Opportunity to participate in Multiple Chemical Sensitivity research

The Multiple Chemical Sensitivity research team at James Madison University is currently looking for people to participate in current studies.

Experiencing Environmental Sensitivities

We are interested in interviewing people who have had environmental sensitivities for 5 years or more. The interview will last approximately 30 minutes and will explore the phenomenology of what it is like to experience sensitivities and to interact with others in a chemical culture.

If you are interested in participating, please click here to open the consent form and to complete the short demographic questionnaire. If you do not have computer access or cannot use a computer, please contact our lab for a hard copy of the short demographic survey. You can call us at 540-568-6195.

Client’s Perceptions of Services from Mental Health Providers for Persons with Environmental Sensitivities

In this study we will examine people’s perceptions of any services they have received from psychological providers. People with sensitivities end up in the offices of mental health providers for a variety of reasons: for counseling, for evaluations in regard to disability applications or as requested by Vocational Rehabilitation, or when referred by a physician who perceives the problem to be psychological. There may be other reasons as well. We are interested in the treatment that people receive, whether they are accommodated by these providers, and their perceptions of how knowledgeable mental health providers are regarding sensitivities.

In addition, as part of this study we invite anyone who has received a psychological evaluation from a psychologist to submit it so we can examine how people with sensitivities are being construed by psychologists. There has been an ongoing movement to frame MCS/ES as a psychological illness. We believe it is physical and would like to attempt to begin discussion of the ways that persons with MCS are framed in evaluations.

Click here to take our survey of psychological services on Qualtrics: http://jmu.qualtrics.com/SE?SID=SV_6DpHHiwHSysPFgE&SVID=Prod

If you are unable to take the survey online or know of someone who would like to participate without taking the survey online, we can be contacted for either an e-mail copy or a hard copy of the survey. Phone 540-568-6195 or e-mail gibsonpr@jmu.edu.

Link

Thanks, Linda!

We’re toxic “from womb to tomb”

There’s an excellent story by Simran Sethi at The Huffington Post on toxic chemicals found in everyday household products making their way into our bodies. Featured is information from the Environmental Working Group on studies showing hundreds of chemicals in the umbilical cord blood of newborns. The full story is laced with links to more information. Note that all the products mentioned as toxic are the same products to which people with Multiple Chemical Sensitivity have bad reactions from low level exposure.

Here’s an excerpt from Sethi’s report:

We can thank WWII for inventions like SPAM, plastic wrap, and modern-day chemical cleaning products. When hostilities ended, the same companies that had been manufacturing chemicals for nerve gas and other weapons began to bottle their concoctions for the general public, who used them to disinfect their homes. Sixty years later, Mr. Clean may seem well intentioned, but a toxic chemical is still a toxic chemical, no matter how diluted or how many “Danger! Do not swallow” warnings a bottle is branded with. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requires that household chemicals label info on poison control and toxicity, but doesn’t mandate ingredient disclosure. We each have our own allergies and sensitivities, so what may be deemed “safe” for one person may be harmful for another.

Kids are among the most vulnerable peeps. Children under the age of six are more likely to die from ingesting dish soap than any other product in the home. Luckily, most of us ingest or inhale dish soap residue in doses much too small to be lethal, but the chemicals are still having an effect. Women who work at home are 54% more likely to die from cancer, because of a higher exposure to household cleaning products. And the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has determined that indoor air quality may be twice as polluted as outdoor air.

Environmental Working Group (EWG) has found that everyday products like dish soap and laundry detergent are polluting our air and our bloodstreams with toxic chemicals linked to cancer, infertility, and stunted development. You’re probably thinking sure, you’re fill-in-the-blank age, you’ve been exposed to a lot in your short/long life. But here’s the kicker: we’re toxic from womb to tomb. A recent EWG study tested the umbilical chord blood of 10 unborn babies, and found a total of 287 toxic chemicals, an average of 200 per fetus. (You can find out more in the accompanying video.) The chems in babies included 28 waste by-products, 47 consumer products like Teflon and Scotch Guard, and 212 industrial chemicals and pesticides (such as PCBs and DDT) that were already banned more than 30 years ago. Our newborns are coming into the world with a heavy “body burden” of toxins that will impact their health and development.

Link to full story and video at The Huffington Post.

Link to more videos on the topic of chemicals and children from a conference sponsored by Seventh Generation.

Photo by Brittany Bush.

Who’s chirping about Multiple Chemical Sensitivity today?

Earth911 writes about chemical sensitivity when they address the question: Isn’t it more eco-friendly to buy an artificial Christmas tree? Well, they say, it depends on who you ask.

