Oral Histories

Interview of Angela O'Mahony

Interviewed for the UCLA Center for the Study of Women’s Chemical Entanglements: Oral Histories of Environmental Illness series. Experiences chemical sensitivity, but uses the term "fragrance disability" to describe their condition. Executive personal assistant and events coordinator. Describes herself as a “super smeller” and can differentiate between overlapping layers of fragrances.
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 chemical sensitivity, but uses the term "fragrance disability" to describe their condition. Executive personal assistant and events coordinator. Describes herself as a “super smeller” and can differentiate between overlapping layers of fragrances.
Interviewer:
Kim, Kelsey
Interviewee:
O'Mahony, Angela
Persons Present:
O'Mahony and Kim
Place Conducted:
The interview was conducted using the Zoom video conferencing platform.
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:
This interview was conducted by Kelsey Kim, graduate student interviewer, for the Center for the Study of Women in cooperation with UCLA Center for Oral History Research; PhD student in Anthropology, UCLA. Kim’s dissertation focused on gender and racial inequalities in the Silicon Valley high-tech industry.
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.
Note:
Under Legal Agreement, please delete file sizes 472990 and 280100 (not countersigned).
Introduction to growing up in a small rural area--High school life and discovery of super smelling abilities--College life--Move to Florida with aunt and start of career--Move to Texas with husband and shifts in career due to economic crash--Description of health before MCS--Description of progression of fragrance sensitivity to fragrance allergy to fragrance disability--Description of doctors and their helpfulness--Family’s lack of awareness towards her fragrance disability and husband’s occasional support--Work life and financial burdens--Outline of advocacy organization--Participation in Facebook group and projection of increased public awareness regarding MCS--Dealing with trolls on Facebook
Company shift toward “odor technology”--Search for a study involving super smelling--Difficulty finding fragrance-free products during the pandemic--Healthcare settings with scent