Medical Moment – “Shane’s Story – Come On Down to Destin! It’s All Good!”
Shane is a husband and a father and was the part owner in a thriving family business in Destin Beach, FL. He did not go to his family’s vacation home in Gulf Shores, Alabama on July 24th 2010 due to the Gulf of Mexico Oil disaster. Instead, he went to Destin Beach in Florida as he was told that “all was good” in Destin. After going into that water in Destin, his life has been a living hell on earth. Quote from Shane:
“In no way do I feel my own carelessness resulted in this injury as, I had no way of knowing after seeing the many ads and campaigns run by BP stating the areas were safe and free from oil at the time of my visit. I feel BP shows gross negligence having pulled their oil crew workers off the line as of April 25th, 2010 having pulling workers off prior to my exposure in July 2010, as the workers were showing many of the exact same symptoms I have.”
On Shane’s July 2010 Destin trip, he began feeling discomfort to his skin from the ocean. Again, Shane had no way of knowing it was COREXIT AND OIL at the time. In fact, he was not diagnosed until after September 2011. Between that time and actually, within the first week of being exposed to COREXIT, Shane had symptoms which began quickly on the first night after going into that water. Shane’s symptoms included:
• Stomach cramps
• Chills
• Flu Like Symptoms
• Headaches
• Nose bleeds
• Persistent Asthma
• Breathing problems
• Persistent sinus infections
• Wheezing due to blocked airways.
Within a few weeks after the vacation, his rashes began to appear the lesions began to arise on his legs and back. Flesh was peeling off on many areas of his body. The pain he endures is so great that often times he would scream in agony at the burning and constant stinging resembling the pain of a second degree or full thickness, “burn victim” would endure. He has had staph infections 3 times, once requiring hospitalization and the other where he called 911 as he thought he was having a heart attack.
He suffers with anxiety, depression, sleeplessness, fatigue and “brain fog.” Shane was so ill he was unable to be the father and husband that he had been for years. Shane was unable to get his son to school on time and has told me personally that he has been writing letters to his son trying to explain what was happening so that, ” in the event of his death” so his son would understand.
“I have written many letters to my son with the expectation that I might die suddenly, and in these letters I apologize many times for my actions over the course of the past year. My only son who is only 8 years old. I have sent countless emails within the course of the past year that were sent to friends and family in detail about my mental health issues that I am concerned with about myself with no explanation other than just trying to keep my family together.”
Shane spent over a year trying to find out on the internet and with physicians what was wrong with him because the Florida Press and the then Governor, Attorney General, EPA and Coast Guard, Government and BP “All is good, Come on down!” Charlie Christ, Attorney General Bill McCollum asked on May 5th 2010 for 35 Million in Adds along with others, to stop the “fear and lies” that Florida beaches were impacted: http://www.postonpolitics.com/2010/05/crist-asks-bp-for-35-million-for-ad-campaign-to-combat-lies-about-fla-beaches/
Shane states, “I did not take pictures of the rashes until after June 2011 almost a year after the exposure. The pictures of the rashes included cannot even begin to show similar rashes that I received early on after the initial exposure. I had no idea of the effects of Corexit, the rashes resembling burn victims, often at times having me scream for hours at a time. The feeling of burning and stinging is constant every night and day as I cannot sleep, work, or get my son to school on time as I often stay up all night long and many days in succession with the inability to sleep.”
Shane sleeps so much and does not have the energy or endurance to perform daily activities. He cannot even watch his son’s football practice without breaking out in a sweat and then breaking out in Corexit and oil induced skin toxicity. Shane has a hard time exercising and has been briefed on exactly how Corexit and oil toxicity works. The Chemicals of Corexit with oil remain in his system and recycles by storing in body fat. Shane was a Little League Coach and a Good father that was active in his community. He can longer work outdoors and has had to socially distance himself from his community, friends and family. He has been labeled by many people with mental problems due to the toxicity of Corexit and oil as it binds to the fat in the brain and creates behavioral changes. Shane is not crazy. He is suffering from toxicity.
