The Indoor Generation
in 160 seconds you will decide how this story ends
Greetings. We’re going to discuss a 160 second video, a new CDC study on “Invasive Mold Disease”, what our artificial way of life actually means for you and your family — and what you can do about it.
We discuss the problem and end with solutions. The ticket is free. Might as well take the ride.
For those who cannot play audio, here’s the video transcription:
in 160 seconds you will decide how this story ends
this is a story about us, the indoor generation
a generation that spends 90 percent of its life indoors
it all started the day we left nature behind
we filled our homes with lovely things
and all the stuff we wanted
our homes became places you would never want to leave
artificial light replaced daylight
and we built our houses so that nothing could escape
we cooked and showered
breathed and played
swept and sweated
but we had closed ourselves in
to a point where nothing could get out
so when the air turned bad inside
we tried fixing it with chemicals
and we put in little artificial suns everywhere
to make the darkness bearable
that’s when things started to happen
hard to notice in the beginning
some needed help to sleep
to breathe
to not itch
many of us even started to feel sad
so we turned on happy lamps to make the sadness go away
then scientists discovered that the air inside our homes
is up to five times more polluted than the air outside
and that the lack of daylight
can affect children’s learning and increase blood pressure
it turns out that kids rooms often have
the highest concentration of toxicants in the house
in fact millions of homes are unhealthy to live in
they discovered that living in damp and moldy homes
increases the risk of asthma by 40%
and i learned that millions of people like me
suffer from asthma and allergies
caused by a bad indoor environment.
and so here we are
how the story ends is up to you
because it’s not written yet
if you care about the younger generation, do something
begin to think and live differently
let light and fresh air into your life again
even small changes can make a huge difference for coming generations
learn how at theindoorgeneration.com
We’re going to discuss all of this shortly.
An excerpt from a published medical study from the National Institute of Health’s National Library of Medicine - PubMed:
An occupant of a water-damaged building may experience brain problems, musculoskeletal pain, fibromyalgia, gastro-intestinal problems and symptoms of autonomous dysregulation.
- Dr. Tamara Tuuminen, The Roles of Autoimmunity and Biotoxicosis in Sick Building Syndrome as a “Starting Point” for Irreversable Dampness and Mold Hypersensitivity Syndrome. 2020 June 22 PMID: 32580407
**If you don’t know what autonomous dysregulation is, examples are POTS, Dysautonomia, fainting, racing heart/heart palpitations, dizziness and vertigo, anxiety, ADHD, and also erectile dysfunction in men.
The CDC just released a study about mold illness and the lethality they “underestimated” — or as they’ve coined it, IMD, “Invasive Mold Disease”.
We all have our opinions on the CDC. However, humans are quite peculiar.
I’ve observed this phenomenon in those who trust conventional institutions, and those who fancy themselves as “free thinkers” — they watch their kinfolk suffer and die, but it never quite sinks in unless an “authority” publishes it, even if they despise said authority.
Here’s the CDC study regarding mold illness, how it’s more common and deadly than “previously thought” — racking up an estimated $1.7 billion annually in hospitalizations with an estimated 85 percent case fatality rate:
CDC: Active Surveillance for Invasive Mold Disease
I have a separate article discussing this study, I may or may not release it — depends if I have the time to properly edit amongst all else I have going on.
If you want more work on this topic, you can support my work, which enables me to allot more time to doing this, as I cannot pay medical bills or rent off likes and comments. You may do so here: Support my work by leaving a one-time “tip”.
Or you can become a paid sub. XO
Perhaps you’re wondering if your health issues could be rooted in hidden molds in the buildings you live and work in.
Perhaps you’re concerned about the health of your children, pets, parents or spouse.
Perhaps you’re unaffected but wondering what to do if something happens?
When it comes to testing your home for mold, I covered that here:
In the past few months of being a mold refugee, I’ve shared countless resources — I’ve also unpublished the majority of said articles due to people crossing boundaries. When you’re dealing with survival, anything that complicates it must be eliminated -so I removed access.
Point being, I can’t remember what I’ve shared that’s still available and what isn’t (memory is still challenging to access).
I’ll give you the quick version to the best of my ability here.
If you are wondering if what you or a relative is dealing with, I recommend you watch the medical lectures (all of which are backed by published medical studies which you can verify on the spot yourself, and I suggest you do) by Dr. Andrew Campbell, Immunologist and Toxicologist who specializes in the treatment of toxic mold and mycotoxin illness.
A few examples of “low grade” mold illness that we’d normally never equate to being related to mold:
MILD:
Skin issues like acne, rashes, hives, eczema, psoriasis, Seborrheic dermatitis
digestive issues like IBS, constipation, severe bloating, unexplained weight gain or inability to gain weight, gut dysbiosis, SIBO, SIFO, etc
ADHD, anxiety, depression, insomnia, rage, irritability
brain fog, exhaustion, “chronic fatigue syndrome”, memory loss, trouble recalling words or names, etc
migraine headaches, dizziness, vertigo
autonomic nervous system dysregulation, leading to conditions like POTS and Dysautonomia
hormone suppression (i.e. testosterone) and hormone dysregulation
Yes, those would be considered mild. The most severe side effect of toxic mold and mycotoxin illness or IMD is obviously death.
