Oral Histories

Interview of Jacqueline Rice

Interviewed for the UCLA Center for the Study of Women’s Chemical Entanglements: Oral Histories of Environmental Illness series. Experiences Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS). Advocate for fragrance-free spaces.
Series:
Chemical Entanglements: Oral Histories of Environmental Illness
Topic:
Social Movements
Environmental Illness
Biographical Note:
Interviewed for the UCLA Center for the Study of Women’s Chemical Entanglements: Oral Histories of Environmental Illness series. Experiences Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS). Advocate for fragrance-free spaces.
Interviewer:
Stevenson, Grace
Interviewee:
Rice, Jacqueline
Persons Present:
Rice and Stevenson
Place Conducted:
The interview was conducted by telephone.
Supporting Documents:
Records relating to the interview are located in the office of the UCLA Library’s Center for Oral History Research.
Interviewer Background and Preparation:
The interview was conducted by Grace Stevenson, an undergraduate Student Researcher for the UCLA Center for the Study of Women. Stevenson is in the Department of Psychobiology and a part of the Spring 2019 Chemical Entanglements research group.
Processing of Interview:
The interviewer prepared for the interview by reading a pre-interview questionnaire completed by the narrator.
Length:
2 hrs
Language:
English
Copyright:
Regents of the University of California, UCLA Library.
Audio:
Series Statement:
Chemical Entanglements: Oral Histories of Environmental Illness is a collection of interviews with over seventy individuals living in the U.S. and Canada whose family history, occupation, art practice, or activism have brought them into direct contact with illness experience and disability related to chronic, low-dose exposure to toxicant chemicals. The procurement of this collection (from March 2019 through September 2020) was sponsored by the UCLA Center for the Study of Women under the directorship of Rachel C. Lee, with interviews conducted by six undergraduates, five graduate students, two career staff, and two faculty members at CSW.
Childhood and upbringing--Unique in community for being health conscious--High school and college experience--Carbon monoxide poisoning incident--Health issues before carbon monoxide poisoning--Library’s reaction to chemical sensitivity--Triggers in the library for MCS--Diagnosis of MCS--Lapse in memory--Support during diagnosis of MCS--Friends making changes in their lives with fragrance--Difficulties in public spaces because of MCS--Advocate for MCS--Facebook group for MCS--Mental Health counseling--Symptoms of MCS--Feelings of isolation--Medical professionals and MCS--Incident of chemicals in hospital--Next steps for MCS advocacy--Family sensitivities--A day in the life of MCS--No accommodations for people with MCS--List of triggers