Sherri Cornelius

Update: see Poison Scents, my blog dedicated to my fragrance sensitivity.

So this fragrance sensitivity I have, it is the real deal. As you may remember, I took out most everything in my house that contained fragrance and saw an immediate improvement. Over the past couple of weeks I have had much less eye fatigue, no headache, little to no sinus pressure. I've had a stuffy nose, but it's the regular variety. I'm getting to a point where I can live with it.

I was able to find a fragrance-free version of everything in the house, but some things are available only through the internet and cost quite a bit more, such as dishwashing soap, so I'm dragging my feet on those. We're still using the old Soft Soap, and my husband still uses his Irish Spring (making the concession of keeping it under the cabinet when not in use, not sure that's good enough), and I'm using my kid's shampoo since the smell is not nearly as strong as mine.

Everything was peachy...Until I whipped out the carpet stain remover. You know the kind where you spray it on the stain and wait three minutes and blot? That stuff will tear you a new sinus cavity. I didn't consider as I sprayed it on that even after I blotted, the stuff would still be sitting there, in my carpet, silently giving off noxious fumes. By the end of the day I had a migraine. My first headache in weeks.

The headache is only annoying this morning, but I've been sneezing and having trouble focusing already. I tried rinsing and blotting again, but it didn't work. I guess I have to break out the big guns: the carpet shampooer. Of course I won't be using shampoo, only rinsing. Just think, I used to make my whole house smell like that shit... *shudder*

No wonder I had migraines.