Q&A with Marie Fromaget Lardy, current student of APA's Diploma Course

Today we sat down with Diploma Course Student Marie Fromaget Lardy to talk about her experience with our school, why she decided to study aromatherapy and what important lesson our “communication awareness” class has taught her.

Marie has already completed all "in-class" hours and is about to complete her case studies in order to become a qualified aromatherapist:

1) Marie, what were your reasons for studying aromatherapy?

I’ve been suffering from a long-term lung condition all my life and always had to take antibiotics. So I really wanted to help myself and find a more gentle way to treat it. You see, antibiotics are “dead” and essential oils are a natural, “living” form of treatment. It still takes some more time to take care of myself. 

2) What did you like most about APA’s diploma course? Any subject(s) you found challenging?

My native language is French, so Anatomy & Physiology class was quite difficult for me – I had to first translate all these special terms before being able to study them. But A&P teacher Carolyn was very good in explaining; I think she is the best teacher!

Also, writing the business plan was very hard for me because I think I’m not a “business woman”.

What I liked most in the Diploma Course was the Essential Oil Pharmacy class, of course! 

3) Can you tell us a bit about your experience with your case studies?

When I found out that I had to complete case studies (with a total of 56 massages) I was quite discouraged at first. But once I started my first consultations and received good feedback from my clients, I felt more relaxed. 

I learned a lot and now I understand why consultation is so important and why we had to take the “communication awareness” class. We help people to feel better but at the same time we need to keep some distance so we don’t get involved in our clients’ feelings or problems.


4) How are you planning to apply your knowledge as a certified aromatherapist?

First, I still need to complete some case studies to get my Diploma. I will use this knowledge mainly for my family (my husband works a lot) and me.

The next step for me would be to create a business that allows me to be flexible in case we are moving to another country. And I will definitely continue learning more about aromatherapy! 

5) Any tips for our readers who are interested in taking this diploma course?

Try to study regularly and if possible make notes on the day you have learned something new. Be aware that it’s a big time-commitment. You really need to be passionate about it in order to make it!

Take it as a journey and have your family support you because it also means you need to sacrifice a lot of your free time that you could otherwise spend with your family.


Thanks so much, Marie! If you are now inspired to start your journey into the art of aromatherapy, check out our next Diploma Course dates here.