I moved into my apartment in 2023. Very soon afterwards I started getting way more depressed and paranoid. I also started getting a few physical symptoms that started impacting my daily function. I thought everything that happened was just because I was depressed and overweight. The worst symptom was getting nauseous and throwing up about 3-5 times a week. Then in 2024 my body started responding poorly to carbs and sugar and I thought that I had diabetes. My skin also started getting much more red, especially over my breasts. I went to the doctor and I didn’t even have pre diabetes, but they tested more and found that I had high testosterone. They also found one mass in each of my breasts that were benign. I was diagnosed with PCOS as well as a severe B12 and Vitamin D Deficiency. I started to treat the conditions which did almost nothing and actually caused a few more problems.

Before I moved into the apartment, I wasn’t doing well. At the time I was still struggling with being alone after being codependent with my abusive mother and I was depressed. After I moved in my mental health got significantly worse. I was paranoid, going out in public was both terrifying and genuinely felt physically impossible. I also struggled, and continue to struggle with insane brain fog that makes everything more stressful. The experience made me mature in a few significant ways even though I was still struggling because of the mold. For a long time I found it hard to muster words because I was isolated and going crazy. I kept trying my hardest to get better for most of the two years but failing over and over. Because of it I’m significantly more focused and determined on working on myself and treating the people I love better. I have this spark in me, this fire that was ignited even stronger after November when I began experiencing a traumatic situation that I will be able to escape soon. Even though this is the worst I’ve felt in my life it’s also the most passionate I’ve ever been and I am so proud of myself.

Even still the mold has taken a huge toll on my body. The mold gave me SIBO which is a digestive infection that made my PCOS significantly worse than before and gave me the breast masses. It gave me respiratory issues and I haven’t been able to do simple tasks like laundry without getting out of breath for years. The brain fog from the mold has made everything harder from relationships to work to taking care of myself. The mold has also been giving me neurological issues and making my joints a lot weaker, my hands right now keep getting hurt if I lift heavy objects especially my right one. It’s also been keeping me sick, and last summer was the worst when the mold was sticking to the walls and I had insane dysphagia and threw up at least once a day. I should have told my apartment but at the time I was out of my mind in the summer and had no way that I could physically handle a move, and the mental fog was too strong for me to be able to even figure out the logistics. Then after I started experiencing the traumatic situation I cleaned up the mold and felt way less nauseous and I thought the only issue I had from the mold was when it was on the wall and making me barf. I found out recently that the mold caused my SIBO and was likely causing or worsening every other issue I have. I’ve talked to my sister and the domestic violence shelter and was able to get housing with roommates this June and able to break the lease I was in.

Now that I am moving to a new place I am going to have to replace almost everything I own because it’s been infested with mold. Everything that is porous that I own, which is most things, will carry the mold and make it impossible for me to ever heal. I’m going to be doing my best to save the nonporous sentimental items along with my phone, but everything that is porous is going to need to be thrown away. I’m going to be replacing most things I have over the course of a year but I need help right now with essential items and moving costs. Right now I’m working as hard as I can but it’s been a nightmare while I feel sick and the summer starting is making it worse and I can't afford to get to my new apartment or buy a bed. Anything you can give is appreciated, thank you for just taking the time to read.