HUD HOUSING HELL

        ABUSING THE DISABLED, AND THE GAMES GO ON.

Dealing with people with MCS over the years, I was no stranger to the horror stories of how landlords and other people treated us.  After all, I had experienced it on the job and was no stranger to the abuse.  The last place I expected to find it was in HUD housing as I thought they would hire reputable people to operate their apartment units.  I mean after all, MCS is recognized by the ADA right???? 

My first 6 years of living at the apts.  were pretty good.  I had some reactions I couldn't put my finger on the cause of.  But in general, they were pretty good, and I had a great landlord who was caring and understanding. 
 One day she told me that they  ( I took her to mean HUD but she may have meant the property mgmt. company,) wanted them to get something on everyone that lived here because they were tired of being sued.  She went on to say that I didn't do anything or go anywhere....all I did was walk.

And walkling outdoors was one of the first things the new landlord picked on, that was....after I asked for my heater to be cleaned as I smelled mold.  I told them not to use chemicals on it just water, or I could clean it myself.  They took the top part off and used I was told coil cleaner in it, which made me so sick I had to leave the apt.  They ended up replacing the entire top as I could no longer stand to use it. I was told there was no mold in the apt....however perhaps 2 weeks or so later, they ended up cutting the wall to get the mold out and painting it.  Did I mention I was exposed to black mold as the heater part was missing from the wall during this time, and you could see it...and take photos? I was also forbidden to ever contact the pesticide company to see when they were coming out if their was a schedule problem.  Calling the landlord had produced no results in obtaining into. It was obvious she didn't care.   I went along with this as I figure it was some sort of power play game or something. Things just got worse.  Give her what she wants an perhaps she will leave me alone kind of a thing.

I was called into the office and drilled as to why if I had such bad "allergies," that I went outside or opened my door, etc?  It became apparent that my disability was their target.  I had no idea what was to come.  The landlord wouldn't listen to me about needed accommodations and said she would not tell me when they pesticided between regular applications.  This became the target zone for them to apparently "have on me,"  and I ended up going to the rental company one day when the pesticide truck came, and I got exposed and sick.  This only led to a meeting where my disability was belittled by my landlords boss.  They couldn't understand how I moved into the apt. after it had been painted etc and I said It took about 2 years of reactions before it settled down.  It was a bad experience with this lady and was apparent she meant to cause me harm rather than good, and the words of my old landlord came back to me.

Things got worse, and Febreeze was sprayed in the halls.  Eventually my asthma worsened to the point I was on oxygen, and still am.  I got an attorney.  The landlord said she was NOT going to tell me when they pesticided between regular applications.  The attorney wrote a second letter.  Nothing happened.

Two years went by, and she seemed to somewhat be telling me when they did things, but I occassionally had a stray reaction.  After the second year, HUD decided to contact me about my complaint.  Thats right I said TWO YEARS. I didn't have enough evidence on them at the time to go through with it the way it needed to be delt with.  A couple days later, maint. was in the yard pesticiding.  Things that make you go hummmmm,  yes it made me go hummm.

And so it continued for close to 5 years.  I would have a reaction for no reason and the maint. man would say he saw a lawn spray truck in the subdivision or something.  Or I would walk out our door and get hit by pesticides that seemed to come from the shrubery area.  One night I heard a dog downstairs bark as if it saw something.  Minutes later I was having anaphlix symptoms. I suspected pesticide spraying. Finally while sitting in the lobby and waiting on the bus I was hit really hard by pesticides.  They had sprayed around one of our other buildings unknown to me, and I was caught in the drift.  I looked out the window and saw them and the maint. man said they had just sprayed the other building.  I had to flee down the street and call the paratransit company to have them pick me up at a different location.  Supposedly the pesticide company had not sprayed the week before because of rain and did not call to let them know they were coming out.   The landlord even varified this is what happened during a meeting with me.  Verification she would change to them coming out to spray a tennants apt and having to spray the entire outside.  (Which one was the truth?  It was apparent I was being lied to. I suffered from my insides being swolen up so badly that I could not eat properly and lost 3 pounds from that exposure.  What next time. Death?

The next time I saw the pesticide truck, I took a photo of it and asked the man if he would be spraying and he said no, so I later deleted it.  However I got a lease violation for taking the photo.  And I was told I could no longer ask the pesticide man anything if I saw him. 
Talk about mind control. 

I was also told they had sprayed and I didn't have a reaction.  Then she said, or....maybe you wern't home.  Now think about that statement. Talk about catching someone making things up.  These people wrote the book on stupidity.

There is much more, and it isn't just with me, but that's another story.  I think it is a shame that the United States Government allows these type of people to run their housing projects. They certainly are not worthy of these positions. It was miracle enough I was able to get the place to work out for me with my severe sensitivities.  Certainly I have been challenged, abused, and repetedly exposed to unnecessary chemicals over the years. Exposures that apparently have taken its toll on my health.  Exposures that could have been avoided if I had been given advanced notice so I could have left as requested.  But this request was ignored. It didn't matter if I fell over in a reaction, their minds were made up that the disability didn't exist, and they acted accordingly.  Unfortunately this is still happening even after MCS has been proven as a disabilitly caused by chemicals.  Perhaps one day people with MCS will be treated with the same respect as other disabilities.  Untill then...the games go on.