Life with Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS)

Life with Mutiple Chemical Sensitivity

Do you sneeze each time you go into a drogerie store? Do you feel dizzy when you get in contact with pintures, perfums, nail polish, strong cleaning products, petrol...?

Do you have changes in your blood pressure by entering a new space where it smells muffy or chemical?

Do you have migraines after being in a indoor place where it smelled like plastic?

Do you have extreme fatigue when you are in very polluted streets?

Do you have a runny nose or itchy eyes when you go to a place that it's beeing renovated?

If you answered more thatn one time "YES", you could be suffering from Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MSC).

This syndrome has not been studied deeply till now, but it has been diagnosed to people all over the world.

Reactions can affect multiple systems:

• Neurological: headaches, dizziness, brain fog, fatigue.

• Respiratory: shortness of breath, throat irritation, coughing.

• Digestive: nausea, stomach pain.

• Cardiovascular/autonomic: palpitations, changes in blood pressure.

• Skin: rashes, burning sensations.

Symptoms often appear quickly after exposure and ease once the trigger is gone, but sensitivity can increase over time.

Because MCS isn’t fully understood medically and is sometimes questioned by health professionals, many people experience:

• Frustration, anxiety, or depression from chronic symptoms and social withdrawal.

• Loss of control or fear of being exposed accidentally.

• Identity and lifestyle changes, since managing MCS can become a full-time effort.

Supportive counseling, peer groups, and validation from healthcare providers can make a big difference in quality of life.

Possible causes. There’s no single clear cause, but studies point to several overlapping factors:

• Nervous system hypersensitivity: heightened sensory and stress responses in brain pathways (similar to chronic pain or PTSD patterns).

• Inflammatory or oxidative stress responses: low-level inflammation triggered by certain chemicals.

• Barrier dysfunction: impaired detoxification or mucosal protection in the gut, lungs, or skin.

• Psychophysiological loops: stress or anxiety amplifying physical reactivity.

Most experts now view MCS as a multifactorial condition involving biological, psychological, and environmental interactions — not “all in the head,” but very real and complex.

Management. There’s no universal cure, but many people improve with an individualized approach:

• Trigger avoidance: using air purifiers, unscented products, and minimizing chemical exposure.

• Gradual reconditioning/desensitization: some programs use exposure therapy or neural retraining.

• Stress and nervous system regulation: breathing techniques, mindfulness, gentle movement, or trauma-informed therapies.

• Medical support: focusing on nutrition, gut health, and addressing coexisting issues like chronic fatigue or anxiety.

Living with MCS can feel restrictive and lonely, but with environmental control, supportive care, and validation, many people stabilize and even regain part of their previous activities.
The most important needs are understanding, safe spaces, and a multidisciplinary approach rather than dismissal.

I've discovered myself that I had MSC, but I could learn how to cope with it in normal life. Avoiding the places where I now I had problems in the past is the very first step. But working on repairing the gut and detoxing the toxins is a very big part of the recovering.

What noone tell you is that if you have a GST or GXT gene, you will be the one who reacts the most to those chemicals. And getting rid of them from your body is the first step not to be overreactive. For me, it is the way the body has to tell you that there is enough rubbish inside of your cells.

Book a call and let's have a look about what is causing your MSC- symptoms!