Real or Fake?

The National Christmas Tree Association annually releases this fact sheet to help educate the public. It compares the pros and cons of fake vs. real trees in everything from origin to production to ingredients.

Take a Deep Breath

Nearly 500,000 acres of Christmas trees in the U.S., with each acre providing the daily oxygen requirements of 18 people. When one tree is cut down, three seedlings are planted the following year to replace it making it the ultimate carbon offset. In 2008 alone, an estimated 40-45 million Christmas trees were planted in North America.

On the flip side, those trees are often sprayed with pesticides. While fake trees are not depleting resources and can be reused year after year. However, artificial trees contain lead to produce the PVC material in the needles. These trees can off-gas, and can create issues for those who have chemical sensitivities.

The Galway Tent Blog, out of Dublin and dedicated to the topic of incinerators, says “No more incinerators should be approved,” citing “recent research, including that relating to fine and ultrafine particulates, the costs of incineration, together with research investigating nonstandard emissions from incinerators, has demonstrated that the hazards of incineration are greater than previously realised. The accumulated evidence on the health risks of incinerators is simply too strong to ignore and their use cannot be justified now that better, cheaper and far less hazardous methods of waste disposal have become available.” An excerpt from the study’s Executive Summary:

Toxic metals accumulate in the body and have been implicated in a range of emotional and behavioural problems in children including autism, dyslexia, attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), learning difficulties, and delinquency, and in problems in adults including violence, dementia, depression and Parkinson’s disease. Increased rates of autism and learning disabilities have been noted to occur around sites that release mercury into the environment. Toxic metals are universally present in incinerator emissions and present in high concentrations in the fly ash.

Susceptibility to chemical pollutants varies, depending on genetic and acquired factors, with the maximum impact being on the foetus. Acute exposure can lead to sensitisation of some individuals, leaving them with lifelong low dose chemical sensitivity.

Rincon Hill San Francisco, a community blog, announces a neighborhood meeting and adds, “Individuals with severe allergies, environmental illness, multiple chemical sensitivity or related disabilities should call the City Accessibility Hotline at 415-554-8925 to discuss meeting accessibility.” Bravo!

Who’s chirping about Multiple Chemical Sensitivity today?

Disabilities columnist Daniel J. Vance at Rocklin and Roseville Today writes on “Understanding Multiple Chemical Sensitivity Syndrome.” Although his intent is in the right place, he misses the mark by listing only classic allergy symptoms like runny nose and runny eyes, and skipping the more problematic non-allergy symptoms such as loss of cognitive ability and prolonged fatigue after exposure. I don’t know if reports like this help or hurt our cause.

And the story that never dies: The Morning Call reports “Couple asks South Whitehall to allow ‘bubble house’: Pair appealing judge’s order that haven be torn down.” The couple who built a modular housing unit known as ”the bubble” in their backyard, as a safe place for the wife who has Multiple Chemical Sensitivity, has asked the township to make an exception to its zoning ordinance and allow the building, despite a Lehigh County Judge’s order to tear down the structure.

A letter to President-Elect Obama

Dear President-Elect Obama,

I am jubilant at your victory! I wish you a heartfelt congratulations. It was a long, hard campaign that you managed flawlessly, and if your skills at running a campaign are any indication of the way you will run the federal government, then we are in good hands indeed.

I know many people and organizations are petitioning you this week, pleading their case or personal issue and hoping you will deliver the change you’ve promised. Those of us who have suffered under the policies of the Bush Administration are desperate for relief and we each want to make sure that our corner of the universe is touched by your promise of change.

I’ve worked in Democratic politics at both the local and national level enough to know that campaigns are one thing and governing something else entirely. I know that you will not be able to deliver on absolutely everything you hope to. But rather than feeling desperate that my particular issue will not be addressed and righted in the coming eight years, I instead feel great confidence that indeed it will.

My issue is the environment. Not the Big Picture of climate change that most of the world is focusing on right now– of course arguably the most important issue of our times–, but rather the immediate environment of our homes, places of work, and public spaces. You see, I have Multiple Chemical Sensitivity, and so my issue is the need for strong, enforced policy that forces corporate entities and businesses to stop polluting our air, water, soil and bodies with toxic synthetic chemicals.

I am especially concerned about the 80,000 synthetic chemicals that are being put into everyday household and other commercial products, most of which have not undergone rigorous study as to their impact on public health. This is disconcerting given that many of these toxic chemicals from the marketplace are showing up in our blood, and most disturbing, the blood of our children.

