Ema with her husband Ants. Photo / Hannah Baker
At the time, Ema, now 37, was recovering from an eight-hour operation to remove a rare and thankfully benign brain tumour. Her health issues began after contracting Covid in March 2022. After experiencing a range of symptoms – including dizzy spells, head rushes, near-blackouts and a persistent whooshing in her ear – she repeatedly visited doctors, who kept telling her she had long Covid.
Ema explains, “I knew there was something else wrong, but it felt like no one would take me seriously.”
Fast-forward to August 2023 and when a particularly severe bout of vertigo saw her hospitalised, she finally found a doctor who would listen “and booked the tests I needed”.
Ema was diagnosed with vestibular schwannoma, a rare brain tumour close to her brain stem that was wrapped around some extremely fine nerves, including her facial nerve.
After discovering she needed a major operation, Ema wrote to her children, Luke, 16, Evie, 10, and 6-year-old daughter Ollie, who has cerebral palsy following a birth injury.
She shares, “I was afraid I was going to die, so I wrote the letters to the kids hoping they’d never have to read them. Thankfully, they didn’t.”
Ema was diagnosed with vestibular schwannoma, a rare brain tumour. Photo / Woman’s Day
Remarkably, Ema says her tumour and lengthy recovery have contributed to the success of Oh Cleoh as it slowed her down, took her away from her teaching job, and gave her months to quietly research and develop a product she previously knew nothing about.
“I was shocked to discover ingredients in many condom brands are chosen for shelf life ahead of vaginal health, with women often gaslit when they say the products are causing discomfort,” she tells.
After speaking to about 20 manufacturers around the world, she eventually found one that shared “my determination to create an ultra-thin condom using natural latex without any of the nasty irritants”.
The look of the product was also hugely important to help remove the stigma women sometimes feel when buying a box of condoms.
Teaming up with beauty innovator Bailee Wilson-Pledger and wellness specialist Libby Boxall, together they’ve brought Oh Cleoh to life, with “chic and discreet” packaging, a fun social-media presence and online sales.
Ema and her team took their message to the masses at this year’s Rhythm & Vines festival, where their vibrant pink Camp Cleoh tent was a popular drawcard. Giving away more than 6000 condoms, they had lots of honest conversations with young women about taking control of their sexual health and not leaving it in someone else’s hands.
Now with “thousands of hours” of hard work behind the scenes since Ema’s initial brainwave, her dream to get the condoms in even more women’s hands is coming true.
Oh Cleoh has been on shelves for the past six months, with the next goal to expand into the South Island and eventually internationally.
“We’d love to see any Kiwi woman be able to pop a pack of Cleohs in with her weekly shop!” Ema smiles.
Life has changed dramatically for Ema since her illness. Photo / Woman’s Day
Along with running the business, Ema is back, relief-teaching a couple of days a week, but life has changed dramatically since her illness. She still deals with hearing loss, balance and cognition issues, facial numbness, fatigue and yearly MRIs to ensure the residual brain tumour that couldn’t be removed remains stable.
“I’m not as energised as I used to be,” she reflects. “Even a simple trip away or going out for dinner with girlfriends can make me really tired for a couple of days. I haven’t quite accepted the new Ema is a bit boring, so I keep doing stuff, then suffering for it!”
Yet despite these challenges, she continues to look on the bright side.
Ema enthuses, “I believe in living fully, and teaching my children that we can get through anything and do anything! My tumour forced me to pause, reflect, rediscover my strength, and reignite my natural confidence and courage to get out there to do what I wanted to do without feeling judged.”