Rachel Carson was right! Pesticides are hurting us.
This is here, this is now. This is me!
My first awareness that I might have been injured by a chemical was when I was diagnosed with pleurisy. It happened shortly after using a household insect fogger. I shouldn't have gone in the house before it was aired out. But I had to go inside in order to open the windows - a catch-22 situation. So I inhaled the toxins, absorbed them through my skin too. And the lining of my lungs became painfully inflamed.After that, every time I could no longer spray insecticides without reacting. I moved from a townhouse to a single family home where I had more control over the movement of insects into my house. If you live in an apartment or row house in the southeastern U.S., you know what I mean. Bugs living in your neighbor's home come to visit you, traveling easily through the cracks in the walls.
In the years that followed, I noticed reactions to other toxins: tobacco, perfumes, diesel exhaust, carbonless forms, fumes from photocopiers. I became extremely allergic to dust and mold. I looked for information on my problem, and learned that the condition is called Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS) or Environmental Illness (EI). There are other names for it too, and some people even think it is a psychological condition. I do not understand their logic. Poisons affect people.
The effects seem to be cumulative. The only people I know who have recovered from MCS are people who avoided virtually all toxins for a long period of time. Because I have to work to support myself, I have not been able to do that - yet. But I try.
I do not like to say that I have MCS because it implies that I react negatively to all chemicals, and I do not. I react to a long list of them though, enough to have made drastic changes in the way I go about my daily life.
A couple of doctors have helped me. Other people with chemical sensitivities have given me tons of advice, most of it helpful. But avoidance is up to me.
If you are reading this because you think you may have MCS, follow the links to other pages that provide an overview. My pages on the subject are limited because I do not see the point in redoing text that has been done well elsewhere.
I hope you find this information helpful. I am not a doctor, so none of my writing should be considered medical advice. Instead, consider it as support and follow the clues to resources that can help you.
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December 2008
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