Crystal Goodwin has a rare disease that causes her immune system to have a hyper-reaction to common scents, dust, chemicals, and even sunlight. Whenever she goes out in public, she must put on a surgical mask as a precaution.
The condition, which has no known cure, causes severe allergic reactions that affect organ function,
Fox News reports.
“Most scents, Lysol, air fresheners, perfume, cologne, food color dyes, pain medications, antibiotics, candy, soap, ChapStick, powder …” says Goodwin, 29, of South Portland, Maine, detailing the things she’s allergic to in a video for the Website Narratively.
“Saying I’m allergic to the world is helpful too.”
Her condition — sometimes called “multiple chemical sensitivity” — prevents Goodwin from maintaining a job and close physical relationships with friends, the Portland Press Herald reports. Her social life consists of daily workouts at a local gym that uses only unscented cleaners.
Goodwin has reportedly been hospitalized 30 times since 2011. Four times a day, takes medication that has reduced her hospital visits from once every other week to once about every six weeks.
Still she says she is lucky to be alive.
“Even though I’m not living maybe the life I wanted, I’m still living.”
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