On a cold morning in December 2024, florist Madeline King was on a buying trip to her local wholesaler when a wave of dizziness nearly knocked her over. As rows of roses seemed to rush past her, she tried to focus. She quickly picked the blooms she needed and left.

I’m not doing this any more, she thought.

That month, after eight years, she closed her Minneapolis-based florist. She had started the business aged 22, transforming it from a one-woman show operating out of her dad’s warehouse into a 10-person team, creating extravagant floral displays for weddings and building a loyal social media following.

The dizziness she experienced that day wasn’t new. By that point King, 30, had spent years battling fatigue, headaches and nausea. Her brain was foggy. She’d walk into rooms and forget why she was there. Now, she believes her symptoms were a result of pesticide exposure.

“It was definitely earth shattering,” she says over Zoom. “To find out that I feel this bad because of my job … is horrible and stressful. And also, why is no one talking about this?”