Tips for visiting a person with Chemical Sensitivity
This is a set of tips if you are visiting a person with severe MCS,
or this person is visiting you.
Interacting with other people is one of
the hardest things of this disease, as even well-meaning people can cause
of harm, and it IS hard to understand what our needs are. If you talk with
chemical sensitive people, the lost friendships, jobs and even marriages
are common.
Like for all people, it is hard for us to ask other people not to hurt
us by using various chemicals, that seem completely harmless.
We are all different, so the person may be more of less sensitive, or
react to different things. This is just a general guideline, better ask
than assume, otherwise you can easily set yourself up for failure. Either
by not covering all the problems, or by overdoing it.
Personal hygiene
Simple rules-of-thumb:
- If you can smell it, don't use it
- If it's not absolutely necessary, don't use it
- Even things you cannot smell can affect people with sensitivities
Be aware that the area of cosmetics is very loosely regulated. Read the
label of everything, if it has words on it that are long and difficult to pronounce, don't use it. And products to not have to tell you the truth
on the label. Cosmetics have exemptions from labeling laws, they are
literally allowed to state they are fragrance free, when they in fact do
have fragrances in them, as long as it's a 'masking fragrance' used to
cover up the bad smell of the product itself. Obviously, fragrance is
fragrance, no matter the reason it's in there.
Shampoo
All brands you can buy in a supermarket has fragrances in it, even baby
shampoo. Beware that some shampoos do not list fragrances on their label!
Depending on how sensitive the person
is, most low-scent shampoos may be ok a couple hours after the last washing.
To be safe, buy one from a health store that is marked 'fragrance free'.
Soap
Soap is like shampoo. Safe alternatives are available, but usually not
in your local supermarket. Prices can vary enormously, I get mine by
mail order at a price comparable to regular brands.
Deodorant
Many deodorants have fragrances and other harmful chemicals in them. A
good alternative is the crystal sticks, or any of the chemical free varieties.
Hand crème
There does not seem to be any safe hand crèmes for some of us. I personally
react strongly to even special brands made for people with allergies.
Perfumes, fragrances, colognes
Just say no, there is no safe products available. Some are worse than others,
but they can all hurt.
Lotions, hair gel, hair spray...
Amazing how much stuff we pour on every day, isn't it? Again, try to do
without, you may like yourself, despite what the advertising tells you.
Clothing
What to avoid :
- Newly washed clothes
- New clothes
- Synthetic fabrics
- Dry-cleaned clothes
- Moth balled clothes
- Clothes washed with fabric softener of any kind
- Clothes dried with 'anti static' sheets
Just wear old cotton clothes, that has been freely hanging for a
few days, and you should be all right in most cases.
For really sensitive people, do not use any detergent. Wash the clothes
in borax and/or baking soda, it works well, and saves you money too.
If you invite a chemically sensitive person to your home
This is a more difficult situation, for both of you. The sick person must
leave his safe lair, and is dependent on you to provide a safe environment.
This is often not possible to do, you both need to realize that. People
with sensitivities spend years slowly getting their homes safe, this can
not be accomplished overnight.
Have a backup plan in case it does not work out. Maybe you can sit outside,
or you can go to a restaurant with a good indoor climate, or even sit in
her car.
Talk with the person about what is necessary. This is hard for us to
do, as we do not like to be trouble, and people often do not believe us,
so be gentle.
If you intend to go places together, consider that your visitor can
not go every place you can. Often people with MCS avoid public places,
to limit being exposed to other peoples perfumes and smoke, or the off-gassing
of goods in a store. You also have to consider which vehicle to use, the
fumes in a newer car (the 'new car smell') is a problem for many people.
A rental car is no good, as they are all new, unless you go to a
place that rents out older cars.
Some things may make it completely impossible for your visitor to enter
your house, such as:
-
New carpeting. The problem is the materials, expensive carpets are often
less dangerous, cheaper synthetic carpets take many years to gas off.
-
New paint. It takes weeks or months for paint to gas off. Water based paints
are better, but still have dangerous chemicals in them.
Here is a checklist for things you can easily do:
- Do not use a garden grill while the person is visiting
- Air out the place prior and during the visit (unless outside pollen is
a problem)
- Vacuum with the windows open so the dust thrown into the air goes out.
- Remove all 'air fresheners' several days in advance, and put them outside
the house. Simply closing them up is not enough. It takes time for the chemicals
to get out of fabrics.
- Remove other toxic substances, such as cleaners, detergents, toilet bowl
cleaners, etc.
- Do not use any cleaners the last couple of days, both for desktops, floors,
etc. A simple damp cloth works quite well in most cases, actually!
- Consider using non-toxic cleaners instead, they work just as well as the
big name brands.
- Do not wash or dry any clothes at least 24hrs prior to the visit
- Many MCS sufferers also have pet allergies, so keep pets away from the
visitor.
- See if you can get an air cleaner, which cut down on dust. It will not
help on chemical pollutants, machines that do that are large and expensive
and not available in stores.
Overnight stay at your house
Planning an overnight stay can be really difficult, as the person is committed
to stay there for the night. A backup plan is imperative here, as the longer
the person stays, the sicker she can get if the air is not good enough.
- Do the trip in the warm season, so windows can be open, especially in the
bedroom.
- Use a fan to blow fresh air into the bedroom during the night (unless pollen
or molds are a problem).
- Wash the bedding several days in advance, and hang it up for airing out.
- Wash bedding using baking soda and/or borax.
Backup choices if your visitor can not stay the night
-
The visitor can turn around and drive home again
-
Sleep in a tent, at a local campground or even in your back yard.
-
Sleep in the car, or in the garage.
-
See if there are some 'safe' lodging in the area. Regular hotels and motels
frequently paint and change the carpeting, so they are generally not usable.
B&B's sometimes are.
Hope this short introduction helps pave the way. Like other people,
we like to visit friends and family, and we are often isolated by our disease.
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