MCS Friends Toolbox
MCS Friends Toolbox provides resources to address issues of advocacy, emotional well-being, fragrance, housing, medical care and electromagnetic fields. The information is drawn largely from the Voices of MCS telephone conference calls.
Advocacy
“Avoid the tendency to see the world in terms of ‘normal’ people versus those with toxic illness. Remember that the fight is against deception, misinformation, and actual chemical dangers, not against each other.”
Martha McLaughlin in Chemicals and Christians: Compassion and Caution
Ann McCampbell, MD. Relating to Others When You Are Chemically Sensitive, Relating to Others | (annmccampbellmd.com.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) offers a free on-line course on Crisis and Emergency Risk Communication (CERC). Based on years of practical experience and common sense, the CDC learned the value of using empathy, action and respect in their official crisis communication. Learn strategies to communicate what we need to survive during our long emergency with MCS. www.emergency.cdc.gov/cerc/cerconline.
See Chapter Fourteen, Final Comments: What We Are Up Against in Multiple Chemical Sensitivity: A Survival Guide, 2nd Edition (2006) by Pamela Reed Gibson, PhD. Get the book from the Environmental Sensitivities Resource Team at mcsresarch.net
Alan Bell. Poisoned: How a Crime-Busting Prosecutor Turned His Medical Mystery into a Crusade for Environmental Victims (2017).
Martha McLaughlin. Chemicals and Christians: Compassion and Caution (2020).
Marshall B. Rosenberg, PhD. Nonviolent Communication, Third Edition (2015).
You can download and display our MCS Awareness poster to raise awareness about Multiple Chemical Sensitivity by clicking here.
Emotional Well-being
“In most cases MCS is not a psychological illness. However, psychological issues can make it worse or make it better. The issue is not the illness, but how one reacts to the illness.”
Robert S. Mayer, PhD, author of Surviving Chemical Sensitivities: The Basics.
See Part III, “Psychological and Personal Growth” in Multiple Chemical Sensitivity: A Survival Guide 2nd Edition by Pamela Reed Gibson, PhD (2006). Get the book from the Environmental Sensitivities Resource Team here.
Helpful articles:
- Mind-Body Aspects of Multiple Chemical Sensitivity, by Robert S. Mayer, Ph.D., Part I – pdf
- Mind-Body Aspects of Multiple Chemical Sensitivity, by Robert S. Mayer, Ph.D., Part II – pdf
- Depression and Multiple Chemical Sensitivity by Robert S. Mayer, Ph.D. – pdf
Following is a list of helping professionals familiar with MCS:
Judy Freed, LCSW, is a psychotherapist and licensed clinical social worker. She is acutely aware of the challenges of managing multiple chemical sensitivities/environmental illness (MCS/EI), and welcomes clients living with these conditions. Tele-health sessions are offered via Zoom or phone. Private pay only, with sliding scale available. (No insurance is taken.) Contact info: www.judyfreedhealingarts.com, judy@judyfreedhealingarts.com, 215-701-7013
Steve Ross, MA, LMFT, is a California-licensed marriage and family therapist who specializes in improving communication, reducing anxiety, addressing trauma, reconciling loss, and managing stress in general. His late wife, Julie, had MCS for over 20 years. Steve does not have MCS, but knows the ropes, and both he and Julie were, many years ago, patients of Dr. Rea. Steve does not take insurance, but he works on a sliding scale. www.breathingcoachtucson.com, steve.ross@breathingcoachtucson.com, 520-825-2009.
Fragrance
“I think of you all as ‘MCS heroes.’ You have such courage and strength to get through every day. One air freshener exposure can wipe you out for a few days and that’s what really motivates me to do this research.”
Anne Steinemann, PhD, internationally recognized for her work on fragranced consumer product emissions.
Publications (drsteinemann.com) Dr. Steinemann’s published articles on the following subjects are available on her website:
- National Population Studies on Chemical Sensitivity
- Vulnerable Individuals – Health Effects from Fragranced Products
- National Population Studies – Effects from Fragranced Products
- Indoor Air Quality, Air Fresheners, and Green Buildings
- Chemicals in Fragranced Consumer Products and Undisclosed Ingredients
- Chemicals emitted from Pandemic Products, Car Air Fresheners, Fragranced Baby Products, and Essential Oils
- Dryer Vent Emissions from Fragranced Laundry Products
FAQs (drsteinemann.com) Dr. Steinemann found that 34.7% of Americans and 33.0% of Australians report adverse health effects when exposed to fragranced consumer products.
