The top 10 uncanny things that happened when I had multiple chemical sensitivity

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The top 10 uncanny things that happened when I had multiple chemical sensitivity

Today I feel so grateful that things which made me so ill when I had multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS) are now so normal again. Apart from so many other things, I can now hug my loved ones again without worrying about reacting to any of their perfumes or toiletries. When I had MCS, I was lucky that although such strange things were happening, everyone around me was extremely supportive. But since unfortunately that isn’t the case for so many sufferers, hopefully this might make you smile and might also help to raise awareness about such a poorly understood condition. So here are the top 10 uncanny things that happened when I had MCS.

Photo by Rebekah Kamsky Photography

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How I rediscovered the true magic of Christmas when I was chronically ill

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How I rediscovered the true magic of Christmas when I was chronically ill

I’ve always loved Christmas and everything that comes with it. But last year somehow when everything got stripped back, sad as it was, that’s when I realised that although there was no Christmas tree in our living room, I had all the essential things and nothing else mattered. There was something about having none of the usual things at Christmas time that showed me just how much I actually had. And here’s how I rediscovered the true magic of Christmas and the 10 lessons I learned when I was chronically ill.

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Open letter to a person suffering from a mysterious, chronic illness

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Open letter to a person suffering from a mysterious, chronic illness

This is an open letter to anyone suffering from a mysterious, chronic illness. Invisible illnesses like chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, food sensitivities, multiple chemical sensitivity, anxiety and many others are unfortunately poorly understood, leading to even more suffering and isolation. Through this open letter, I wish to show anyone suffering from these types of illnesses that they’re not alone and that things can improve. But I know how difficult it is to believe that when you're suffering and that's why I really wish to get this message across. 

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What caused the sudden (or not so sudden?) onset of my mysterious, chronic illness?

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What caused the sudden (or not so sudden?) onset of my mysterious, chronic illness?

It would probably have made sense for us to remove the bottles of water while taking this photo, but I was so excited about eating a plate of gnocchi for the first time in 2 years that I really wasn’t thinking :) But this blog post isn’t about gnocchi. This blog post is all about the question I get asked most often whenever someone hears my story: What caused my mysterious, chronic illness? To be honest, there’s no easy answer. But now that I’ve recovered fully through DNRS, I have a slightly clearer idea of how this all started. So here goes.

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A day in the life of someone with chronic fatigue syndrome

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A day in the life of someone with chronic fatigue syndrome

Here’s a glimpse into a typical day in my life a year ago when I was suffering from chronic fatigue syndrome, multiple chemical sensitivity and extreme food sensitivities. Of course not every day was exactly the same – some days I felt a bit better, some days I felt a bit worse – but this was a typical day at the time.

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Why I took selfies while I was chronically ill

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Why I took selfies while I was chronically ill

Long story short: when I was chronically ill, I thought it might help some people realise they’re not alone if they could see photos of me at my worst. I wasn’t sure if I’d ever decide to share photos of myself looking so bad. I was even embarrassed to ask my husband or family to take them for me. But I wanted to have them in case I ever did and in case they could ever help someone. So here’s why I took selfies while I was chronically ill. 

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15 things someone suffering from a mysterious, chronic illness wishes you to know

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15 things someone suffering from a mysterious, chronic illness wishes you to know

I was inspired to write this post after reading an excellent article by Dr. Audrey Komrij Jones about autism. I wrote it because I remember how little I knew about mysterious, chronic illnesses before I became ill myself. So here are the 15 things I would have liked you to know when I was chronically ill.

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The 5 dreaded words: "It's. All. In. Your. Mind."

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The 5 dreaded words: "It's. All. In. Your. Mind."

Being told that your illness is All. In. Your. Mind. can make living with a mysterious, chronic illness even more devastating. I know because it happened to me too. And now that I've recovered, I wanted to write about the implications of those 5 dreaded words to help anyone suffering from a similar illness to realise that it's not all in their mind and that they can recover the way I did.

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7 ways to support someone suffering from a mysterious chronic illness

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7 ways to support someone suffering from a mysterious chronic illness

Knowing how challenging living with a mysterious chronic illness can be, I compiled this list of 7 ways that you can support someone suffering from such a condition. This list outlines what you can do to help someone in such a situation or if you yourself are suffering, you might find that the things that I found helpful might also be helpful for you.

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