The Bush Administration has allowed corporate interests to run rough shod over environmental and consumer policy. Bush officials have lied to the American people and to the international community about the severity of toxic chemicals in the marketplace, which left the European Union no choice but to take control of the issue on the global stage. I am grateful for that, but deeply ashamed that my country is not at the forefront of this pressing issue.

Of all the images produced during your stirring campaign, what sticks with me the most are the faces of the people in the crowd at Grant Park as you addressed the nation as the new president-elect. I don’t believe I have ever seen such unbridled joy and optimism at any political event. But now comes the time for the real work, and I know in my heart of hearts that you will do what’s right and lead the federal government to do its job in protecting the health, safety and welfare of the American people.

Aloha and mahalo to you, our native son. Go do us proud. Imua!

Susie Collins

Who’s chirping about Multiple Chemical Sensitivity today?

The Southeast Texas Record reports that a “Worker claims chemical fumes exposure led to asthma and an extreme sensitivity to common household chemical fumes.”

Gregory Scott Johnson has filed suit against Arkema, alleging a chemical in new equipment the company installed caused him to develop asthma and an extreme sensitivity to common household chemical fumes. [...] Arkema installed new equipment in the Waco bottling facility, the suit states. Part of the equipment Arkema installed contained Certincoat, a glass coating made from monobutylin trichloride, according to the complaint.

In July 2007, a timing malfunction occurred on the line, and Johnson claims he was called in to repair the issue. The work took several hours, and by the time Johnson was finished, he was short of breath and experiencing chest pain, according to the complaint. Another timing malfunction occurred on July 15, 2007, and Johnson was again called in, the suit states. Johnson alleges he again experienced the same symptoms. Johnson went to a doctor where he was informed his lungs were scarred, according to the complaint.

“He was diagnosed with occupational asthma and is extremely sensitive to common household chemical fumes,” the suit states. “He had been assessed as having a 25 percent whole-body impairment.”

Religious Cause posts a story about a church that ministers to people with Multiple Chemical Sensitivity. The church has been denied a special use permit and variance that it requested to build a religious center. In “Michigan Court Upholds Zoning Denial; Defines Church,” it’s pointed out that the court ruled the Ecclesiastical non-profit corporation was indeed a church, but the group still could not construct a building in the chosen location.

In Great Lakes Society v. Georgetown Charter Township, (MI Ct. App., Oct. 30, 2008), the Michigan Court of Appeals upheld the Georgetown Zoning Board of Appeals’ denial of an application for a special use permit and a variance that had been requested for a religious center. The court first concluded that the proposed building was a “church” for zoning purposes and that the trial court had applied an incorrect standard in holding otherwise. Great Lakes Society ministers to persons who have chemical sensitivities to common environmental pollutants. It also has a phone book listing under “Nutritionists”. Its proposed building would contain space for a number of activities related to its ministry. The appellate court held that it is sufficient that the building is primarily used for public worship and reasonably closely related activities. The Court of Appeals went on to find that the Zoning Board of Appeals and the Township “properly decided not to grant a variance with respect to the proposed building location and that they did not violate the RLUIPA or any constitutional guarantees by making that decision.”

Who’s chirping about Multiple Chemical Sensitivity today?

Thomas Coffman at the Albert Lea Tribune writes about “You might discover your own migraine cure.” He says, “The majority of migraines involve food allergies, such as wheat and chemical sensitivities. [...] Find out if it’s a food allergy, a chemical sensitivity or whatever. Then start reducing them systematically. You may discover your own cure on your own.”

The Canary’s big red flag went up with this one. Owing Mills Times out of Maryland reports “Hospital testing scents in new lobby” :

The hospital will test several aromas in the lobby in the coming weeks, Wexler said.

“The concept is to eliminate the typical cleaning odor of hospitals to reduce the stress of those waiting,” he said.

Brian Sanderoff, pharmacist and CEO of Your Prescription for Health, a natural pharmacy on Dolfield Road in Owings Mills, praised the idea of using aromatherapy in a hospital lobby, citing lavender, sandalwood, bergamot and clary sage as aromas with calming properties.

“Because the nerves from the nose go directly into the brain, aromas are a direct way of affecting many aspects of brain function including emotion and mood,” said Sanderoff, adding that sensitivities to the chemical compounds of aromas and quality of essential oils used to produce aromas are two concerns with aromatherapy.

Bay of Plenty Times reports that residents in a New Zealand town say “We don’t want toxic city” :

Bay residents, including the mother of a teen left totally debilitated by toxic sprays, have urged Tauranga City Council to rethink the city’s increasing dependence on chemical weed control.

