About

about-me-theoilchemist

Our Approach

Our Story

So how did I make the transition from being a Pilates teacher of over 20 years, running a studio and retreats in Andalucia, Spain, to re-training to be an Essential Oil practitioner and Aromatherapist in London?

On 21st April 2016 our world fell apart when our youngest son was diagnosed with leukaemia aged 14. The first year was mostly in hospital with months in isolation. This is when the oils came into our world as a daily necessity.

I bought the Young Living diffuser and a set of oils to keep the room smelling clean, safe and healing. Little did I realise how important this one purchase would be over the following years.

Being confined to an isolation room with our son day and night, the oils not only gave us a rhythm to the day, but were helping us on a much deeper level than masking the smells of a hospital room and cancer treatments.

I experimented with citrus oils on waking , especially orange or neroli to make us feel positive and energised, and then lavenders and ylang ylang to encourage rest and calm of an evening. As I learnt more, read more books and did an online course , I soon realised I needed to truly understand the chemistry and healing powers of therapeutic oils on a much deeper level. Soon various anti-bactrial , anti-viral and anti-fungal oils were making their daily appearance into our diffuser.

All the nurses, doctors, cleaners and consultants alike, remarked on how our room was” different" to the others on the cancer ward. The healing power of the oils brought not only pleasure but deep interest to every one who entered our rooms, as it “ feels so calm in here". I say rooms as over 2 years we were on the ward in many different rooms for various amounts of time and the best present I could think of gifting to the staff at Malaga Materno and Infantil hospital was a diffuser and a selection of oils for the nurses´ staff room.

After the 2 year protocol we were told a Bone Marrow Transplant (BMT) would be our next chance of saving our sons life. The search began in Summer 2018 and during this time with Ramsey suffering from low appetite and feeling very isolated, we decided to try a medicinal marjuana protocol under the guidance of doctors from the Kalappa Clinic in Barcelona.

Medicinal marjuana is THC and CBD . It allowed Ramsey to gain an appetite and also to make him laugh,…something that really is one of the best medicines after so much pain and sadness. We followed the guidance from the Kalappa clinic with much online guidance as obviously this was not something the main stream cancer protocol would advise or wanted to hear about at all.

You can imagine as a mother I researched the suppliers of all my oils to the nth degree . My son was not only fragile with a weak immune and digestive system but this time I was not only diffusing oils but researching the best supplier for him to ingest them!
This is when The Real CBD company really came to light. Not only could I get a batch chemical read but the owner Hanne was there to give all the knowledge she had about each of her products. We started using CBD with melatonin to help us sleep. Years of sleep deprivation were really taking their toll and this product alone become so important to my husband and I , but getting such quality CBD from The Real CBD was fundamental to the protocol.

We sold our home to allow for us to be with our son around the clock and left Spain to go to England for a BMT in 2018. At hospital in London, the response was the same as in Spain and our isolation room post transplant became what the nurses and consultants said was a favourite to visit .This time of day I always had Thieves and sometimes with added Sweet Orange in the diffuser and this is what our main consultant said made our room “ feel like Christmas” !

At home we constantly have the diffusers working in my sons bedroom and in the living room. I have learnt so much more over the years and only use the highest quality best sourced and produced essential oils to be found on this beautiful planet . I use  Oshadi and Neal´s Yard  Remedies essential and carrier oils. I no longer use USA suppliers or MLM companies as they do not fit with the knowledge I have gained about the  sourcing ,distilling and production of plant matter.

I am an associate member of the IFA ( International Federation of Aromatherapists). I  studied Aromatherapy under the tutelage of Suzanne le Quesne and qualified with a Diploma in Aromatherapy with Distinction, in November 2019. I worked for 1 year on the graduate programme at Neal´s Yard Remedies in Richmond London before helping start the first Neal’s Yard Spa at The Shangri-La on the 43rd floor of The Shard, London.

Since 2021 I have been working for Bhuti and Hill Rise, both on Richmond Hill in London. I am the lead Aromatherapist and have also learnt facial lymphatic drainage , facial gua sha and facial cupping techniques taken from TCM.

I am now in the fortunate position of having a wonderful clientele that I work for privately and on retreats in Europe once again.

Next Steps...

“It doesn’t get much greener than essential oils: when used correctly, they are among Mother Nature’s most potent remedies.”

Amy Leigh Mercree