We recently connected with Nicola McGill and have shared our conversation below.

Nicola , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. How’s you first get into your field – what was your first job in this field?

After completing my training in numerous modalities in the UK, my family and I relocated to the USA. I was excited and had ideas that the USA would embrace the concept of integrative/complementary healthcare, to use as a prevention and maintain a level of good health. It took numerous discussions, free treatments and a lot of networking to educate and inform the general public, as well as the medical and healthcare community. Due to having a young family at the time, I was limited on how much I could work but i wanted to start building a practice so that I could use my wealth of knowledge and work in a field that I enjoyed and fully respected.

After relocating to Colorado from Florida, I attended a health fair in Boulder where I met a lady who was also an Aromatherapist and had trained at the same school as myself in London, 10 years prior to me. We became friends, sharing a mutual passion for Aromatherapy and helping people to take care of themselves. She informed me of a possible job opportunity at the local hospital that was opening an integrative healthcare centre for cancer patients. Based upon my background, she suggested that I apply for the role as massage therapist. I did apply and had an interview, which was somewhat daunting, based upon my lack of immersion into the medical setting. However, it was decided that i did not have enough experience working with cancer patients. So I proceeded to continue my learning journey and became an oncology massage therapist, which worked extremely well alongside my training as an Aromatherapist and MLD therapist. I took it upon myself to volunteer at the local Hospice, where I received more training in end of life and palliative care. These new learning experiences gave me sufficient tools to work with this client population, and within 6 months I was employed as a member of the team at the hospital. My experience in the UK was mainly with people who were interested in taking care of an already healthy body, so supporting clients who were seriously ill, was, at times, scary and daunting. I was seeing patients in all stages of their disease, many of them experiencing lymphedema as a result of their cancer treatments. This lead me on another learning path into the world of lymphedema and in 2010, I became a certified lymphedema therapist with Klose Training in Colorado.. After a year of working with lymphedema, I was given the opportunity to become and instructor with Klose Training, teaching their MLD certification program, which took me all over the USA, sharing my knowledge and skillset, so that the general public had access to the modality that has been a game changer for so many.

I am still an active practitioner, providing healing and support to clients, both well and unwell, whilst travelling each month, instructing students and sharing my experiences from working in this field for 30 years.

Nicola , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I was born and raised in the UK, finishing my high school education in the 1980’s when I was 16. Back then, there was no push from either my parents or the school system to further my education unless I was to stay on till I was 18, then sit for my A Levels and maybe attend a university. I didn’t experience a conventional upbringing to be honest so the support to enhance my education was not readily available. My parents were very young when I was born, my father having just completed carpentry school, my mother, just out of school herself, worked as a secretary.

When I completed school, I had absolutely no idea what I wanted to do with my career. I tried numerous jobs, mostly in office work, some sales but at 17,18 I seriously lacked confidence, as most late teens do I guess, always worrying that I was not good enough. I ploughed along, not unlike my school friends did at that time, eventually thinking I had found my life partner and wouldn’t have to worry anymore. Oh the naivety of youth… When I was 22, a personal relationship was not to be and I went into a somewhat spiral, moving back home with my mother and stepfather, being constantly reminded of needing a career not only to support myself but for my sanity and purpose in life.

My mother stated that she felt I was good with my hands. Immediately, I remember thinking, “What does that mean?” I have good hands to make pottery or be a hand model ?..No, good with my hands for touching and healing people. Again, not something that ever really crossed my mind but my mother , as most mothers are, was right. She spoke of massage school and even though that was not the direction I wanted to go, she sparked an interest that led me to attend an Aromatherapy school, where I received my Diploma as a Holistic Aromatherapist. This entailed a whole year of immersing myself into the world of healing, not just with my hands but with nature and the world of essential oils. At that early age, I had no idea of the potential I had to help people, that came later in life after I had my children, but I found my passion, leading me along the path of learning about holistic health and healing.

They say your teachers are the ones that can either ignite or dampen your fire. Well, my instructor ignited mine. She not only shared her extensive knowledge on Essential oils, but also her knowledge on the Lymphatic system and Manual Lymphatic Drainage. That’s where it all started, way back in 1993. My brain became a sponge to absorb more knowledge then to share this knowledge with those seeking a path of wellness. It’s true when they say “When you find your passion, all you want to do is soak up more and learn as much as you can….”

So jump forward 30 years, with countless trainings under my belt in Anatomy, Physiology, Nutrition, Energy Healing, Oncology and the Lymphatic System, a move across the pond with my family, I am now managing my own practice here in the the USA, supporting clients in their healing journeys, using the numerous modalities I have acquired, supporting those who are ready to embark on their personal journey to optimum health and wellness.

After several years of working at an Integrative care centre at my local hospital, my background attracted an increasing number of complicated situations with the cancer patients. Many were seeking help with lymphedema, a condition where the lymphatic system is damaged leading to swelling of a part of the body, I took yet another training to become a certified lymphedema therapist, which subsequently provided an opportunity to be an instructor with Klose Training, in Colorado. I now have the privilege of instructing students on Manual Lymphatic Drainage and the Lymphatic system. It is only through my own experiences as a therapist, that I am able to provide a thorough and detailed level of education, ensuring the students who complete the training will have the skill set to support those in their community who are also embarking on a health and wellness journey.

I am proud of what I have achieved during my 30 year career in health and wellness. I could have expanded into the world of aromatherapy, formulating products that may or may not be on the shelves of every refined store in the world, but I chose to follow a holistic path, providing my clients with individual aromatherapy blends, whilst utilising one or more of the modalities I have had the honour of discovering.

Now, when asked to present at a conference, write articles based upon my knowledge and experience, or more recently, receiving an invitation to talk on a podcast, I have to remind myself of the 18 year old Nicola, low confidence, severe lack of knowledge and no major academic background, I am proud to say that I am respected in my field, but more importantly, I have earned the trust and respect of those I can support on a journey of optimum health and wellbeing.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

My willingness to take on any situation and find a solution, even if that means collaborating with fellow therapists. I am always learning, attending webinars, conferences, reading articles, books etc, ensuring I educate myself enough to assist my clients with their health goals. I meet the client where they are at, going at their pace of healing and reminding them that I am not doing the healing, I am a facilitator in their own healing. The changes that occur for them following their time with me, are often profound, leading to referrals, especially from their medical teams.

When I am teaching, I ensure that no student leaves the classroom remaining unsure of the days lessons. I instruct with clarity, bring the basics in first and then build up to the more challenging areas of of the lessons, never moving forward with the next topic if there is a lack of understanding. I try and bring some humour and lightness to the environment to, but I think it also helps that I have a different accent!!!

Do you think you’d choose a different profession or specialty if you were starting now?

If I could go back with the knowledge and maturity I have now, I would have stayed on at school, taken my A levels, attended university and studied to become a physician of some kind, preferably as a Functional Medicine Practitioner specialising in Nutrition. This would have provided me with a broader scope of practice so I could really educate and support people, giving them an insight of how their bodies work. I think I would have still enjoyed being an Aromatherapist though, as I am like a child at Christmas every time I create a new blend or even open a new bottle of essential oil…

Contact Info:

• Website: www.nicolamcgill.com
• Instagram: mld_usa