May is MCS Awareness Month

And boy, am I aware! It's been one toxic month. You can tell how much exposure I've received by how many posts I write. LOL.

It started with the Species Procession with too many people, too much activity, and possibly too much stress. I don't remember perfume or laundry detergent, but often before my body is overloaded I don't always smell it before hand. It's a clandestine poisoning.

Painting with acrylic paints. I use a mask, gloves and glasses as well as protective clothing, and I've tried to be very diligent about keeping safe and yes, this paint isn't as smelly or toxic which is good. Still, every now and then I get a whiff of paint or primer. It's not a smart form of entertainment for sure, but I need a distraction. And I need protest signs. So far it's worth it, but I may need to rethink this.

My new [useless] doctor suggested I head to a shoe store that specializes in plantar fasciitis. They had plug-in air fresheners. Maybe they use them to counteract the stink of those plastic sandals they push on their customers? No, I'm not buying those ugly, synthetic, toxic sandals. Or maybe because they had two stinky dogs roaming the store. So incredibly unprofessional. If 15% of the population are chemically sensitive, these people are either really stupid or don't care about sales. And how many people hate dogs or are afraid of them? People irritate me to no end.

Then there were my Goodwill shopping excursions. I'm not sure what has come over me, but anytime I have some free time I head to Goodwill. I've never realized they have half off colored tags! I have a few things on my shopping list: a hat, umbrellas for protests (I plan to paint them so our protest signs will keep us dry!), overalls (for painting), and anything else I might NEED like a lime green evening gown. Unfortunately, Goodwill uses really toxic laundry detergent. All the stores are the same. Yeah, I bring clothing home and wash it six times, but until the stink is gone every time I lift it out of the washer, I breathe it.

And then there was the umbrella. Excellent umbrella. White with faint pastel pattern easy to paint over. Automatic opening. Not a fold up. HALF PRICE! I thought I hit the jackpot. As I'm standing in line I notice the umbrella still has the original tag. I read it. "Buy Sarah Jessica Parker's perfume and you will receive this umbrella for free." Blah. I don't think anything of it, in fact, I think I even stuck my nose in the fabric. Nothing. Until I get it in my car. Where did this headache come from and why do my lungs hurt and my head is spinning?? The umbrella is soaked in perfume! I returned it, but by that time the damage had been done. I believe this was the beginning of the downward spiral. A real perfume poisoning, not just laundry stink.

Drawing group stinkers. I wrote about them and our last meeting in a previous post. We meet only once every two weeks so there is a break. Most of our locations are outside. Two weeks ago we met at a stinker's home, but I refused to enter because of the air fresheners. I stayed outside and created landscapes. Still, I might have received a hit from air freshener residue or perfumed people I encountered when we gathered.

MCS presentation. There were lots of smelly tourists milling about during the MCS presentation. Whew.

Monsanto protest breathing too much laundry detergent stink.

Yesterday's yard/parking lot sale. OMG. I'm driving down the road prior to the Monsanto protest on a day when it seemed like everyone was having a yard sale and I see a sign. I get closer and it's in a parking lot with LOTS of stuff, not junky stuff, but good stuff. OK, this looked promising. I couldn't help myself. The Cancer Society is having a donation sale and one of their donors is a professional home decorator. She does staging for real estate agents and donates the older linens and pillows she no longer needs for her displays. I bought a beautiful partly silk, cotton backing duvet cover for $3.00! Never used, offgassed and never washed. No stink!

The color isn't great in this photo. It's a really pretty olive with lighter olive embroidery.

Then I saw the clothes! Nearly brand new cotton sweaters and a cashmere sweater! What? You want .25 cents for each? Really? I couldn't resist. Used sweaters that aren't mangled and obviously worn out are difficult to find. I also bought a coat that looked like it might make a good rain coat. Or a secret agent spy coat - it's black and light weight.

And a purse. And a purple pillow. I bought nearly a whole new wardrobe for nothing, unfortunately, the clothing had been washed in toxic detergent so there is a hidden cost. It's not such a good deal if you have to wash everything six times. Bam!!! Hit number 234 (?) for the month. I made the mistake of smelling each garment. This is bad, I know, but some smells aren't washable. Unfortunately the smells that are washable are toxic.  I had to hand wash the sweaters so that's hit number 235, 236, 237, 238, 239, 240....Bam! Bam! Bam! Bam! Bam! Bam! or until the first sweater was thoroughly decontaminated. I gave up on the others, put them in a sealed plastic bag, and ordered some of that EnviroKlenz. I'll write a post on it when it comes. Reviews are hit and miss, but Mrs. Washington says it works and she loves it so I'll give it a go.

Co-op employee drenched in stink. Brain fog, nausea, dizzy. I had to leave before getting all my groceries, but not before I complained. The employees there are supposed to be fragrance free.

EnviroKlenz experimentation. Blah. Too many whiffs and I was so sick to my stomach I could hardly stand. Not a good feeling. (See my review of EnviroKlenz.)

Not feeling so good. Easily exhausted. neck hurts like hell, joints a little achy. I just want to lay down and not move for a few weeks. Not as bad as it could be, but I notice I'm much more sensitive to smells now.  Time to slow down.

Yes, I am very aware! I am happy to say I'm not as reactive as I have been in the past, five or ten years ago. I'm assuming the steps I've taken to heal myself have helped. I can't even remember the last time I had an anaphylactic response, skin crawl, rage cycles or other more serious reactions. That is good. Due diligence has worked.