The following summary fact sheets are available on Dr. Steinemann’s website:
Air Freshener Fact Sheet.pdf (wsimg.com)
Green Clean Fact Sheet.pdf (wsimg.com)
Air-Fresheners-and-Air-Quality-factsheet.pdf (nespurban.edu.au)
Fragranced-Laundry-Products-Air-Quality-factsheet.pdf (nespurban.edu.au)
Anne Steinemann, PhD. Fragranced Consumer Products: Emissions, Exposures, Effects, 2020.
A collection of 17 sole-authored journal articles by Dr. Steinemann available at www.amazon.com.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Indoor Environmental Quality Policy CDC encourages employees to be as fragrance-free as possible when they arrive in the workplace. Fragrance is not appropriate for a professional work environment, and the use of some products with fragrance may be detrimental to the health of workers with chemical sensitivities, allergies, asthma, and chronic headaches/migraines.
http://www.aessra.org/resources/CDC%20Indoor%20Environmental%20Quality%20Policy.pdf
The Fragrance Free Coalition provides tools to help get synthetic fragrance out of healthcare. One tool is a poster that includes links to 140 scientific studies on the health effects of fragrance. Another poster is being designed that would compare the ingredients in second hand smoke to the ingredients in fragrance. www,fragrancefreecoalition.com.
Housing
“Houses are built to meet Mechanical Code, Fire Code, and Energy Code standards. Residential House Healthiness Code does not yet exist. Therefore, one should not assume that a house, new or old, is going to have healthy indoor conditions.”
Rick Bayless, Indoor Environmental Consultant and Healthy Homes Specialist
Rick Bayless is founder and owner of A Healthier Home LLC. He is board-certified as an indoor environmental consultant (Indoor Air Quality Association) and as a Healthy Homes specialist (National Environmental Health Association). Rick offers expert evaluations and services regarding a home’s environmental and wellness status. His contact information is ahealthierhomenc.com, 828-243-5192, rickbayless@ahealthierhomenc.com.
Oram Miller, a Certified Building Biology Environmental Consultant (BBEC) and Electromagnetic Radiation Specialist (EMRS), specializes in the evaluation and mitigation of all forms of electromagnetic radiation. For more information, please visit his website,
www.createhealthyhomes.com, info@createhealthyhomes.com, 310-720-7686.
Jen Stout and Rusty Stout, healthy home building contractor from central Texas, design and build services include new home construction, architectural design, nationwide healthy home consulting, interior design, and coming soon – healthy tiny homes! https://www.js2partners.com/, jen@js2partners.com, 512-520-0954.
George Swanson, a building biologist, offers natural home and commercial building consulting, designing, and construction oversee services throughout the states and abroad. His contact information is 512-288-9097, www.geoswan.com, georgeswanson245@yahoo.com.
Housing Choice Voucher Program Section 8 | HUD.gov / U.S. Department of
Housing and Urban Development (HUD): Fact Sheet
Housing Equal Opportunity Office of HUD https://www.hud.gov › fairhousing
Welcome to Rural Development | Rural Development (usda.gov) for loans, grants, numerous programs through which several people with environmental sensitivities have built, purchased and modified houses in Arizona.
National Council on Independent Living https://ncil.org Housing Committe advances independent living and the rights of people with disabilities.
See Chapter Four, “Making Your Environment Safe,” in Multiple Chemical Sensitivity: A Survival Guide, 2nd Edition (2006) by Pamela Reed Gibson, PhD. Get the book from the Environmental Sensitivities Resource Team here.
Cheryl Ciecko, AIA, FALA, LEED AP, offers online events & education about avoiding mold at www.avoidingmold.com, www.cherylciecko.com and www.dwellwellinstitute.com
Andrea Allen Sis is a Materials Research Specialist with the nationally known firm, Econest Architecture, Inc., led by Paula Baker-Laporte. The firm helps people all over the world with healthier ways to repair, remodel, or build our dwelling. More information is available at https://www.econestarchitecture.com, 541-488-9508.
