Mold

MOre and more lyme patients are realizing they are very sensitive to mold in their environments. Some are just moderately sensitive, others (like me) are majorly sensitive to even small amounts.

The mold could be on food, in the shower, or in the carpet, or from a leaky roof or a million other places.




https://www.survivingmold.com/

https://drjaydavidson.com/toxic-mold-lyme/

https://blog.bulletproof.com/126-dr-ritchie-shoemaker-on-surviving-mold-podcast/

I'm also curious about how mold affects the body. Does it only present certain symptoms or can it intensify any previous symptoms. Im concerned I felt better during a week away from home. Would a week be long enough away from the source to start feeling better.

G-Ju said...
Hi Lapis_29,
I was diagnosed with Lyme and Bart April 2018, and I've been being treated since then. Recently, tests are coming back negative for Bart and weak lyme. If I didn't still have symptoms, it might be at a good time to wean off of my treatment plan and see what happens. However, I still have a lot of nagging symptoms that could be mold symptoms, with internal vibrations and air hunger being my two big ticket items.

Last month, I mentioned mold to my NPLLMD and, I told her that we don't have any mold issues in our home, and we moved on. This month, she brought it up again, and as we chatted, I mentioned that my husband and I used to rehab houses (8-10 years ago), and many had mold issues. She was like, "WHAT?" Apparently, past exposure can come back to haunt you, especially if you have Lyme. So, I'm in the process of being tested.

Doc did the nose swab kit (I don't know what it's called), yesterday. I'm waiting for the stuff I have to take to do the mycotoxin test (urine). The swab kit only takes less than a week to get the results back, but the mycotoxin test can take 4-6 weeks. So....I wait.

I thought I'd share the "Past Exposure" information because not everyone has current mold issues. It will be interesting to see what happens with my testing.

G-Ju,

Great that you posted this. That is absolutely correct. Past exposure matters when it comes to CIRS from mold.

If someone is able to tear everything out of your basement (don't DIY!) then I strongly recommend not re-doing it. Any drywall, cardboard, sheetrock, flooring, and most insulation below grade simply will grow mold, and the less natural it is, the worse the types of mold tend to be. (For example, solid wood in your basement will grow normal outdoor molds like cladosporium, a relatively harmless mold, whereas human-processed products like drywall will grow all the worst ones you look for on a HERTSMI test.) Tear everything out, seal the walls and floor, and install a sump pump and heavy-duty continuous dehumidification system. Then, you can use it for storage, assuming nothing is on the floor or against the wall, and that everything is stored in metal or plastic.

My mold inspector was emphatic that I never try to live in a house with a finished basement, as below-grade space simply will become moist on the exterior walls due to dew point, and anything covering it or nearby simply will grow mold. Basically he says no matter what you do, there is no such thing as a finished basement without water damage, and no such thing as a finished basement without mold. That said, plaster is better than drywall, if someone insists upon erecting an interior wall in a basement.

Just avoiding the basement isn't a good option, either, due to the stack effect (i.e. basement air rises and contaminates the rest of the house).

Trust me, I know how overwhelming and scary this is. Yet another thing this illness is taking away, right? And yet another thing to worry about. I'm house-hunting right now, and pretty much everyone has finished at least some part of their basement or stored things improperly. My house has sold, and I have nowhere to go, because I have to keep backing out of sales due to the extent of mold in these basements that look fine and smell fine but test horribly. I did consider a house recently with a semi-finished basement because it had no exterior wall materials other than the foundation, plaster interior walls, beautiful polished concrete floors, and a continuous dehumidification system. But of course those are few and far between.

I wish we could just get better without giving up our homes, or buy a fancy air purifier and call it a day. But at the same time, it's not just mold-sensitive people for whom ochratoxins cause kidney failure and cancer. It's everyone. So we're the canaries.

saraeli said...
If someone is able to tear everything out of your basement (don't DIY!) then I strongly recommend not re-doing it. Any drywall, cardboard, sheetrock, flooring, and most insulation below grade simply will grow mold, and the less natural it is, the worse the types of mold tend to be. (For example, solid wood in your basement will grow normal outdoor molds like cladosporium, a relatively harmless mold, whereas human-processed products like drywall will grow all the worst ones you look for on a HERTSMI test.) Tear everything out, seal the walls and floor, and install a sump pump and heavy-duty continuous dehumidification system. Then, you can use it for storage, assuming nothing is on the floor or against the wall, and that everything is stored in metal or plastic.

.

thank you for posting this. this is really important information!