The geranium oil I have is Pelargonium Graveoleus. The orgin is from Egypt and India. So it is the same the genus. I went back and looked at the abstract and they said it's effective with PHN and RDS. That's pretty specific and neither of which I think John has even though he had a bout of shingles in 2003 which did make his overall PN worse at the time.

Regarding the application....There are quite a few oils that can be applied directly without dilution (neat). But if you are going to cover a large area, one - two drops in a ounce of nut/vegy oil is helpful. My book says that geranium should be a 50-50 dilution....one part EO to one part carrier oil. However, I use geranium neat without a problem. You need take into consideration the overall health and age of someone. Or if someone has lots of problems with contact dermatitis. Older people and the very young have thinner skin. The soles of the feet are the safest place. You can alway do a 24 hour patch test. If you are going to start using EOs regularly, then its a good idea to switch your hand/body lotions to product without all the nasty chemicals. Those can react to the oil over time.

With John, he rubs in one to two drops neat on his feet and applies a carrier oil to seal it in. It also keeps his feet moisturized.

Essential oils can be used internally but you really need to know what you are doing. And they need to be therapuetic grade. The French use them internally. I have used GAIA's oregano oil capsules when I've had a cold. It's very much like herbal medicine. I also use a mixture for a mouth rinse which is very helpful for the gums. But again, I'm talking about using maybe a drop or two. EOs are very strong.

PM me if you want to test this out. I would be more than happy to send you a small sample to try.

Marlene