Councillors this week heard Avenues resident Robyn Board describe the impact that agri-chemicals had had on her 18-year-old son Michael.

She was one of seven speakers opposed to council’s draft agri-chemical policy, which said use of some toxic agri-chemicals was necessary to help control weeds.

Mrs Board’s son collapsed five years ago after the family’s rural neighbour sprayed a mixture of Roundup and the hormone-based Gardoprim in high winds.

The Board family left their home that day, never to return.

“He is still virtually housebound because he is too debilitated to go out and be a regular 18-year-old,” Mrs Board said.

Mrs Board, who herself had been diagnosed with multiple chemical sensitivity and ME (also known as chronic fatigue syndrome) precipitated by chemical poisoning, said the sprays had a profound effect on her son.

The hunt for nontoxic air fresheners and carpet cleaning

I worked on a question today from Ruth (at left), one of our flock with Multiple Chemical Sensitivity, who emailed me about two problems she’s having in her apartment building. The first problem is about the toxic air fresheners used in the common areas, and the second is the landlady’s plans to have the hallway carpets professionally cleaned.

In Ruth’s first email, I could feel her frustration:

…after speaking with the assistant manager and the land lord late last week, they have decided that they would just remove one of the gel type fresheners…the one that is in the main entry that I come in from my car in the parking lot….they said that there are just too many odors in the building coming out of people’s apartments, so it is necessary for them to use these. They thought of other things (those perfume mounts on the walls that spritz out fragrance periodically, like in the nursing homes…that is one of the reasons I am not working now!) and they came up with having the hall rugs cleaned….I asked that they not use fragrance in the solution…they can’t honor that because the rugs are so dirty and stinky…thus they “have to use it.”

They asked me if I knew of an alternative….I thought perhaps there was an essential oil air freshener (solid?) that could be placed in the hallway instead, but have not found anything…

Luckily, Ruth’s landlady is open to alternative solutions. While I was researching air fresheners, Ruth emailed me with an update on the carpets:

The carpet cleaners are scheduled to come on Thursday, the 6th, and they will do just the halls. I spoke with my land lady just now, and she said she called them right away after I spoke with her the other day, explained my situation to them and they understood that there should be no fragrance used. It is a dry type of cleaning that they do, apparently…they don’t use water. Not sure what that is about. But it sounds like she did her best to let them know about  my issue with fragrance. So we will see what happens.

I was so happy to hear this! What I was most impressed with was the way Ruth got proactive, went to speak to her landlady. Brava, Ruth!

Meanwhile, I asked my Twitter community (an online social network) about any suggestions for nontoxic air fresheners. I received many suggestions, some ideas more suitable for home use than for an apartment building, but they are all good ideas. As always, people with Multiple Chemical Sensitivity should be very careful when using any product; what might work for one person might be problematic for another.

Allie at Allie’s Answers recommends the Everyday Stain & Odor Remover from Earth Friendly Products. Is there a canary out there who has tried this product? Please give us your thoughts in the comment section.

Of the rest of the suggestions, some involve natural scents, which may or may not work for people with MCS.

Adonya Wong at Healing… Through the Eyes of Autism says she uses “Pure Citrus Orange by North American, it’s 100% natural & non aerosol. If the halls are carpeted, sprinkle baking soda on it. If not, mop with vinegar & water. Great odor fighters. Or dab your fave essential oil on a cotton ball & ‘hide’ it in several places.”

Recycle Your Day says, “We use Uni-Fresh, Air Freshner, Lavendar Scent by Earth Friendly Products - non toxic!” Lavendar is one of the very few natural scents that I can tolerate.

Two true Earth mamas recommend herbs straight from the garden. Arwen at Musings on the Tarot recommends fresh rosemary and sage (I grow both in my garden and LOVE them!), or DIY air fresheners with essential oil and distilled water. And Rose at A Little Bit of Green suggests fresh eucalyptus, which she says she’s always loved from her father’s floral shop, but would not work for me personally because I have a bad reaction to eucalyptus and other menthol type botanicals (up my nose and in my eyes!).

And in my hunt, I found natural Aromatherapy Refreshing Sprays at Vermont Soap Organics.

Your thoughts?

Photo from Ruth. Used with permission.

UPDATE!!!: Leslie, aka La Mama Naturale, at Recycle Your Day, has found just what we are looking for! It’s a nontoxic air freshener made my Method: no phthalates, in a container that 80% recycled paper, lavender scent (which as I noted is a botanical that I can tolerate).

