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Our Story

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Our Story: How it All Began . . .

My name is Donya Fahmy. I'm the owner and founder of Dropwise Essentials and I am on a mission to help educate and empower people (especially women) to make safer, health conscious choices when it comes to their personal care products –-choices that enable them to honor their bodies, the safety and well-being of their loved ones, and the health of the environment.

Here's my story ... I first learned about the toxic ingredients in many personal care products about ten years ago. At the time I had some personal health challenges that I was suffering from –mainly recurring bouts of eczema and fatigue. I tried, like most people, to find answers through traditional medicine. But after years of going to different dermatologists and primary care physicians I was frustrated and tired of the cookie-cutter approach they used to address my problems.

None of the medical professionals whose help I sought were able to get to the bottom of what was causing my ailments or to properly treat them. I even had one dermatologist who, unable to provide a treatable diagnosis, told me I needed to find activities to help me deal with my stress and suggested I take up rose gardening! Needless to say, at the time I thought he was a quack. But looking back at it now, his suggestion may have subconsciously led me to start down the path that has brought me to where I am today.

Fed up, I finally decided to take control of my own health and stop relying on doctors and prescription meds to solve my problems. Knowledge is power and so I began my quest to learn as much as I could about alternative health practices to help me figure out what might be going on and find a better, more effective way to deal with and resolve it.

I started devouring books on herbs and aromatherapy, yoga and meditation, flower essences, and homeopathy. If it had anything to do with plants or the mind-body connection then I wanted to know about it. I also started attending seminars and workshops. Little by little I started putting the pieces of the puzzle together. I've learned a whole lot since I started down this path to natural health and living.

The most important thing I've come to believe is that the life force within us has an innate intelligence of its own. For thousands of years, our ancestors successfully treated their ailments and illnesses with natural remedies –which was the only thing available to them. They were much more connected to the earth that gave them life and sustained them than we are today. The underlying principle at play is to work WITH your body by supporting it with the proper nutrients not AGAINST it by bombarding it with foreign substances (like Over-the Counter and prescriptions meds) that it's not genetically designed to comprehend, let alone deal with.

The more I thought about it and applied it to my own situation, the more it all made sense. Of course my first priority was to figure out how to get control of the itching. I combined essential oils with anti-inflammatory and skin-soothing properties like Lavender, Geranium, Clary Sage, and Roman Chamomile in a base of organic Jojoba oil and applied the mixture liberally all over the affected areas of my body. I repeated the application twice a day (or more often as needed). Within 3 days my seemingly intractable itching was totally under control! Something I was previously unable to accomplish with prescription strength hydrocortisone creams or calamine lotion. I continued to apply my mixture until my skin cleared up completely.

And that's how my first aromatherapy blend called Soothe was born. Our Soothe Certified Organic Body Oil is the very same form that I used to treat my eczema. I supplemented the topical aromatherapy solution with an herbal tincture taken internally to support my liver, and to my delight the eczema cleared up and didn't re-appear for 7 years! These two simple steps had such a profound effect on my condition where repeated conventional medical treatment in the past had none. That is the true meaning of Flower Power!

Of course, inherent in my vision was promoting the concept of sustainability and "green" living because making products from plants is not as energy-intensive or polluting as making products with synthetic chemicals. And plant-based products are fully biodegradable at the end of their life cycle so there's no need to worry about what happens when they get into drains, and ultimately rivers and streams.

That's the story of how Dropwise Essentials came into being. I personally create every product in the line by combining traditional aromatherapy blending techniques with plant-based skin care ingredients to handcraft an exquisite line of safe, gentle, and effective spa quality products that help you easily relieve stress, increase vitality, improve confidence or simply feel better.

I hope you enjoy using our products as much as we enjoy making them and that you experience the benefits of true aromatherapy with each and every use!

Namaste,
Donya Fahmy
Donya Fahmy
Alchemist in Chief & Product Formulator
Sustainable Wellness Success Mentor

Dropwise Essentials products are:

  • Free of synthetic chemicals and petroleum ingredients
  • Made with high quality certified organic ingredients and pure essential oils sourced from around the world
  • Packaged in re-usable or recyclable materials
  • Hand-made locally in northern California
  • Never tested on animals

Green America: Approved for People and Planet