Story of the Day: Sunlight Allergy – How I Live in Complete Darkness

Today’s #storyoftheday is about a woman who lived in complete darkness because of a rare allergic reaction with no known medical cure.

Peach grew up in a family that was deeply integrated into extreme and outdoor activities. Their entire family frequently did mountain-hiking, rock-climbing, rafting, sailing, and many other sports with her brothers and sisters.

Getting down and dirty was never a problem for them as absolutely nothing compared to the adrenaline they experienced in these activities, not to mention the bond it forged. However, everything changed when Peach found out about her allergies.

A COMPLETE LIFE

Despite their eventual success in various corporate fields, Peach and her siblings always found the time to schedule get-togethers where they’d enjoy all the different outdoor activities from when they were kids.

Beyond her successful career and love for extremities, she was just like any other person. Peach enjoyed walks in the park, random strolls in historical places, trips to renowned restaurants, and pretty much anything that she could enjoy with her friends.

She had recently met Joe, a Massachusetts native just like her. They first crossed paths in one of her office’s intercompany projects and worked closely together. It wasn’t long until they started seeing each other regularly and eventually decided to tie the knot after a year of dating.

Everything seemed like they were in place for a happy life -- a great career, supportive friends, a loving family, and now a life partner for Peach. It was all beautiful until the dark came after her.

THE RASH

During one of their ordinary family get-togethers for extreme activity, Peach and Joe had been married for about six months. She wanted to make sure that he was part of all the family activities. Every time they had one booked, it was certain that Joe was another addition to the team.

The activity in place was mountain hiking, and just like every time they do, the siblings hiked as fast as they could so that they could immediately enjoy the cool breeze and the breathtaking view.

Everything seemed normal until Peach noticed that her skin began to experience a sensation underneath. She shrugged the feeling off, believing that it could just be another skin irritation, considering how any outdoor activities would result in a bit of sunburn.

Weeks passed since she started feeling irritation on her skin, but still, she felt different. Peach became concerned but thought it was a normal sunburn despite the lack of burns on her skin.

DISCOVERING HER CONDITION

Peach noticed that she would feel the same sensation each time she was outdoors, so she merely tapered her trips out. Later, the sting under her skin found its way even if she was indoors reading a book or working on her desk with a computer.

It was in these moments that she and Joe began to speculate her irritable condition with light. Peach and Joe started their search for a more precise diagnosis for the irritable skin condition by calling up various medical institutions and clinics to redirect them to an expert.

To their unfortunate surprise, physicians kept passing them on, highlighting that they did not possess the technical expertise for her condition. The time came where they were out of options, so they knew they had to take their search beyond the state.

In the meantime, to shed some relief to her condition, Peach welcomed the life of darkness. The couple cleared up an extra bedroom in their loft and sealed all of the openings to avoid sunlight.

IN THE DARK

Joe completely changed his lifestyle to try and spend as much time as possible with Peach, but things got challenging as they needed a lot of errands that involved life outdoors.

Finding a medical expert on her condition outside the state wasn’t as easy as they thought, either. Peach had to keep up with her life of darkness for an extended period and often complained:

“I hate this! I feel completely useless and absent from everything that it’s as good as being dead.”

Given that she could not support any work that involved a computer or going to the office daily, Joe had to pull more strings to keep them afloat. As a result, he did many overtime hours and signed up for a second job.

MAKING ENDS MEET

He was pretty much around the clock daily, except for the weekends where he got to spend some time at home with his wife. Despite that, it was still a challenge since many of their activities are limited indoors, with very minimal light involved.

She could not wrap her head around the fact that there was a possible course of action that could bring her back to her extreme life outdoors.

Peach’s condition improved through the following months. She was able to stay outdoors during sundown when the sunlight was no longer at its peak. She also managed to enjoy the sunrise, but only for a few minutes. Anything beyond that would cause damage to her skin.

Peach’s altered universe was nearing a gruesome total of two years. The husband and wife were losing hope of finding a medical expert who knew about her condition and could offer a cure.

GLIMMER OF HOPE

But just when all seemed lost, Joe received a message from one of his co-workers, Robert, who referred an acquaintance who exhibited the same symptoms as Peach. Joe’s colleague highlighted that his friend was receiving treatment from a medical expert in India.

Peach and Joe immediately reached out to Robert’s friend, and to their absolute surprise, the case was almost identical to that of Peach’s. It then came to their attention that there is currently no cure for the complications being experienced by Peach.

It is a rare condition that stems out of abnormal genes. Fortunately, there have been ongoing trials for potential cures. Peach traveled to India with Joe, where she was scheduled for testing to fit the trial requirements.

She was overwhelmed by the sudden glimmer of hope. She could not wrap her head around the fact that there was a possible course of action that could bring her back to her extreme life outdoors.

Do you think that there will soon be a cure for Peach’s disease? For another story of hope, read about what happened to a teen abandoned by his mother for another man.