ENTER THE SACRED BACKYARD
SACRED SOUL FAMILY
Dodee Schmitt
Dodee is a Certified Holistic Health Practitioner, Autonomic Response Testing Practitioner, and Biofield Science Educator with nearly two decades of experience in chronic illness recovery and integrative wellness. Dodhisattva.com, est. 2009
Table of Contents
Beyond essential oils, a military-tested, research-backed natural tick repellent spray protocol using botanical essential oils, internal MSM, internal allicin, and a DMSO castor oil roller that creates layered protection from the inside out.
The MSM powder I use in this recipe. Doctor’s Best with OptiMSM is food-grade, pure sulfur with nothing added.Â
When most people search for a natural tick repellent spray, they find the same list of essential oils. Rose geranium. Cedarwood. Neem.
And those are genuinely useful.
I put together a full guide of natural tick repellent recipes right here on Dodhisattva that walks through exactly which botanical options have research behind them and how to blend them effectively.
That article is worth reading alongside this one, which you can find here.
But this article is about something different.
A deeper layer of the natural tick repellent spray conversation that almost nobody is covering, a sulfur-based protocol that works not just on the surface of your clothing and skin, but from inside your own biology outward.
The research started with a YouTube video.
I was starting to see comments from ex-military personnel commenting on tick prevention videos.
They would mention that back in the day, they would put sulfur powder on their shoes and clothing to prevent issues with these vectors.
Then a woman was sharing her experience using high-dose MSM and topical DMSO for arthritis.
She had been working outdoors in a heavily tick and chigger populated area and had noticed that since starting the protocol, she simply was not getting ticks or chiggers on her.
She was careful to acknowledge it herself. Could it be the time of year? The right conditions?
She was not making a claim. She was just reporting what she noticed.
That one comment sent me down a research path that led to documented military field practice, a peer-reviewed study on DMSO and tick eggs, two patents specifically covering MSM and DMSO for tick-borne illness, and a comment section full of military retirees confirming they used to dust powdered sulfur on their shoes and clothing before heading into the field.
These were people with field experience in some of the most tick-dense environments on earth. Sulfur was their answer.
This article is what I put together from that research.
It is a natural tick repellent spray protocol for the person who wants to go beyond essential oils, grounded in real science and ancestral field practice, with two recipes you can make at home today.
Disclaimer
This article reflects my personal research and experience. It is for educational purposes only and is not medical advice. DMSO is a powerful compound with specific safety requirements. Please work with a qualified practitioner before beginning any new protocol, and never use DMSO if you are pregnant, nursing, or taking pharmaceutical medications without medical supervision. These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA.
Why Sulfur Is the Foundation of This Natural Tick Repellent Approach
The original natural tick repellent used by soldiers in tick-endemic fields was sulfur powder.
A 1989 military study documenting tick protection methods used by personnel in the field included sulfur powder among the approaches soldiers reported as effective, listed alongside methods like garlic.
This was field practice documented in an official military health publication.
The soldiers were essentially creating an odor barrier that ticks found aversive.
Ticks navigate by olfactory signals.
They are drawn to carbon dioxide, body heat, and specific chemical compounds on human skin.
Sulfur disrupts that chemistry and creates an environment their sensory organs want to avoid.
It is worth knowing that the sulfur soldiers used was elemental sulfur powder, the raw bright yellow inorganic form with that sharp recognizable smell.
That is a different compound from MSM.
MSM stands for methylsulfonylmethane, an organic sulfur compound that is white, odorless to humans, and far gentler on the body.
The soldiers relied on the smell itself as the deterrent.
MSM works through a related but quieter pathway, raising your internal sulfur status so that sulfur metabolites show up in your sweat and skin secretions throughout the day.
Both are sulfur and the mechanism overlaps in meaningful ways.
MSM is simply the form that makes practical sense for daily human use without the intensity of elemental sulfur.
Going In Tall Grass or Deep Woods? Do This First
Heading into deep woods or tall grass? Grab a bag of Garden Sulfur.
Heading into tall grass or deep woods?
Do this before you go — the old field method soldiers swore by
Wear a protective mask and keep sulfur away from your eyes when handling. Work outdoors or in a well ventilated space. Keep away from children and pets during application.
1
Grab an old clean sock you do not mind getting dusty. Fill it generously with food grade or garden sulfur powder — enough that the sock feels plump and the powder can move freely inside.
2
Tie the open end closed so the sulfur stays inside. Think of it as a natural powder puff — the sulfur will puff through the fabric fibers with each tap.
