A WOMAN has revealed horrific pictures of facial burns she suffered after being sprayed with vapour from an essential oil diffuser.
Emily Smith, 24, suffered chemical burns to her face and eyes after she was accidentally sprayed in the face on Bonfire night.
Posting to Facebook, she told how she was sitting at home with a "popular" electric diffuser on and an open fire roaring having decided to not go outside.
She said: "I walked over to the diffuser and held the button down for a number of seconds (as this is the way to shut it off).
"In the process of turning the appliance off, some of the vapor from the diffuser must have sprayed onto my face.
"But I didn’t think anything of this. Whilst I was somewhat aware of the danger of getting essential oils directly on my skin, I was unaware that the vaporised 'diluted' oil from my diffuser could also be dangerous."
The 24-year-old Londoner told how later in the night she got up to put a log on the fire when she suddenly felt a stinging sensation on her face.
The pain continued to grow but after following medical advice from a 111 operator, Emily soaked her face in cold water before heading to bed and taking painkillers during the night.
But the next morning she woke up with a burning sensation face to her face after symptoms worsened overnight and was quickly rushed to A&E.
Emily posted on Facebook: "I looked into the mirror and didn’t recognise myself.
"My face had swollen, my eyes were blurred and continually watering and my skin looked pus-y.
"I’m extremely fortunate to have my sight at all, and lucky that the burn wasn’t worse."
Emily was hit with patchouli oil in the face when she leaned in to turn off the device on November 5.
Now the 24-year-old is today warning about the dangers of burning essential oils after her face continued to burn after dousing herself in water.
She says she could have avoided her devastating injuries if she had known to seek medical attention immediately.
Emily, who has since got engaged, added: "Oil does not just ‘wash’ off. When I soaked my face in a bowl of water, I was not really relieving my burn. I was marinating my face in the cause of my troubles.’
"I have suffered permanent eye damage and am potentially facially scarred for life.
"It was a life-changing incident, that was preventable."
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