More moderate to severe side effects include (but are not limited to):
Autism
Miscarriages, stillbirths or premature babies
Stroke
GI hemhorraging
Infertility
All autoimmune diseases, with particular emphasis on the thyroid, i.e. Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis
Colitis, Crohns disease, etc
Cancer
Dementia, Alzheimer's, MS, ALS, paralysis, all neurodegenerative diseases
Psychosis, symptoms we call “Bipolar disorder”, extreme impulsivity and deviant behavior, suicidal thoughts, homicidal thoughts, any and all psychiatric symptoms that are resistant to treatment.
When I got re-exposed to black mold in Oregon, but didn’t know I’d been re exposed, a conventional Neurologist is the one who called it out.
That is why I highlighted and italicized “resistant to treatment”.
I’d been hospitalized for symptoms of a stroke, not knowing that the mycotoxins produced by toxic molds like Stachybotrys (trichothecenes) cause that reaction.
The neurologist who saw me after the fact ran tests for two hours.
When half my body was non-responsive to reflexology testing and he saw I couldn’t walk in a straight line, he finished collecting my full symptom profile and asked “How often are you experiencing this?”
When my response was “Daily”, he immediately asked if I was living with black mold.
If that doctor wouldn’t have asked me that, I wouldn’t have evacuated myself from that area so fast, and God only knows how much worse it would have gotten.
My health had been greatly deteriorating but I kept gaslighting myself, saying it was due to other things.
I didn’t want to consider that I could be living with mold again, after I’d just left everything behind in Florida to get away from it.
I did not yet know that toxic molds were nearly everywhere and is not a climate issue but rather a construction issue, with 85% of buildings in the U.S. having water damage (and mold) — this is according to an EPA survey conducted 20 years ago.
It’s easy to assume mold is not the problem when you can’t see it, and 9 times out of 10, you will never see it.
That neurologist was rare. Most conventional doctors completely dismiss all of this, because they have ZERO education on it, and that is by design.
Insurance companies removed mold language from policies due to lawsuits to the tune of billions in the late 90s / early 2000s. You can look that up on your own, or watch the free YouTube documentary Toxic Mold Exposure where it is discussed. They bring it up at the 20 minute mark.
Point being, if you discover toxic molds are at the root of your issues, do NOT be surprised when everyone you know who hasn’t been educated in this area gaslights the shit out of you, ESPECIALLY doctors.
Finding Help
The functional medicine space is like the wild west right now, but the only doctors that know anything about treating this are going to be board certified in either functional medicine, integrative medicine, or potentially naturopaths.
Please screen the doctors on a consultation before paying any money to see them for a full session to make sure they specialize in the treatment of mycotoxin illness — you also want to know exactly what do in regards to treatments.
There is no one size fits all when it comes to treatment.
Some people improve with the Shoemaker protocol (binders, supplements, eventually moving to a nasal spray, etc)
Some people improve with following Dr Campbells advice and taking Itraconazole along with 8 other supplements to repair damage and support detoxification.
Some people do neither and try things like HBOT (hyperbaric oxygen therapy), infrared sauna, red light therapy (all of which I’m a huge advocate of), or things like EBOO, plasma therapy, Kambo, etc. (I have not done any of those so I cannot speak to them).
Some people even use stem cell therapy, although I do not suggest that for just mold illness unless you are literally dying from aspergillosis, have not responded to emergency antifungal interventions and a doctor suggests it.
There are physicians certified through the international association of environmentally acquired illness that may be worth looking into, but from what I’ve heard, they are a mixed bag.
Everyone in this boat needs to get their life back and by the time they make it to a doctor, they’ve likely already been through and dismissed by 15 to 20 and are on death’s door.
It’s a serious situation, so do your due diligence - no one else will do it for you, and just because someone has a medical license does NOT make them an expert…even in the specialty they proport to be an expert in.
FYI:
The funding for ALL medical fellowship training programs in the United States - the last round of education physicians get before going into practice - comes from pharmaceutical companies. That’s who has say over their curriculum and what they learn. Don’t forget it.
Don’t dismiss them when they can be helpful, but don’t put too much reliance on them either. They are trained by the institution that profits off of your illness, not your health.
Remember: MD does not stand for Medical Deity.
Many of them are charlatans. Some are simply unknowing foot soldiers for insurance companies, billing codes and RVUs.
Until truth and health and human life become more important than profit, you are going to have to do your own research and be your own advocate, which I know you do not have the energy for if you’re sick.
But you likely don’t have other options.
The worst thing you can do is feel sorry for yourself and give up, so don’t do that.
Fight now, feel angry and sad later — channel it into art when you get healthy again.