3
Tap and pat the sock firmly along your boots, up your pant legs to the knee, and around your sock tops and waistband. Give each area several good taps so the sulfur powder coats the fabric evenly.
4
You will notice the smell — that sharp sulfurous scent is exactly the point. Ticks navigate entirely by scent and they find sulfur deeply aversive. That odor is your first line of defense before you even step into the brush.
5
Reapply every few hours during extended time outdoors or whenever the scent fades noticeably. Store the sock in a sealed zip bag between uses.
This is the elemental sulfur approach documented in a 1989 US military field study on tick protection methods. It works differently from MSM — the smell itself is the repellent, creating an olfactory barrier ticks do not want to cross. Use it alongside your internal MSM and allicin protocol for layered protection at every level.
I use pharmaceutical grade 99% DMSO; because DMSO carries everything through the skin with it.
The Internal Protocol: My Natural Tick Repellent From the Inside Out
When you take MSM internally, the body metabolizes it and its breakdown products, including dimethyl sulfide, are secreted through the lungs and the pores of the skin.
That is sulfur quietly broadcasting through your skin all day long.
The theory, supported by the German patent research and consistent with what soldiers observed in the field, is that ticks detect it and find the host less appealing.
MSM is a Generally Recognized As Safe compound, well tolerated by most people at doses up to four grams daily.
Clinical research has studied it across a range of conditions from 500mg all the way up to 6,000mg daily without safety concerns in healthy adults.
For a natural tick repellent protocol during tick season you want to be at the higher end of that range so that enough sulfur is present in your system to be consistently showing up through your skin.
That is the foundation of this protocol and why starting a week or two before heading into tick habitat gives you the best result.
Allicin: The Other Internal Sulfur Layer Worth Adding Before You Head Outside
The soldiers who used sulfur powder in the field also mentioned garlic in the same breath.
That pairing makes biological sense.
Garlic works through the same internal sulfur excretion mechanism as MSM but adds something MSM does not.
Allicin and its breakdown compounds, specifically diallyl sulfide and diallyl disulfide, are excreted through the skin and breath after ingestion.
Ticks navigate by olfactory signals.
Those allicin sulfur compounds broadcasting through your pores create a chemical environment ticks find inhospitable, layering on top of the MSM sulfur signature that is already there.
The key is using a form that actually delivers allicin.
Most garlic supplements on the market contain alliin and rely on your body converting it to allicin, which is unreliable and highly variable depending on stomach acid levels and digestive health.
Practitioner strength allicin supplements use a patented extraction process that stabilizes and delivers actual bioactive allicin directly, bypassing that conversion step entirely.
This is the form worth using for anyone adding garlic internally to a natural tick protection protocol.
Start three to five days before heading into tick habitat to give the sulfur compounds time to build up in your system and begin being excreted through the skin consistently.
Continue daily throughout your time outdoors.
Combined with your internal MSM protocol, you are building a layered sulfur excretion profile from two different compound families simultaneously, MSM sulfur metabolites and allicin breakdown compounds working together through your pores all day.
You can get the practitioner strength version through my dispensary here.
Natural Tick Repellent Spray Protocol
Two external recipes — botanical spray and DMSO castor oil roller
Recipe 1 — Botanical Tick Repellent Spray
Ingredients
Witch hazel
2 oz
Geranium essential oil Pelargonium graveolens — USDA studied, over 90% tick repellency
15 drops
Oil of lemon eucalyptus CDC acknowledged natural tick repellent
10 drops
Cedarwood essential oil blocks tick scent receptors, disrupts body systems
10 drops
Rosemary essential oil additional botanical deterrent layer
5 drops
Steps
1
Pour witch hazel into a borosilicate glass measuring cup
2
Add all essential oils and stir gently with a stainless steel spoon
3
Pour into a 3 oz dark amber glass spray bottle using a 304 grade stainless steel funnel. Never plastic — amber glass preserves essential oil potency and prevents leaching
4
Cap tightly and shake well before each use
5
Spray onto sock tops, trouser cuffs, collar, hat brim, and exposed skin. Allow to dry before heading out
Where I apply it
Sock tops and boot ankles
Trouser cuffs and waistband
Shirt collar and cuffs
Exposed skin on arms and neck
Store in a cool dark place away from heat and light. Keeps 4 to 6 weeks. Reapply every two hours outdoors.
Yield: 3 oz · TSA compliant
Recipe 2 — DMSO Castor Oil Roller
Starting ratio: 40% DMSO, 60% castor oil. I build to 50/50 after several weeks of tolerance. I never exceed 50% without practitioner guidance.
