Black Mold Slowly Poisoned This Woman for 35 Years

Our bodies are our most faithful companions in life. They carry us everywhere we need to go and enable us to live the lives we envision for ourselves. Unfortunately, our bodies don’t always work the way they are meant to. Becoming sick or injured can be an uncomfortable to a downright frightening experience at times. We all typically take pains to keep our bodies well and healthy, but what if that isn’t enough?

A Living Nightmare

Dana Anhalt lived with the nightmare of her body turning against her for 35 years. What was worse was that she didn’t know the cause. In her original GoFundMe story, Dana’s mother described the physical battle that Dana fought every day.

Dana spent her childhood “increasingly ill,” and the lack of diagnosis led to symptoms that persisted into her adulthood. She suffered from constant and severe pain throughout her whole body. This and serious neuropathy restricted her mobility over the years, eventually leaving her completely bedridden. Some of her lifelong passions included artwork, which she promoted online through her blog.  But her painful condition forced her to give up even this simple joy. Tasks as simple as speaking, chewing, typing, or even simple movement became impossible for Dana.

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Her condition reached its worst point in 2015 and 2016. Doctors diagnosed her with Common Variable Immunodeficiency (CVID), chronic Lyme disease, Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome and Mast Cell Activation Syndrome. However, doctors still could not find the underlying cause of all these terrible health issues. Then her body suddenly started exhibiting life-threatening reactions to almost everything in her environment, including her medications. After a series of desperate tests, doctors finally identified the hidden truth that had stolen Dana’s life.

An Unseen Menace: Black Mold

The culprit was black mold. It had infested Dana’s home for years, unbeknownst to her and her family. According to the Centers for Disease Control, it isn’t uncommon for homes and buildings to contain black mold. Even so, the most common reaction to black mold spores are symptoms similar to seasonal allergies. Certainly nothing as debilitating as Dana experienced. However, certain respiratory diseases or immunological deficiencies can lead to much more serious reactions.

A rare genetic condition left Dana’s body without the ability to detox from exposure to the black mold. The same response left her vulnerable to Lyme and hundreds of thousands of foreign chemicals found in our daily environments. Even some of her medications had become toxic, and her body was beyond its limits.

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Dana’s Silver Lining

Thankfully, when the world heard Dana’s story on GoFundMe, people came together to help give Dana a new life. The fundraising campaign was successful, and Dana received the lifesaving treatments she needed. Though the successful campaign is now closed, you can read the original story on her fundraising website www.artislifefund.org.

Upon beginning her recovery, Dana wasted no time in paying forward the generosity she witnessed on her behalf. By founding “Art Is Life,” she rekindled her passion for art while continuing her treatment and recovery. This fundraising platform promotes the work of upstart artists by linking their portfolios and posting their art for sale. In turn, contributions and art sales raise money for Dana’s treatment. Once Dana recovers, she plans to maintain the website to fundraise for other cases like hers. She sees her new life as a gift and wishes to keep giving with all her newfound strength. Through this “marriage of art and compassion,” Dana aims to share her new hope with others in a lifelong way.

*Guest piece by Healthy Holistic Living