Randle Cyclist
Member
Preface: I know it's a long one so if you're not interested in reading the whole story skip to the bottom.
I've been combating mold now for about three months now. It all began around March when temperatures began to rise necessitating the use of air conditioning. I didn't notice anything for a while except my dog started behaving differently.
First, he began refusing food. Then, he became increasingly lethargic, laying around while breathing rapidly but shallowly. Finally, he started to refuse even water. This all happened within the course of a week. I was afraid he would certainly die so I took him to a family member's house. There he ate (his usual food) and drank to capacity. Within a couple of days he was his old self. I left him there and returned home.
Upon entering my house again it hit me. Lingering in the air was an unpleasant musty smell. The previous homeowner advised me to pour bleach in the AC drip pan every 2 weeks which I had forgotten to do since I reactivated the system. I thought bleach would solve the issue pretty quickly, and it did, but only temporarily. The next day the odor was back, albeit faintly.
I carried on thinking little of it. I assumed since the house has a pier and beam foundation with a persistently damp crawlspace that the odor was simply due to the nature of the house. I still was uncertain why my dog began acting seemingly suicidal so quickly. I chalked it up to him missing my family member's dog and my family member place the blame on ghosts since weird things have happened in the house at night that my dog has reacted to. Then after a few more weeks it really struck me.
You know how every house has an odor that you become immune to? Not so with my house. The mildew smell became increasingly stronger as the days went by to the point where I could no longer ignore it. Compounding the issue, I began to experience similar symptoms to my dog. My appetite began to diminish and I would become nauseated whenever I did eat. I also became forgetful. It was just like when you have too much weed and you forget what you're saying while midsentence. It was happening all the time and it was very disturbing. My sinuses became consistently stuffy making it near impossible to breath nasally. Brain fog and fatigue were also present.
After my symptoms increased in intensity I checked the AC system again. Now the condensers were entirely black, coated with a slimy black mold. I promptly shut the system off. Turning the system off helped decrease the odor but still my symptoms remained. I stayed in the house for about 5 days with no AC, sleeping with temps in the low 80s. One evening, I was sitting in a recliner dozing off when all of a sudden I felt this overwhelming sense of dread like something terrible was about to happen. It became difficult to breathe and I was gasping for air. I felt like I had to evacuate immediately and if I remained in the house I would surely die.
That night and from then on I slept in my truck. I avoided going inside as much as I could, entering only to cook, shower, etc but never lingering for long. Besides, it was hotter inside than out, with temperatures often reaching the 90s. I began to feel better but not 100 percent. The only time I would feel normal is when I stayed out of town. The mildew odor stick to anything porous, especially clothing. It's pungent enough that other people notice it from a good distance.
I hired a mold remediation company to tackle the issue. I restarted the ac system so they could take air quality samples and when I did so my eyes and throat immediately started burning. To make a long story a little bit shorter, the company fogged the house and cleaned the ac system. They also discovered that mold is festering in the bathroom behind the drywall which I opted not to tear out due to the cost (I've had the house listed for sale since January for reasons unrelated to the mold issue; remodelling the bathroom would cause me to lose even more money).
It's been nearly two weeks now since the treatment which at first seemed to have been effective. I was out of town for the majority of last week, leaving shortly after the remediation procedure. I felt back to my old self while away. However, upon returning I've experienced a gradual worsening of my condition. The mildew smell is gone, or at least it's only detectable in fleeting instances, though it could be covered by the residual mold-killing chems.
As of now, I'm feeling very fatigued and my appetite is quickly vanishing once more. I wake up with bloody sinuses and feeling drained, like I've slept 4 hours instead of the actual 8. Fortunately, I have a contract on the property so I won't have to stay here much longer. The problem is that I'm not due to leave town again until next week. I also would like to control the mold situation for the buyer. Perhaps it's just me and my immune system and he'll be far more resilient to it.
Starting tomorrow, I will be forcing myself to eat just beef, like a protein sparing modified fast, in hopes of preserving muscle mass. I'd eat normally except that it amplifies my symptoms. I feel better fasted but I'll lose muscle for sure if I do so since I'm 6'1" at 154lbs. I'm also contemplating sleeping outside in my truck again. I never knew mold could do so much damage.
Problem: moldy crawlspace, moldy AC, and black mold behind drywall.
Symptoms: brain fog, fatigue, sinus issues, shortness of breath, memory lapses, appetite loss, nausea. Dog experienced nausea, loss of appetite, runny nose, and fatigue
Supplements: Pau d'arco tea as antifungal, milk thistle tincture to aid liver in toxin removal, coffee for energy and liver, cannabis at night for nausea and sleep aid(doesn't help appetite)
Has anyone experienced anything like this? If so, any suggestions?
