Need help/advice. Whole family very sick!!

[Guest guest]

I didn't know where else to go or what to do and I found out about

this

group and was hoping someone can PLEASE help us! What do we do?

We are all frustrated and sick, and very confused!!!

We have been living in this building (12 story condo) for the past

11 years. We had no health problems prior to coming here. About six

months after we started living here I developed headaches and visual

problems where my vision would black out and I'd feel faint. My

brother started some mild congestion, runny nose, sneezing, etc.

In 1993 my brother started to feel tired and lose weight. By 1994 he

was HORRIBLY ill and was diagnosed with Crohn's disease. His weight

when he was healthy was 145 but in the late stages of his disease he

was around 70 lbs (at 5ft 7in). His disease was so severe it almost

killed him. In 1997 he had emergency surgery and he now has an

ileostomy having all his large and some of his small intestines

removed. He has to wear a " pouch " to hold his feces for the rest of

his life. He also developed osteoporosis from the meds he was put on.

I cannot even begin to explain the horror my family and I went

through during this whole ordeal. After the surgery to remove the

diseased intestines, his disease was in a " remission " but as of late

2000, it is now active again, and his health is once again

deteriorating.

I have multiple health problems that have progressed from the initial

headaches and visual problems. I dropped out of high school at age 15

due to this but went back later to get my GED. In late 2000 my

condition became so bad that I had to drop out of college. I have

been diagnosed so far with migraines, cosocontritis, fibromyalgia and

my doctor highly suspects that I also may have chronic fatigue and

neurally mediated hypotension. I have constant pain all over my body

and I can no longer function normally. I am unable to go to school, I

am unable to hold a job.

My mom has had multiple cysts in her breasts and ovaries, and in 1999

she was diagnosed with breast cancer with spread to the lymph nodes.

She now has a bilateral mastectomy. She still has multiple cysts in

her ovaries that are growing larger.

My grandma who came to help us about 4 years ago has developed a

horrible cough, breathing problems, chronic bronchitis, and fatigue.

For all of us to get sick like this, something is not right! We were

all healthy before we came here. A few weeks ago my mom spoke to a

lady who lives in this building who said she and her child have felt

extremely ill since they purchased their residence about 5 years ago.

Which made us start to think that maybe it isn't US but this BUILDING

we're living in that's making us so sick! My mom and our family are

renting, we do not own the apartment. But as said we have lived here

for 11 years. Because of illness, my brother and I have been confined

indoors most of the time. We have had multiple plumbing problems with

leaky faucets, overflowing toilets, clogged tubs and clogged sinks.

The water to parts of the building is shut off for a couple hours at

least once every 1-2 months for the past year due to some kind of

repairs/? that are going on. There have been at least three incidents

where our ceilings have dripped large amounts of water and there are

large brown-rimmed stains all over the ceilings. On one of these

incidents the water coming from the ceilings smelled very foul. Right

now our floor-level kitchen cabinet is rotted and leaking water all

over the kitchen floor that smells horribly much like sewage. My

grandma has to mop up the mess every morning and evening with rags

and heavy-duty gloves. Our tap water has turned yellow or brown and

dirt like looking substance has come out of it on many, many

occasions. Since mid 2000, our tap water has smelled and tasted so

bad that we are afraid to drink it!! We are now all drinking only

bottled water.

Please help us! My family and I don't know what to do. Everyone is so

ill that no one can work and we are depending on my grandma and other

family members for food and paying the bills! We told the residence

apartment owner who we are renting from about the current problem

with foul smelling water leaking in the kitchen and he has done

nothing! He told us to move out if we have a problem with the

residence. We would move out if we could. We are stuck in a

horrible double bind.

I/We don't know what to do! We are in Hawaii (Oahu). Is there someone

who we can contact who deals with these issues who would be able to

help us? Is there something we can do ourselves? We cannot go on like

this!! Our health and our situation is getting worse and worse!

Please somebody help!!

-Anne

[Guest guest]

Dear Anne:

I lived on Oahu for a year and know for a fact that the islands have a

growing (no pun intended) problem with molds, especially toxic molds like

stachybotrys. There have been several articles written in the Honolulu

Advertiser about this. By now it is apparent to you that your entire family

is being affected by something toxic in your environment and that the only

logical thing is for you to relocate. I know how tight the housing market

is, but staying where you are will only lead to more illness, possibly

death - especially where older family members are concerned. I have written

several e-mails to various people I know on Oahu asking for their input and

will let you know when I hear back. You might want to call the Department

of Health and ask if there is an investigator assigned to indoor air quality

and health issues.

I noted the EPA lists Barbara , phone: 808/586-4249, e-mail:

bbrooks@... as working with PCB toxins. She might know

who you can contact.

Take heart, Anne, you've taken a big first step in solving your family's

health problem by investigating your environment. Hopefully, someone can be

located that will help you define what is making you ill.

Best wishes,

Barbara