She comes home with so many secondary scents on her clothes that she has to change and wear stuff that hasn't left the house. I can't be around her if she doesn't. Sawynok says no-scent policies are useful. She's pleased to see more and more schools and government offices putting up no-scent signs. Sawynok says people's reactions to her illness vary.
Most people express sympathy but it is hard to comprehend the totality of what's involved.
She picks up a stack of papers from the floor. But unfortunately I have a reaction to ink. Her eyes begin to water. And, if I don't cover them up with acetate sheets my face begins to burn. Sawynok says she has received a lot of support since she was diagnosed with her illness in 1994.