Guide to the HUD Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program for Persons
Disabled with Multiple Chemical Sensitivity by R.S. Hurley. R.S.
Hurley is a Section 8 voucher holder who has learned from experience how
to secure reasonable accommodations for multiple chemical sensitivity
(MCS) and electromagnetic hypersensitivity (EHS). She published the
guide to help others navigate their way through HUD’s Section 8 system.
Click here for a 10-page sample of the guide (To Be Provided)
To request a complementary download of the complete 21-page guidebook
visit http://chemicalsensitivityfoundation.org
Scroll down the main page to the
Guide to the HUD Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program
and “Click” for further information.
A limited number of hard-copy guidebooks are available for purchase, for
those whose
disability does not allow access to the downloadable electronic version.
To purchase the printed 21-page guidebook ($20.00 includes shipping and
handling),
email your request to <mcs.hud.guide.download@gmail.com>.
Please state your name, address, and why you require a printed edition.
Medical Care
“Because they do not receive appropriate and accurate information on MCS during their training or from medical journals and continuing education courses, physicians have been largely unprepared to deal with chemically sensitive patients. As a result, it is not uncommon for their responses to MCS patients to be dismissive or even blatantly hostile.”
Ann McCampbell, MD
Dr. McCampbell offers phone consultations for people with chemical sensitivity and other environmentally related illnesses. Her services include providing information, referrals, support, research, and advocacy, and helping clients prioritize issues. She does not provide direct medical care, but does help clients find and work with their own physicians. www.annmccampbellmd.com.
Treating people who react to low level chemical exposures is the specialty of those in environmental medicine. A list of practitioners is available on the website of the American Academy of Environmental Medicine, www.aaemonline.org, 316-684-5500.
Nicholas A. Ashford, PhD, JD, and Claudia Miller, MD. Chemical Exposures: Low Levels and High Stakes, 2nd Edition (1998) Read for free on Dr. Ann McCampbell’s website, www.annmccampbellmd.com.
Ann McCampbell, MD. Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (2018) 24pp., available at www.annmccampbellmd.com.
See Chapter Six, “The Dilemma of Medical Help” in Multiple Chemical Sensitivity: A Survival Guide, 2nd Edition (2006) by Pamela Reed Gibson, PhD. Get the book from the Environmental Sensitivities Resource Team here.
Electromagnetic Fields
“Wireless technology came to the market with no safety testing.” ” Major insurers recognize EMFs as a major risk and they have put an exclusion in their policies that they will not cover for damages. So the wireless industry is not insured for all the harm they are doing.”
Cecelia Doucette
Cecelia Doucette, Director, Massachusetts for Safe Technology, provides information about simple strategies to access today’s technology more safely and how to help ensure safe, fast, sustainable technology in your communities. MA4SafeTech@gmail.com. www.ma4safetech.org.
Sam Wieder is the producer of the documentary film, Surrounded and author of the book, Unplug: How to Survive and Thrive in a Wi-Fi World Gone Wild. Both the film and the book reveal how he bounced back from a decade of chronic fatigue as an unknowing victim of electromagnetic stress.
Michael Muadin is President of Alliance for Microwave Radiation Accountability, Inc. (AMRA), a nonprofit organization working for people sickened and disabled by Microwave Radiation Syndrome. Michael educates the public, elected officials, and the media about the 70 year history of harm, even as he advocates for the civil rights of the victims, fights for their equal access to public spaces and seeks justice for the millions who are losing their health, their freedom and their lives to the unchecked proliferation of wireless technology.
Michael and his wife Alia live in New Lebanon, New York, where Alia is host of Hand Hollow Haven, a short-term rental which strives to be a safer alternative for travellers with EHS or Microwave Radiation Syndrome, Multiple Chemical Sensitivity, and anyone else who is seeking a quiet place of refuge. alliance4mra.org, michael@alliance4mra.org.
Sources of Support
HEAL of Southern Arizona has been helping members learn how to cope with MCS since 1983. Located in Tucson, they have members throughout the country. www.healsoaz.org, PO Box 36404, Tucson, AZ 85740.