I need to confess that the Method product was suggested on Twitter yesterday by the nice folks at Aquatic Eco-Systems, but I couldn’t find the link to the Method website to check the ingredients. And now we know! Yep, nontoxic!!

Who’s chirping about Multiple Chemical Sensitivity today?

On the election front:

Lou Cheese, over at Living w/ Mulitple Chemical Sensitivity, braved the Cleveland air to document the Obama rally today. As his photo at left shows: “I packed my bag with extra batteries for the camera, two respirators, and a note from the doctor explaining the requirement for respirator use in public areas,” he says. “Just what every guy needs.” He posted three updates, at 11:00 a.m.,  3:00 p.m., and 7:00 p.m. I’ve really enjoyed his perspectives on the presidential race, including his fears of being arrested by the Secret Service at various rallies for being a terrorist because of wearing a respirator!

GreenMuze put together a simple guide to a green voting experience, what they call “Your Eco-Voting Etiquette Guide.” The guide talks about how it’s not enough to just be voting green, you should act like a greenie at the polling place, too. I was delighted to see they recommend a fragrance-free experience. Along with recommending carpooling, eco-friendly water containers, and organic cotton t-shirts, they also say this:

Go scent free.

For many people voting is a social occasion, you see your neighbours, chat with friends, and even perhaps flirt with someone new in the line-ups, but do everyone a favour and go scent free. Increasingly, people are having more chemical sensitivities to perfumes, hairsprays, scented creams and even strong smelling laundry detergents and fabric softeners can be a serious health trigger for many individuals.

The Body Burden reports that everyone alive today carries within her or his body at least 700 contaminants, most of which have not been well studied. Why add more? Going chemical free will reduce the planetary toxic load, is better for your health and much better for the health of those around you. It is time we consider chemical perfumes, hairsprays, shampoos, etc. as equally as noxious as cigarette smoke.

GreenMuze also says “Obama is certainly not the eco-saviour that Al Gore would have been, but he is much better than the McCain/Palin ticket and smart enough to stock his cabinet with good green people.” Exactly!

We’re on Alltop.com!

The Canary Report is now listed on the online news aggragator Alltop.com! In the world of blogs, this is huge and wonderful. But it’s not just The Canary Report that’s listed in Alltop’s new Environmental Health topic, some of our flock have their blogs listed, too! “The Oko Box Blog,” “I Learned Something Today,” and “Living W/Multiple Chemical Sensitivity” are listed! And organization blogs like “MCS America” and “Enviroblog” can celebrate, too.

I’m thrilled!!

Let me tell you how this all came about.

I recently received a request from Neenz Faleafine at Alltop.com to help her develop an Environmental Health category. The request stemmed from a friend I’d made on Twitter, Burt Lum, who lives on Oahu. Burt tweeted one day about the beautiful rain on a sunny day, and I responded that not only is it beautiful but it makes rainbows! Next thing you know, Burt is visiting The Canary Report, loves it, and contacts Neenz at Alltop suggesting that we be listed.

When Neenz contacted me, she asked what category might work best for The Canary Report, and I told her that Multiple Chemical Sensitivity is an Environmental Health issue. Well, Alltop didn’t have an Environmental Health topic yet, so she asked if I would be interested in gathering together some feeds to launch the topic. I jumped at the chance! I was so excited to help develop this very important topic.

I submitted a bunch of feeds that I thought would work for Environmental Health– some did, some didn’t– and Neenz added some feeds that I had never seen before: she knows her stuff! For those of us bloggers hunting for topic inspiration, or for anyone doing the rounds to stay up-to-date on news and information about MCS and Environmental Health in general, you can’t beat this group of links on Alltop.com!

Mahalo to Burt for his matchmaking and mahalo to Neenz for putting together a great Environmental Health topic on Alltop! I really appreciate all your support not just for The Canary Report, but for all the sites promoting education and awareness about Environemntal Health. Aloha!

Who’s chirping about Multiple Chemical Sensitivity today?

Glenda at Writing Stories About Real People, an eclectic blog chock full of interesting topics, writes about a tough week with her chemical sensitivity. In her post entitled “Indoor pollution is killing me!” she says:

This week, although I’ve gone as green as possible in my house, we are having a renovation done and after the plumber had come to put in the pipes for the washing machine, I had the worst attack I’ve had in many years. Turns out it was the glue used on the PVC piping. The harsh chemicals took my breath and I had to go outside to breath[e]. We closed off the new laundry room, placed an air filter machine in the living area but I had to retire to my little cubby hole of a room with my own air cleaner which runs day and night, close my door and hibernate.

