapy has been shown to be one of the least invasive and clinically effective in healing not only skin, but deeper tissues including bone and connective tissue. Studies suggest that red light therapy can improve skin health (collagen production), reduce pain, and boost cellular energy. We’ve found that it helps reduce pain and speed recovery. It works primarily by feeding the mitochondria in your cells (cellular powerhouses) If you choose one of these, remember to wear appropriate eye protection (most come with sunglasses). Do your own research before you use this therapy and talk to your doctor, but here are three that we have used and like.
Red Light Therapy Infrared Light Therapy Pad - Small
As you can see from pictures, this one is easy to wrap around most parts of the body and the price is good for the quality of this little pad.
Red Light Therapy Mat for Body - Full Size
Looking for a more full-body impact? This is a good size without having to break the bank. I think a little goes a long way on this one.
Home Stuff
Okay, this one is a bit spendy, but for what it provides it’s basically priced right. This uses air compression and heat to gently stretch and massage, without the sensation that someone is driving their elbow into you. This one truly surprised me with it’s ability to loosen tight muscles and relax. You will hear the air compressor working, so it is not totally silent, but if you know that going in and embrace it or wear your headphones, you’ll be good.
Vibration Plate Fitness Platform Exercise Machine
We think this one is well priced for what it is. There are larger units out there that are far more expensive, but the idea (at least the way we use it) is to basically help challenge tight muscles to release, equalize balance, while at the same time helping you building inner core strength through out your entire body.
Have you looked for a Duvet? So hard to find a good one that’s not $300. This one is dreamy soft and, get this, it has a zipper! No more comforter slipping out the back!
Do you like teas? They have sooooo many delicious, hand-crafted and often using hand-gathered or home-grown ingredients. If you live in Durango and are walking down main street and have seen a tea pot sitting out in front of a cute little store, pour yourself a cup of their complimentary daily tea…and then go in and get your own. They also have a host of locally made, organic, sustainable skin care products that I haven’t tried yet, but are on my list! If you don’t live here, you can order online.
Are you doing yoga on carpet or uneven ground? For the sake of you joints: Stop! Practicing on carpet or uneven ground, stresses the joints and causes uneven weighting. In the short term, it can cause sprains or even fractures, not to mention making you work harder than you should to find your balance, making you lose focus on the other aspects of the poses. In the long term, it wears on the cartilage and connective tissue. If you regularly practice on carpet or uneven ground, make this investment in yourself. It’s highly portable, folds in half and easily slips under your bed or couch.
Books That Will Change Your Life
Does your therapy seem to be stalled out or just taking forever? Bradford Bancroft has been an artist all his life and acted in both Broadway and movie productions, until he walked into a Drama Therapy workshop that changed his life forever. For the past 25 years, Bradford has leveraged and developed truly unique and powerful paths to healing which he reveals in this book, told in the stories of grateful patients. This book is educational, but goes far deeper than that. It’s a page-turning, life-changing masterpiece.
A short, powerful read about the worst thing not being the last thing and maybe it’s even the best thing. It’s a classic, mystical tale of the winding road taking you just where you need to go. If you haven’t, you simply must.
She’s that strong, confident friend you always wanted to have who took no shoot, believed in you unequivocally and cheered you on or put a boot up your bum to give you the huxpa to stop putting up with BS and go after your dreams, that job, that raise, to say no…I like to read just a page or two everyday to prime up my badass self.