Ingredients — 10ml bottle
Pharmaceutical grade DMSO 99% penetrant carrier — 40% of blend
4ml
Cold pressed castor oil antimicrobial carrier — 60% of blend
6ml
Steps
1
Measure 6ml cold pressed castor oil into a borosilicate glass measuring cup
2
Add 4ml pharmaceutical grade DMSO 99% and stir gently with a stainless steel spoon
3
Pour into your 10ml dark amber glass roller bottle using a stainless steel funnel. Cap with the stainless steel roller ball top. Never plastic at any stage
4
Wash and completely dry skin before each use. Nothing else on skin before DMSO goes on
5
Roll onto ankles, wrists, back of neck, hairline, and waistband. Allow to dry fully before dressing
6
Store at room temperature away from heat and direct sunlight. Use within 4 weeks
Where I apply it
Ankles and lower legs
Wrists and forearms
Back of neck and hairline
Behind the knees
Waistband
Safety
Pharmaceutical grade 99% DMSO only
Completely clean dry skin always
No plastic tools ever
Dark amber glass roller bottle only
Stainless steel roller ball only
Patch test first
Not for use if pregnant nursing or on medications
Yield: 10ml · approximately 2 to 3 weeks supply
For educational purposes only. Not medical advice. Consult a qualified practitioner before beginning any new protocol. These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA.
The Natural Tick Repellent Routine I Follow
On any day involving outdoor time in tick-prone areas, hiking, gardening, camping, or trail walking, here is the full layered natural tick repellent system:
Morning
- Take 1 teaspoon MSM in a full glass of water with vitamin C, to seed the internal sulfur layer for the day
- Take Allicin capsule and days leading up to outdoor time
Before going outside
- I wash and dry any skin areas that will be exposed
- I apply the DMSO castor oil skin blend to ankles, wrists, neck, and behind the knees, and allow to dry fully before dressing
DMSO can be very itchy if not properly diluted and on sensitive skin - I dress in my outdoor long sleeve clothing and spray the natural repellent on my clothing and shoes
- I have been building up my allicin reserves by taking my practitioner strength allicin from garlic. You can get that through me here.
After coming inside
- Do a full tick check of hairline, ears, neck, underarms, waistband, behind the knees, and groin
- Shower promptly; ticks that have not yet attached can be washed away
- I take my evening MSM dose
Why This Natural Tick Repellent System Works in Layers
This natural tick repellent spray protocol works because it layers three distinct strategies simultaneously rather than relying on any single approach.
MSM taken internally raises systemic sulfur status so that sulfur metabolites broadcast through your skin all day long from the inside out.
The DMSO castor oil roller applied to the ankles, wrists, neck, and waistband creates a localized external barrier at the skin areas ticks most commonly target first.
The botanical natural tick repellent spray, blended with geranium, oil of lemon eucalyptus, cedarwood, and rosemary, creates the outermost barrier at the fabric and skin surface before a tick reaches deeper tissue.
The sulfur foundation of this protocol is not guesswork.
It traces back to a 1989 military study documenting soldiers using sulfur powder in tick-endemic field environments, a German patent covering MSM for tick and flea prophylaxis in humans and animals, and a US patent specifically covering DMSO and MSM formulations for vector-borne disease prevention.
Oil of lemon eucalyptus is the only plant-based repellent the CDC has specifically acknowledged for protection against ticks and mosquitoes.
Three layers. Real chemistry. Documented field history behind it.
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References
- Military study on tick-borne diseases and field protection methods, 1989. Archived at americanlyme.org.
- Ravindran R et al. Toxicity of DMSO, Tween 20 and Triton X 100 against Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) annulatus. Ticks Tick Borne Dis. 2011 Sep;2(3):160-2. PMC3235388.
- Butawan M et al. Methylsulfonylmethane: Applications and Safety of a Novel Dietary Supplement. Nutrients. 2017 Mar;9(3):290. PMC5372953.
- German patent application DE102008006862A1. Use of sulfur in nutritional supplements for prophylaxis against tick and flea infestation in humans and animals.
- US Patent 10596109B2. DMSO and MSM formulations to treat infectious diseases including vector-borne diseases.
- Cornell University overview of castor oil as natural insecticide. Department of Entomology.
- Tabanca N et al. Bioactivity-Guided Investigation of Geranium Essential Oils as Natural Tick Repellents. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. 2013;61(17):4101-4107
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