In this post, I would like to share with you my personal healing experience. This was, for me, the most life changing, critical event to date. No one could have imagined what I was about to embark on or discover but I can honestly tell you, God is good.
All my life, I had battled a variety of minor illnesses but for the most part was fully functioning.
It was not uncommon for me to struggle with anxiety/panic attacks, digestive disorders (I could not digest meat and dairy very well), esophageal spasms, GERD, gall bladder disease (which was finally removed when I was 28), and hypoglycemia. These were the usual suspects.
But in 2002, shortly after the birth of my son, everything came crashing in. The Hypoglycemia I had developed in my pregnancy had remained. I was having constant blood sugar crashes that did not seem to get any better even though I was very strict about my diet. At this time, I also developed Fibromyalgia which was painfully debilitating. I could not stand to be touched.
Things began to get even worse when I developed food allergies. It seemed my system couldn’t handle much of anything regardless of the sugar content. I was reacting to everything. What I mean by reacting is, I would get flu like symptoms, feel weak, dizzy and always on the verge of passing out. I could not seem to maintain any kind of strength or stamina. Exhaustion plagued me and got worse with every meal.
Finally, I became completely bed-ridden and very dependent upon others to help me with my son. I honestly could do nothing. My diet consisted of only three foods; eggs, Ezekiel bread, and when I could stand it a light steamed vegetable from time to time. Any other foods would send me right to the emergency room, gasping for breath or practically passed out. There were more trips to the ER than I care to recall.
I was married at the time and we used a good portion of our savings chasing all manner of medical intervention. My primary care physician had no answers other than she thought it was all in my head. During this time, I was also under the care of an alternative doctor who suspected I had something called, Multiple Chemical Sensitivity/Environmental Illness (MCS/EI). To give this a name and to know there were others that suffered as I did, made it easier to deal with. It reaffirmed my sanity and gave me some hope of recovery.
You would think that this was as bad as it could get, but no, it was not. I then began to react to different smells such as coffee, perfume, laundry soap, and gasoline. I would almost pass out when I was in a car at a gas station. I dreaded it immensely.
This battle continued on for the better part of ten months before any solution presented itself. I was at this time, confined to my bed, weak, muscle atrophied, exhausted and depressed.
Needless to say, this condition took a toll on my relationships, finances, mental state as well as my spiritual condition.
At this time, I would like to give a clearer medical definition of MCS via Wikipedia :
The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (a division of the NIH) defines MCS as a "chronic, recurring disease caused by a person's inability to tolerate an environmental chemical or class of foreign chemicals".[9] MCS has also been described as a group of "sensitivities to extraordinarily low levels of environmental chemicals" appearing "to develop de novo in some individuals following acute or chronic exposure to a wide variety of environmental agents including various pesticides, solvents, drugs, and air contaminants", including those found in sick buildings.[10]
Environmental medicine specialists claim MCS causes negative health effects in multiple organ systems, and respiratory distress, seizures, cognitive dysfunction, heart arrhythmia, nausea, headache, and fatigue can result from exposure to levels of common chemicals that are normally deemed as safe.
In my next post, I would like to expound on the spiritual side of this journey, what I learned, and the awesome healing process that followed.
Please stay tuned!