“If I exercise or work on a job site anything that requires energy, I break out in hives or Corexit pimples, it is a very painful experience and this happens every time. I cannot play softball or other hobbies I greatly love such as, playing kick ball with my son or other similar father-son activities. The mental issues are equally unpleasant, in April of 2011 I started seeing a Mental therapist as I showed mental issues and concerns to myself and others, such as my wife and family. I had been picked as a coach for four years and was recently asked not to coach because I was not acting like myself anymore. A personal friend of mine said that I was often showing signs of, “mania and mood swings and that I needed to seek medical help.”
Shane had no idea where to get help for this illness but he did have an understanding of this injury and illness caused by the Corexit and BP’s oil during and after the disaster. In his quest for answers, he has many sleepless nights trying to find the help he required. Unfortunately his doctors diagnosed him improperly with scabies, parasites, allergies, dermatitis and eczema. Shane has finally found a toxicologist who can testify on his behalf as to the problems that he has. But Shane’s problems are far from over; he is in the process of proving this fact and has retained the services of an attorney. He has had so many persistent rashes and problems from the BP Gulf disaster and the chemicals are still present in his body. Hopefully, Shane will find justice in the System that destroyed his life to begin with.
The photos are included under his last statement which saddened me greatly:
“My good reputation with friends, coworkers, the ball park community of my sons team and with the school employees my son attends. My wife more than understands the way I act and accuses the illness and links all my new personalities as new behavior mental issues. My wife accuses me of being to toxic for our son to be around, asking for a separation many times of the course of the past year, and for me to go get help for myself. This Corexit and oil poisoning has changed my way of life so that I cannot work, exercise , eat correctly , sleep , be a father , a husband , a friend , a neighbor, a pillar of the community , nor can I provide for myself. I have lost my $450,000 house to foreclosure after falling behind, lost my job, a career that I worked all my working life with the fact that I knew that the business would one day be mine. It is my father’s business to leave into my success, in which my father and I both agree I am in no condition to run any type of business as he is the legal retiring age and has great concern of my health issues as well. I am trying to understand how our government and a multi-national company that came into our Gulf got away with this.”
Shane is not alone as there are thousands upon thousands suffering from the exposure to chemicals and the onslaught of Corexit on a daily basis. NO, IT IS NOT GONE and the suffering goes on. Lives are being ruined, careers, marriages, homes and Destin itself. It is not “all good” Florida. Please do not come on down. Look at the photos attached and tell me that this young man with everything ahead of him is not sick and has not suffered.
Trisha Springstead, RN has been in the medical field serving many fields of medicine over the past 38 years including surgical charge nurse, emergency nursing, telemetry nursing, clinical nursing for 2 HMA hospitals home health care, wound therapy, psychiatric nursing and was a nurse manager for a 44 bed telemetry unit and a 6 bed ICU overflow as well as a nursing supervisor. Trisha has been in the healing arts for 38 years. In addition, Trisha has a Masters in Biological Sciences and is an Independent Biologist.
Trisha has worked in many areas of medicine and research and has worked with the people impacted by the Gulf Oil Spill and continues to fight to expose and help those suffering with illnesses in the Gulf. It has been proven that oil mixed with Corexit and industrial solvents, PAH’s, impact the effects of the toxicity oil on humans, animals. The devastation to our ecosystem and environment have been highly explored and documented. The work of many before her has taught Trisha so very much, including her integrative health consultant, Dr. Wilma Subra, Dr. Riki Ott, Dr. Michael Robicheaux, MaryLee Orr, Dr. Paul Sammarco, Dr. Ira. Leifer , Dr. Linda Hooper-Bui. Dahr Jamail, and all of the people who suffer from exposure to these dangerous chemicals and the bacterial organisms.
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