The Windsor Star talks to Susan Jasper, vice-president of the Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/ Fibromyalgia Society of Alberta (ME/FM), who has fibromyalgia.

Q: How are ME/CFS [Chronic Fatigue Syndrome], fibromyalgia and multiple chemical sensitivity related?

A: They are all distinct, but the reason we lump them together is we think they’re environmentally linked, in the sense that people are affected by their environments more than (with) other conditions. Usually ME/CFS is post-viral, while fibromyalgia is more commonly related to physical trauma, like a motor vehicle accident or a multiple head and neck trauma, and then the pain spreads. Multiple chemical sensitivity can start on its own, for example if you have a history of being in a sick building, where there’s little ventilation and chemicals from the office such as toner or paint. It starts as an exposure problem that generalizes.

MCS America posts an informational flyer on the Quick Environmental Exposure and Assessment Inventory, a standardized questionnaire developed by Dr. Claudia Miller that assists researchers and clinicians when evaluating patients for chemical sensitivity.  It measures exposure levels and symptom severity and estimates the life impact of a chemical injury.

Who’s chirping about Multiple Chemical Sensitivity today?

Melody at Little Home Blessings writes about the importance of safe housing for people with Multiple Chemical Sensitivity.

Four years ago I couldn’t get out of bed most days. I was on oxygen regularly. It wasn’t uncommon for me to be too weak to speak or raise a glass to my lips. I suffered neurological impairment to the point that I couldn’t remember how to spell my own child’s name, and couldn’t make my hands cooperate in zipping a zipper.

I still have my limitations and I still have to be very cautious, but after 2 ½ years of living in a healing home, I’m now able to be out and about in public, to care for my children and generallylead a productive and satisfying life.

Melody’s post includes an excellent vision of how to create a healing home.

Catherine at Breathez writes about the connections between her Celiac Disease and Multiple Chemical Sensitivity.

In my case, trying to determine which one came first is like asking the proverbial question of which came first, the chicken or the egg. I may have had symptoms of MCS before those of celiac, but years of undiagnosed celiac caused permanent damage to my adrenal glands, which in turn caused more chemical injury–or did the chemical injury cause some of the adrenal damage and thus aggravate the celiac? These are questions I quit asking long ago, because there were no clear answers, and knowing wouldn’t change how things were anyway.

Catherine at Sacredseed’s Weblog was diagnosed with MCS in the winter of 2007, and writes about the power of ritual in her post “Living the Demetrian Wheel, reality strikes.”

October 15^th is the anniversary of the day I went into the Emergency Room at Disneyland in anaphylactic shock, which is a much longer story that does not need to be told here. That event triggered the toxins that had been stewing in my body from an exposure to Formaldehyde about 18 months earlier. The anaphylaxis pushed me over into full blown Multiple Chemical Sensitivity – the chronic illness I now live with. This year my business partner Jamie and I created a ritual to help me mourn some of what I had lost through that experience and celebrate some of what I have gained. We performed the ritual on Friday October 17^th at the Berkeley Marina with a handful of other friends who shared in letting go some of their grief and celebrating some of their joys. It was a quiet and poignant evening.

Now the wheel turns and the Wiccan in me prepares for Samhain this weekend. More honoring of grief and joy at the end of the year. Somehow it all fits together. And just behind me, supporting and offering comfort and understanding, I can feel Demeter’s presence. Sister, Lover, Mother, Goddess, Cohort in Crime, and Friend.

Who’s chirping about Multiple Chemical Sensitivity today?

The Chronicle Telegram has a story on a medical center employee who is suing the hospital for moving her into an office that aggravated her asthma. She also has Multiple Chemical Sensitivity. The lawsuit states the office didn’t have proper ventilation and had a high level of chemicals, which caused the worker, Jacquelyn Palmer, respiratory distress, burning eyes, nose, throat and skin, swelling of lips and tongue and other ailments. Palmer accuses the hospital of discrimination, retaliation, failure to provide a safe workplace and inflicting emotional distress.

Catherine (one of our flock), at Mormon Bloggers Speak Out, writes today about Chemical Sensitivity and Earth Stewardship, explaining the connection between her chemical sensitivity and her interest in the environmental movement, what she says is “a logical step for me to take, from protecting my own personal environment to seeking protection for the larger environment of the world.” She blogs:

I can’t reverse the chemical damage that has already occurred in my body, but I can become militant in preventing it from happening to others. Thus my interest in and association with the environmental movement. I believe that God created the earth for our use, but charged us with the responsibility to be wise stewards. If we allow the earth to be poisoned with chemicals, we do so at our own peril. As a chemically injured person, I am a living witness of the consequences of poor stewardship.

