Janice T. spends every night playing Scrabble by candlelight with her husband because she claims to have a rare condition called electro sensitivity. She cannot bear to be anywhere near electromagnetic fields of any kind and, as a result, she cannot watch television, listen to the radio or talk on a mobile phone and has been left completely isolated from the modern world by her condition.
Mrs. T was struck down with the illness after receiving chemotherapy for bowel cancer three years ago. Since then she has suffered constant headaches, chest pains, nausea and tingling in her arms and legs whenever she is near electrical devices or items that emit a signal. Her only relief in this time was when her village, near Mansfield in rural Nottinghamshire, suffered a temporary power cut.
She said: “Different things give me different feelings but it’s mostly headaches and nausea. IPhones make feel really sick within about 20 minutes of being near one so even though I might not realize someone has one straightaway, I soon find out. Wi-Fi makes me feel like I have a clamp at the back of my head which is squeezing the life out of me. It’s completely draining and a home hub can totally immobilize me – I’m left unable to move my arms and legs.”
Mrs. T’s normal existence was turned upside down when in February 2008 she was admitted to hospital with severe abdominal pains and vomiting. After three days of tests, it was discovered she was suffering from cancer and surgeons operated immediately to remove a six-inch tumor from her bowel, plus 14 lymph nodes. Fortunately, despite the size of the tumor, her cancer had not spread, but it was decided that she should have chemotherapy after the surgery as a precautionary measure. It was then that her unusual problem started and she began to feel ill whenever she was near the myriad electrical and wireless items in her home.
She said: “Personally, I think there must be a link with the chemotherapy and the ES, but no one is going to admit that.
“I used to go for long walks every day and while I was out of the house I would be okay. But when I came back I would start to feel unwell again very quickly and slowly I started to put two and two together.
“After the cancer, the doctors recommended we enjoy a nice holiday somewhere and the whole family went to the Greek island of Kos for two weeks in September 2008. “While I was there was I was fine, but when I got home I felt ill again almost straightaway. It wasn’t until afterwards that I considered it might have been because of all the ‘electro smog’ we were experiencing at home.” Mrs. T has even had to cover her windows with a special metallic material to deflect errant electromagnetic waves.
Graham L, technical manager at Powerwatch, an independent organization which promotes safer environments, said so far the medical profession has been slow to recognize electro sensitivity as an illness as its causes are as yet unknown. The Council of Europe Committee on Monday called for a dramatic reduction in exposure to phones and other wireless devices.
By Andy Bloxham 18 May 2011