I've been combating mold now for about three months now. It all began around March when temperatures began to rise necessitating the use of air conditioning. I didn't notice anything for a while except my dog started behaving differently.
First, he began refusing food. Then, he became increasingly lethargic, laying around while breathing rapidly but shallowly. Finally, he started to refuse even water. This all happened within the course of a week. I was afraid he would certainly die so I took him to a family member's house. There he ate (his usual food) and drank to capacity. Within a couple of days he was his old self. I left him there and returned home.
Upon entering my house again it hit me. Lingering in the air was an unpleasant musty smell. The previous homeowner advised me to pour bleach in the AC drip pan every 2 weeks which I had forgotten to do since I reactivated the system. I thought bleach would solve the issue pretty quickly, and it did, but only temporarily. The next day the odor was back, albeit faintly.
I carried on thinking little of it. I assumed since the house has a pier and beam foundation with a persistently damp crawlspace that the odor was simply due to the nature of the house. I still was uncertain why my dog began acting seemingly suicidal so quickly. I chalked it up to him missing my family member's dog and my family member place the blame on ghosts since weird things have happened in the house at night that my dog has reacted to. Then after a few more weeks it really struck me.
You know how every house has an odor that you become immune to? Not so with my house. The mildew smell became increasingly stronger as the days went by to the point where I could no longer ignore it. Compounding the issue, I began to experience similar symptoms to my dog. My appetite began to diminish and I would become nauseated whenever I did eat. I also became forgetful. It was just like when you have too much weed and you forget what you're saying while midsentence. It was happening all the time and it was very disturbing. My sinuses became consistently stuffy making it near impossible to breath nasally. Brain fog and fatigue were also present.
After my symptoms increased in intensity I checked the AC system again. Now the condensers were entirely black, coated with a slimy black mold. I promptly shut the system off. Turning the system off helped decrease the odor but still my symptoms remained. I stayed in the house for about 5 days with no AC, sleeping with temps in the low 80s. One evening, I was sitting in a recliner dozing off when all of a sudden I felt this overwhelming sense of dread like something terrible was about to happen. It became difficult to breathe and I was gasping for air. I felt like I had to evacuate immediately and if I remained in the house I would surely die.
That night and from then on I slept in my truck. I avoided going inside as much as I could, entering only to cook, shower, etc but never lingering for long. Besides, it was hotter inside than out, with temperatures often reaching the 90s. I began to feel better but not 100 percent. The only time I would feel normal is when I stayed out of town. The mildew odor stick to anything porous, especially clothing. It's pungent enough that other people notice it from a good distance.
I hired a mold remediation company to tackle the issue. I restarted the ac system so they could take air quality samples and when I did so my eyes and throat immediately started burning. To make a long story a little bit shorter, the company fogged the house and cleaned the ac system. They also discovered that mold is festering in the bathroom behind the drywall which I opted not to tear out due to the cost (I've had the house listed for sale since January for reasons unrelated to the mold issue; remodelling the bathroom would cause me to lose even more money).
It's been nearly two weeks now since the treatment which at first seemed to have been effective. I was out of town for the majority of last week, leaving shortly after the remediation procedure. I felt back to my old self while away. However, upon returning I've experienced a gradual worsening of my condition. The mildew smell is gone, or at least it's only detectable in fleeting instances, though it could be covered by the residual mold-killing chems.
As of now, I'm feeling very fatigued and my appetite is quickly vanishing once more. I wake up with bloody sinuses and feeling drained, like I've slept 4 hours instead of the actual 8. Fortunately, I have a contract on the property so I won't have to stay here much longer. The problem is that I'm not due to leave town again until next week. I also would like to control the mold situation for the buyer. Perhaps it's just me and my immune system and he'll be far more resilient to it.
Starting tomorrow, I will be forcing myself to eat just beef, like a protein sparing modified fast, in hopes of preserving muscle mass. I'd eat normally except that it amplifies my symptoms. I feel better fasted but I'll lose muscle for sure if I do so since I'm 6'1" at 154lbs. I'm also contemplating sleeping outside in my truck again. I never knew mold could do so much damage.
Problem: moldy crawlspace, moldy AC, and black mold behind drywall.
Symptoms: brain fog, fatigue, sinus issues, shortness of breath, memory lapses, appetite loss, nausea. Dog experienced nausea, loss of appetite, runny nose, and fatigue
Supplements: Pau d'arco tea as antifungal, milk thistle tincture to aid liver in toxin removal, coffee for energy and liver, cannabis at night for nausea and sleep aid(doesn't help appetite)
Has anyone experienced anything like this? If so, any suggestions?