Who’s chirping about Multiple Chemical Sensitivity today?

At Zona pellucida… blinded by the light, Dana writes about developing a chemical sensitivity to disposable menstural pads and pantyliners when she was a teenager. Her solution? All-natural reusable cotton or flannel menstrual pads. “The story has a happy ending: Lunapads saved my life!” Dana says. “I highly recommend them.” Lunapads has a great blog, too!

Organic Authority picked up the story of Elizabeth Feudale-Bowes, who was diagnosed several years ago with environmental illness and has been ordered by a judge to remove the non-toxic back yard structure in which she spends most of her life. The Canary Report has been following this story, link here for background.

The World, out of Coos Bay, Oregon, reports on a couple that wants to buy and transplant a condemned house about ready to fall off a cliff so that the husband, who has Multiple Chemical Sensitivity, can live in an old, chemical-free house. It’s a pretty creative proposal and if city officials can figure out how to make it work, it’s a win-win for everyone involved.

Author Mattilda Bernstein Sycamore at NOBODY PASSES, darling, blogs in a post called “Thoughts on the vocabulary of disability” about the interconnections between MCS, fibromyalgia, and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. She does a great riff on acronyms, but also speaks to the more serious topic of living with multiple disabilities.

Who’s chirping about Multiple Chemical Sensitivity today?

Bancroft This Week reports on Peter Haynes who’s been living in a tent since mid September due to a severe case of Multiple Chemical Sensitivity. He’s saved only by a surgical mask that filters the air he breathes. Haynes was diagnosed and treated at Women’s College Hospital in Toronto.

Lee at Health Advice for Women talks about the ways in which her diet affects her Multiple Chemical Sensitivity in “MCS: Gluten & Dairy Free.”

Leif Grunseth, certified neuromuscular therapist, re-posts “Personal Care Products: Picking the Safe Ones,” snitched from sixwise.com.

CFS Warrior blogs about “Interesting Research Updates on CFS/CFIDS” and the role of infections in causing or perpetuating Chronic Fatigue Syndrome as well as carbon monoxide sensitivity being a cause in those with Multiple Chemical Sensitivity combined with light, sound and taste sensitivity.

Poem on living with Multiple Chemical Sensitivity

I have been disabled and isolated by severe MCS (Multiple Chemical Sensitivity) since 1996. This is what it is like for me and hundreds and thousands of others like me around the world. (And many are being added to our ranks daily). — Island Bard

Link

Who’s chirping about Multiple Chemical Sensitivity today?

The blog Little Home Blessings starts a new category today called “The Healing Home.” I’m really happy to have found this blog! It’s a window into a beautiful life of good food, arts and crafts, parenting, home schooling and nontoxic living. Melody writes today:

As many of you know, my children and I were diagnosed with Multiple Chemical Sensitivities, along with a myriad of related ailments, back in 2004. Our path towards a diagnosis was a long one and our search for safe housing, equally long and daunting.

After a year long, desperate search for a suitable home, we decided that our best option was to build what we needed, and thus the Little House project was born.

In July of 2007, we were blessed with the opportunity to expand out tiny home. Work on both the original structure, as well as the addition has been on-going ever since [rafters above].

Healing Through the Eyes of Autism wrote about “Is Autism the New Generation of Multiple Chemical Sensitivities?” Adonya Wong writes, “Until two days ago, I had never heard of Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS).  Wanting to know more about it, I decided to do some light research.” Kudos to Adonya for exploring connections between toxic chemicals in our environment and chronic illness.

Vegan Reader blogs about the woman with MCS who’s been ordered to remove the safe building from her backyard. Mim writes compassionately about how “South Whitehall Township Fails to Love Sick Neighbor, Elizabeth Feudale-Bowes.”

On Monday, Adventures with Multiple Chemical Sensitivities: Tales of the Masked Avenger discussed MCS and the rotation diet in “Rotation Sensation.”

Couple ordered to remove safe room may get reprieve

Town council reconsiders judges’s ruling to remove “bubble,” a safe place for a woman with MCS that she and her husband installed in their back yard.

Good Morning America picked up the story about Elizabeth Feudale-Bowes’s fight to live inside a steel-and-porcelain shed outside her house that serves as a haven for the 52-year-old diagnosed with environmental illness several years ago.

(My problem with the report is the heavy emphasis on Multiple Chemical Sensitivity being an allergy, which it is not. While people with MCS can have allergies, the actual condition of MCS is a reaction to low level poisoning by toxic products. For more information on the difference between allergies and reactions to toxic chemicals, MCS America provides an excellent explanation by Grace Ziem, MD.)

