My skin mysteriously started rotting - then we found something frightening in the AC unit

A female says mold successful her apartment's aerial conditioning portion near her suffering from 'burning' tegument and a measure for $10,000.

Autumn Clayman, 29, started suffering from a burning sensation astir her look and began to spot reddish marks look connected her tegument soon aft moving into her caller flat successful Los Angeles, California, successful February.

She past started processing eczema - chronic inflammation and itchiness of nan tegument - crossed her assemblage and her allergies worsened.

Unsure of what was causing her issues Ms Clayman trim retired definite foods to spot if things improved, but they didn't.

By June, Ms Clayman's flare ups sewage worse and she believed nan origin was thing successful her apartment. So, she stayed astatine her boyfriend's for 2 weeks. While there, her symptoms began to ease.

Feeling assured it was her location causing nan issues, Ms Clayman paid $780 to person her flat tested for mold and it came backmost affirmative for stachybotrys chartarum - aliases achromatic mold - in some of her aerial conditioning units, which had been blasting acold aerial passim nan apartment

Ms Clayman moved into nan flat successful February and began noticing symptoms aft conscionable a fewer weeks.

She said: 'There's a large mold rumor successful LA and apartments are old. I moved successful and astir April I started experiencing symptoms.

'I wasn't 100 percent judge if it was nan flat truthful I ran done each nan scenarios. I trim retired a bunch of foods to spot if it would alteration things but it didn't help.'

Ms Clayman, who runs a consulting business, continued: 'For six months I felt for illustration I was surviving successful conflict aliases flight. My gut told maine location was a deeper rumor going on.

'I couldn't slumber astatine nighttime because my tegument was truthful itchy. Not only are you dealing pinch your tegument - your full assemblage burns and it really affects you.

'I had a burning sensation that started connected my face, eyes and neck, followed by visible reddish patches. Then nan eczema started connected those areas and passim my skin

'My allergies flared up and I had burning, itchy eyes. I had fatigue and much depressive episodes too.'

At nan extremity of July, aft Ms Clayman returned location from her boyfriend's, she paid for a mold inspector to inspect her apartment. 

She said: 'He came retired and he said he could show location was mold present. They checked nan AC units and location was visible mold wrong of them. The AC was ever blasting truthful nary wonderment I would consciousness truthful congested erstwhile I would aftermath up.

'After a swab test, it came backmost arsenic achromatic mold.'

Black mold typically grows wherever location is moisture from h2o damage, h2o leaks, condensation aliases flooding.

The Cleveland Clinic reports that artifact mold triggers an immune consequence and group whitethorn acquisition exacerbated allergies and create symptoms for illustration sneezing, coughing, congestion and oculus irritation. 

For astir people, vulnerability to achromatic mold will not make you severely sick aliases origin death. For group pinch weakened immune systems, however, achromatic mold vulnerability tin origin mycosis, a fungal infection passim nan assemblage that leads to fatigue, musculus aches, thorax pain, weight nonaccomplishment and asthma-like symptoms. 

Following nan results of nan test, Ms Clayman's landlord apologized and performed 2 heavy cleans of nan flat earlier she moved backmost in.

While activity began to remedy nan issue, Ms Clayman had aggregate doctors appointments for her eczema and she is presently waiting to spot a dermatologist for her skin.

Despite nan heavy clean, she said her symptoms returned conscionable a time aft moving backmost into her apartment.  

She said: 'They cleaned nan AC units. I moved backmost successful in August and by nan adjacent day, my symptoms had travel back.

'It wasn't safe for maine to unrecorded location anymore - it was affecting maine physically, mentally, and successful my work.

'They decided to fto maine retired of nan lease and I moved retired a fewer days later.'

But because nan mold spores dispersed crossed nan flat by nan blowing aerial conditioner, nan mold had contaminated overmuch of her belongings and she had to switch astir of her furniture.

She estimates she spent $10,000 replacing contaminated furnishings and clothes, connected aesculapian appointments for her tegument and mold tests.

She said: 'I had to get free of eating tables, chairs, consoles, nan dresser, fabrics, rugs - thing that was porous.

'With nan financial nonaccomplishment and throwing worldly out, I've spent $10,000 truthful acold - that doesn't relationship each nan furnishings I've had to rebuy.

'It's been awesome successful nan caller apartment. I consciousness for illustration I tin attraction connected treatment and taking attraction of my body.'