Our journey through life is not always easy. We are all faced with many obstacles to navigate. Some of those obstacles we can steer around, others we have to face head on. This is my Mother’s story of inspiration and strength as she faces hers.
My Mother’s journey with chemicals began in 1999 with a long overdue purchase of a new couch for their home. After it was delivered, she noticed a very strong odor that filled the house. Aside from just smelling bad, she started getting very intense headaches at the base of your head that would not go away. It worsened to the point she finally called to have the couch removed. That was the beginning of her battle with the chemical “formaldehyde”.
The couch was removed from my parent’s home, but my Mother’s symptoms remained. It was suggested that the fabric on the couch must have been soaked heavily in formaldehyde. What we would later find out is that many times after exposure to a chemical like formaldehyde an individual can develop sensitivities to that chemical which is what happened in my Mother’s case. Now anything with formaldehyde in it gave her an instant headache–she recognized the smell and its effects. Armed with this new information about her new allergy, she visited her doctor and requested that her allergy to formaldehyde be noted in her medical records.
In 2005 Mother and Dad moved into a new home. A few months later Mother noticed a rash on her upper arm that was bothering her, so she scheduled an appointment with her doctor. The doctor gave her a cream to help in healing the rash. What she didn’t know at the time was that allergies to formaldehyde can manifest itself in the form of a rash. She also did not know that the cream she was prescribed had formaldehyde in it! Did her doctor not know the contents of that cream or did she not read the records indicating the allergy? That was the beginning of my Mother’s downward spiral.
She became allergic to almost everything. She could no longer use soaps and lotions. She could no longer wear her makeup, her hair would have to turn grey–she could no longer color it. The smell of perfumes or candles would give her horrible headaches. She couldn’t use laundry soaps and softeners. She became allergic to chemicals in certain foods. Once she became allergic or sensitive to one chemical then her weakened immune system became sensitive to many other chemicals–sensitivities to just about everything.
She was afraid to leave the house for fear that she would encounter an odor or chemical that would cause her further symptoms. Spending the night away from home would prove to be difficult at best. Did they wash the sheets in bleach? Was there new furniture? Did they use air fresheners? A simple trip to the mall would bring on symptoms.
My Mother’s life became unrecognizable. She suddenly was unable to live her life like she had all the years prior to her encounter with that formaldehyde soaked couch. While she was the one suffering, everyone around her had to change the way they lived their lives as well. My Dad couldn’t use his deodorant or aftershave. He couldn’t use soaps and shampoos. Their home had to be cleaned without the cleaners we all use and take for granted. Laundry was done without laundry soap. You get the picture.
The effects were not just physical, but mental. The medical community tends to label something they can’t explain as psychological–and in a sense, it is. Don’t get me wrong, anyone that knows my Mother, knows her to be strong both physically and mentally. At 74 my Mother takes no drugs, not even aspirin. She eats better than anyone I know! But this “thing” was taking its toll on her health and THEN it becomes psychological due to the fear that the next thing she touches or eats has the potential of causing her further harm.
She fought back hard, but these chemicals and their effects on her body were taking over. She became very thin and weak and needed help, but couldn’t find it anywhere. Her doctor couldn’t help; the allergy specialists couldn’t help. The best advice she received was, “avoidance, avoidance, avoidance”.
In 2005 I received a call from my Aunt telling me that my Mother was being hospitalized and suggested I get to Arizona as soon as possible. She was at her weakest and her symptoms became severe. Her weight had dropped by 20 pounds. Her heart was beating so hard she thought she was having a heart attack. As sick as she was, not one doctor in the hospital knew what to do for her because all of her tests came back normal–so they released her–she was on her own. That was the beginning of much research trying to find the answers. It was discouraging, time consuming and a daunting task.
Through our many hours of research, we finally had a name to pin on this monster and it was MCS (Multiple Chemical Sensitivity Syndrome). The definition of MCS is “a subjective illness with which various symptoms are blamed on various environmental chemical exposures. No diagnostic physical or laboratory findings completely define the illness”. Within the definition of MCS, did you notice the word subjective? Meaning proceeding from or taking place in a person’s mind rather than the external world. Because healthcare providers have so little information on MCS, many choose not to recognize it as a medical illness. So with that, the doctors are simply putting this illness on the back burner as psychological, and their patients continue to suffer in silence.
From that point on, her life became complicated with research, avoidance, vigilantly checking out everything she ate or put on her body. We researched ingredients in her personal care products, household cleaners and soaps. We researched chemicals found in and around her home. We began asking questions of those products that were not willing to list their ingredients–we became label readers. What exasperated her problem was that she and my Dad had just moved into a new home. We would later find out about all the hidden chemicals literally in the walls and floors of a newly built home–double whammy for my Mother in her weakened state.
Today my Mother is doing well keeping the effects of the chemicals at bay, still vigilant in knowing what she is putting on or into her body. She calls MCS her nemesis and knows that her life will always be a challenge as a result of it. But for now she has the upper hand and continues to be hopeful.
It is our hope that our new website, Chemically Pure, will be a venue to share our ongoing research, experience and encouragement to those suffering from chemical allergies or for those who simply want to live life a little greener. Please share your story and experiences with us.