The good news about Feudale-Bowes’s situation with her safe room is that it sounds like the town council is reconsidering the judge’s ruling that Feudale-Bowes must remove the structure because it lacks the proper permits. Click on the video above for more details.

Background and links to previous posts on this story:

AP picked up the story of Elizabeth Feudale-Bowes, the woman with Multiple Chemical Sensitivity in Pensylvania who’s neighbors complained about the porcelain “bubble” room she and her husband installed in their back yard. The Canary Report has been following this story here, here, and here. Neighbors complained that Feudale-Bowes did not follow building permit laws, and a judge agreed, ordering the couple to dismantle the safe room by the end of the month. Says Feudale-Bowes, “If I don’t live like this [in the safe structure], my pain level is so severe that I can’t function, I can’t live, I can’t survive. It’s excruciating.”

Thanks, Ruth!

UPDATE: Good critique on Good Morning America’s coverage at Fibrocop: Striving to Put FACES on Fibromyalgia.

Canary’s Cry for Tuesday, Oct 21

Telegraph.co.uk has an EXCELLENT article about a family with an autistic child who’s health was dramatically improved by detoxing their house into an eco-home. The first change they made was buying an organic wool mattress, which greatly improved their son’s sleep and inspired them to make other changes: they ripped out the carpet, bought organic sheets, removed fabrics with flame retardent. The article is full of tips on creating a healthy home.

AP picked up the story of Elizabeth Feudale-Bowes, the woman with Multiple Chemical Sensitivity in Pensylvania who’s neighbors complained about the porcelain “bubble” room she and her husband installed in their back yard. The Canary Report has been following this story here, here, and here. Neighbors complained that Feudale-Bowes did not follow building permit laws, and a judge agreed, ordering the couple to dismantle the safe room by the end of the month. Says Feudale-Bowes, “If I don’t live like this [in the safe structure], my pain level is so severe that I can’t function, I can’t live, I can’t survive. It’s excruciating.”

MailOnline reports a study showing a vaccination given to babies has been linked to asthma. Experts believe the diphtheria, tetanus and whooping cough jabs might provoke an immune system response which predisposes the body to the lung condition. But delaying the vaccines by two months from the recommended age dramatically reduces the risk, doctors found.

Canada’s Timmons Daily Press says not only is raw sewage flowing into the Ottawa River, so are toxic chemicals. In a memo sent to city councillors last week, deputy manager for infrastructure services Nancy Schepers stated that recent testing found at least 10 chemicals, some of them toxic, in the river that serves as the city’s main source of drinking water. At least one chemical, perfluorobutane sulfonate, can result in birth or developmental effects, affect the brain and nervous system, cause cancer and affect reproduction and fertility.

Diving accident triggers Multiple Chemical Sensitivity

A young woman’s diving accident triggers a debilitating case of Multiple Chemical Sensitivity.

Tanya Watters (left with sister Michele) suffered an air embolism plus decompression illness from a botched dive in the Parentian islands. Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy was necessary as quickly as possible to avoid a permanent brain injury, but she didn’t receive the proper health care until seven days after the dive. Following the HBOT, her condition continued to deteriorate.

A desperate Tanya finally found a doctor in New Orleans who diagnosed that she was suffering from oxygen toxicity. She relocated to the US for six months but almost on arrival she began noticing a chemical sensitivity that she had never experienced before.

“I couldn’t tolerate exhaust fumes, gas cookers, perfume, air fresheners or cleaning products. The more I was exposed to chemicals, the more sensitised I would become and smaller amounts started to affect me.

“Looking back, even if I hadn’t gone to New Orleans it would probably have happened anyway; maybe it would have taken longer.”

Rat poison exposure sent Tanya plummeting to her worst, leaving her virtually bed-bound for two months. She finally decided that she had a reduced chance of chemical exposure if she returned to Donegal.

She returned to the family home in August where her distraught parents, Shaun and Mary, are struggling to come to terms with Tanya’s illness.

“It is only since she came home that we truly understand Tanya’s condition. It is like going through a mourning process. Tanya loved her career and she loved life. She should be out there enjoying this part of her life,” said mum Mary, tears streaming down her face.

Link to full story at the Independent. The subtitle in the paper’s headline says: “A diving accident left high-flying Trinity graduate Tanya Watters with a rare debilitating illness.” I have a problem with MCS being referred to as “rare” because studies are showing more and more that it’s not so rare. But an air embolism triggering MCS, now that might be rare– what do you think?

Thanks, Ruth!

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