Make sure you live so you can use your voice for those who suffer in shadows and silence. We are the ones who are going to bring awareness to this — NOT the doctors, not the CDC, not the scientists.
The ones who know have been screaming about this for decades and have been muted or ignored.
We are the ones who change the direction of society and culture — not the institutions. Remember that.
Never give up.
To people who want some intel on how to find safe housing, I have another post on that. If you’re a home owner and are doing remediation, I am not the best resource for you as I am not a home owner and have not done mold remediation.
I’m a renter, so when I encounter this stuff, I have to leave immediately. If someone needs help getting out of a rental agreement, you need to look up your state’s habitability laws and find where your landlord is in breach of contract — which makes the rental agreement null and void.
However, some states, like Florida, don’t even require landlords to disclose the presence of mold, and they’ve barred the Florida department of health from having jurisdiction in apartments soooo… just get out by any means necessary. Pay the damn lease break fee and leave.
You can get the money back.
You can’t get back the years it takes you to get healthy again. Leave.
And remember:
Mold can grow anywhere. I’ve found more black mold out here in Denver Colorado than I did in Florida. I’ve found new buildings to be more problematic than old ones, but when I say old, I mean pre-1970 or pre-1960 with no drywall and maintained properly.
That last part is the hard part to find, but I did find some older spots that tested far better than new builds.
How does mold show up, even in arid climates and deserts?
I honestly had no fucking idea until my immune system unzipped so let’s go over the ABCs:
Damp or wet building materials occur from a variety of construction defects, roof leaks, HVAC condensation, water intrusion from floods, hurricanes, leaking appliances and plumbing, poorly designed foundations, e.g. basement walls that allow water seepage from wet soils, slope of the building lot leading to water accumulation under concrete slabs, etc.
-Thrasher JD (2016) Fungi, Bacteria, Nano-particulates, Mycotoxins and Human Health in Water-Damaged Indoor Environments. J Comm Pub Health Nurs 2:115.
Notice how outdoor factors were only mentioned twice, out of 10 listed examples. Everything else can be found in any climate on Earth, as long as you’ve built a structure of some sort.
Do you think we get what we deserve?
All of this is not done in ignorance. People know. These studies have been around a lot longer than 2016. It’s literally in the Bible (Leviticus). We would not have survived as a species if we didn’t know this.
We have to fight for ourselves and for our future generations.
What can we say about ourselves, truly, if we don’t care about ourselves, each other, and CHILDREN?
So, circling back to end this article — the indoor generation:
I believe I wrote a stream of consciousness poem on this the day after I got out of the hospital for the second time in Tampa.
I didn’t know ANY of what I know today, and I had no idea I was ill because of mold.
But I knew that miraculously, after being discharged from the ER and going and laying in the Sun for five hours straight and feeling better than I’d felt in… years honestly, something was to be said for our NEED to be OUTSIDE.
Let us revisit and close with whatever the hell I wrote on that day:
Part one:
Part two:
Oh wow. I never transcribed the actual stuff I wrote that wasn’t somewhat cryptic poetry. See what I mean about cognitive issues?
And I do not have that note pad anymore, as I had to leave everything I owned behind, especially porous items like paper, due to mold contamination.
Well, I can remember what I wrote… I’ll try to give you the cliff notes:
I remember writing about how much of a con it was that we lived inside.
Inverted sunlight — lightbulbs and blue light that deteriorate our mitochondria and disrupt our cellular ability to heal and repair during sleep.
Actual sunlight does this job for us, and it is imperative that we absorb both UVA and UVB for thyroid and endocrine regulation and vitamin D production, which is actually a hormone and not a vitamin.
Yet we miss both because we are indoors all the time.
I remember thinking how crazy it was that we weren’t breathing real air, getting real sun, walking on REAL earth, how had we become so silly to try and re-create God’s Majesty?
We already had everything we needed, and we, quite literally, sealed ourselves off from it — and wonder why we are now sick and unhappy?
I remember how unbelievably happy and at peace I was. I had no desire to look at my phone. No desire to do anything besides watch the clouds…. an experience that I hadn’t truly had to that depth until age… 34.
It was a near-psychedelic experience because of how locked in I was with the magnificence of the present moment, yet I was completely sober.
It was as if that was the first time I’d seen the clouds in the sky.
FREEDOM FLOW
The last song on my album, Freedom Flow, was recorded alongside a Florida summer storm.
The song is completely acapella, with nothing but rain and thunder as my accompaniment. It was all freestyled on the spot. This song came from that experience — the day, post hospital, where I found an actual taste of healing in the Sun.
Maybe this is all I have to leave you with, in regards to a solution for The Indoor Generation.
Art conveys what words cannot.
Here is Freedom Flow:
If you don’t like YouTube or Spotify, just plug in my artist name Tesstamona to anywhere you stream music and you’ll find it. Or click here.
Have a wonderful day!
For half the year, I spend every possible moment outside. But the other half, the air hates my face, so I hide from it.