As shocking as this blog post title may sound, it is true. Peppermint Essential Oil almost killed me some weeks ago, and I would feel dead guilty if I didn’t share my experience with the internet. So let me start from the beginning. I won’t be naming the exact name of the branded diffuser and peppermint Essential Oil I used because I don’t believe it is relevant. What happened to me would likely have happened even with a different brand of essential oils.

How it all started

So I got my hands on some bottles of essentials oils and a diffuser and decided to give them a go. Prior to me trying these oils, I have heard a lot about them and their benefits. So I was eager to experience it all. I got my hands on some little bottles of Peppermint Essential Oils (about 3/4ml) and I diluted it with water because there were no clear instructions on how to dilute them. I didn’t know how many drops to add or not add, so I poured in the entire oil of the tiny bottle into water. Now that I know what I know, that was a crazy thing to do. I am writing this post to share my story and educate others on how the adverse effects can be avoided.

The Peppermint Essential Oil attack

The diffuser had instructions that stated it could be use for 12 hours straight. I was planning to have it on for a few hours before dashing out for the school run. So I settled down on the sofa with my laptop and took it all in. At first, it started off great. I liked the fragrance and I found it all relaxing. After an hour of the diffuser being on, it suddenly started. I couldn’t breathe and I felt really dizzy. The whole room started to spin really fast and I thought my head was going to explode. I struggled to get off the sofa and away from the living room, into the hallway.

Once I got out, I then realise I had to switch the diffuser off. So I struggled to get back into the living room to switch off the diffuser get out as fast as I could. I then thought of going outside but I was worried I would fall down and bang my head. The whole room was still spinning very fast and I felt I was choking. It felt like I was having an out-of-body experience. The ground was vibrating, it was so scary.

The aftermath

So I opened the windows and doors, and dashed upstairs to the bedroom as fast as I could. After about 15 minutes, the room spinning reduced but I still felt very sick and dizzy. I was also craving for sugar all of a sudden. I think it was my body guiding on what to do to save myself. So I got my hands on some juice and cookies, and that helped a lot. I got the toxic smell out of the house and started to feel slightly better after a few hours. But I still didn’t feel like my old self. My old self took weeks to fully come back and my body is not 100% back to how I was prior to the essential oil incident, if I am being completely honest.

Why this happened

This happened to me because I had no idea how strong essential oils are. I thought they were just like any other fragrance oil. If I knew how strong they were I won’t have ever tried them. I won’t have taken the gamble. One thing that shocked me was the lack of instructions on the bottle. For such a strong and can I say dangerous product, I was quite shocked it didn’t have clear instructions on how to use. I was also shocked the diffuser stated it could be use for 12 hours. After the experience I had and the extensive research I have now done, I think 12 hours of using essential oils is a very ling time. You really shouldn’t be having it on longer than for 30/40 minutes maximum.

What I found even more shocking is the lack of information online. It took me forever to find relevant information on the dangers of essential oils and how best to use them. Most of the essential oils information online is wrong. They are all about the amazing benefits of essential oils and hardly anything about the dangers of using them wrongly.

My advice

I hope this post comes in handy for someone today. I am not completely against essential oils but I don’t recommend them. If you are going to use any essential oil, make sure you know what you are doing. Treat essential oils as you would prescription drugs. I don’t see myself ever using essential oils by myself again. Essential Oils have become very popular and many see them as the next thing to try. But we need to remember that there is so much power in that little bottle. If you don’t need it, don’t use it. There are loads of beauty/health products around today, but we don’t have to use them all.