- 10 hours ago
Discover the extraordinary resilience of Caroline Cray, a 26-year-old navigating life with a life-threatening condition that severely limits her diet and environment. She manages severe allergies to common allergens, forcing her to rely on a restricted diet of oats and specialized formula to avoid anaphylaxis. Her home has become a meticulously controlled safe zone, requiring constant vigilance and extensive precautions for anyone entering.
Caroline also lives with Epidermolysis Bullosa (EB), a rare and painful skin disorder causing extremely fragile skin that blisters and wounds from minimal friction. This condition necessitates hours of daily wound care, making even simple activities a significant challenge. Her journey showcases immense strength and determination, having overcome a near-fatal allergic reaction and defying medical predictions of a limited lifespan.
This episode delves into the daily realities of living with these complex medical conditions, highlighting the physical and emotional toll, the impact on family, and Caroline's unwavering resolve to embrace life and push beyond her comfort zone. Witness her extraordinary courage as she confronts daily challenges and inspires with her spirit.
#LifeWithEB #SevereAllergies #RareDisease
Caroline also lives with Epidermolysis Bullosa (EB), a rare and painful skin disorder causing extremely fragile skin that blisters and wounds from minimal friction. This condition necessitates hours of daily wound care, making even simple activities a significant challenge. Her journey showcases immense strength and determination, having overcome a near-fatal allergic reaction and defying medical predictions of a limited lifespan.
This episode delves into the daily realities of living with these complex medical conditions, highlighting the physical and emotional toll, the impact on family, and Caroline's unwavering resolve to embrace life and push beyond her comfort zone. Witness her extraordinary courage as she confronts daily challenges and inspires with her spirit.
#LifeWithEB #SevereAllergies #RareDisease
Category
🎥
Short filmTranscript
00:00Blisters of skin are very fragile and delicate and I get open wounds and blisters from very
00:06minimal friction. Unfortunately, this condition is deadly and life-threatening.
00:15Hi, I'm the girl that can only eat two foods. My name is Caroline Cray. I'm 26 years old.
00:23I'm super allergic to dogs, cats, fur, dander, dust, mold, pollen, certain fabrics, feathers.
00:34I have to filter all my water before I drink it. So pretty much I can't eat anything except for
00:42oats and hypoallergenic formula. It's just something I have to do to not go into anaphylaxis and to not die.
00:51I still live with my parents and my house has definitely turned into my safety bubble.
01:05Morning. I'm in Boston. I'm going to be shooting with Caroline today. The clothes that we've had to
01:12to bring with us have had to be vacuum packs. So vacuum packs close all the way from the UK.
01:19No allergens in there. Out of sort of 20 years or so of filming, I don't think I've ever
01:24had to think about this sort of stuff before. So yeah, this is going to be an interesting experience
01:29and we've got to start trying to stay safe for us and for Caroline.
01:39We're here. We've arrived. Look at all that snow.
01:48I'm just going to sanitize all of our kit.
01:54One for you.
02:00Let's go. I have to be super careful about what I'm exposing myself to in terms of my food
02:07and my environment. Hello.
02:14Should I clap? Yes, please.
02:17I work remotely, so I just have to walk downstairs.
02:22This house had to become a safe zone and everybody coming into this house had to be safe.
02:30It's impacted my family. I felt bad. I felt like a burden.
02:34We had to remove all of the cleaning supplies or all of the shampoos or the soaps. We put filter
02:40systems in the house that cleans as the air goes through the vents. Her whole entire life changed.
02:46Her freedom was stripped from her.
02:49I was born totally healthy. I lived a very normal life.
02:55Caroline was always a little ball of energy. She was a little spitfire.
03:02She used to love food. She used to love making food. We found out she was allergic to a lot
03:08of
03:08things when she was little. And as I grew up, I outgrew a lot of allergies.
03:13For such a long time, she lived a fairly normal life. And then when she went to college,
03:19everything took a turn for the worse.
03:23After having an anaphylactic reaction when I was 18 years old to nuts, it progressed into
03:30mass selectivation syndrome. It spiraled into reacting to more and more things until
03:35the most severe cases, it manifests as anaphylaxis. My throat closes, my airways shut down,
03:52my blood pressure drops, and I basically start dying.
03:58When you are going into anaphylaxis, it's the worst feeling that I've ever experienced.
04:11She was near death several times. It was like this pit in my stomach. And every phone call that came,
04:19you're like, please don't be dying. It's that scary. You really think that. By the time you get there,
04:27she might not be breathing. It's horrifying.
04:33I just woke up from like a 20-minute nap. My lungs still feel tight. My throat feels sore, but
04:43I feel like the reaction has passed, which is good. It breaks my heart. It's not fair.
04:49She has so much life to live, and she still does it.
04:55Managing my fear has been one of the hardest things up to this point, but I'm determined to
05:01not let my life-threatening allergies get in my way. I want to push myself out of my comfort zone
05:07and to
05:08take careful risks.
05:15I'm going out tonight with friends. When I'm in the house, it's a safe space. But if I leave the
05:23house,
05:23I'm always thinking about risk. Seconds matter for my reactions.
05:40First, I wanted to clarify that I was not burned. I know my appearance may cause that assumption.
05:50I was born with a rare skin disorder called epidermolysis bullosa.
06:03My layers of skin are very fragile and delicate, and I get open wounds and blisters from very minimal friction
06:12and just daily activities.
06:16Every day that I wake up, I really don't know what my day is going to be like. Even sleeping
06:22can be
06:22very traumatic on my skin. So sometimes I'll wake up with my ear being stuck to my pillow because
06:30the whole skin will come off, or I'll get blisters on my shoulders from just like laying down.
06:41This is what it's like to live with epidermolysis bullosa. This is what it's like to live with
06:46open wounds in most of your body. This is my room. Definitely spend a lot of time in bed or
06:55just in
06:55my room. You'll find the good and the bad here. I could definitely own like a little drugstore,
07:00anger and pain, if your head hurts, if you're having a little stomach ache. You let me know what you're
07:05feeling like today, and I'll do my best to offer you many, many little things that I got here.
07:13I use hundreds of layers and different types of bandages. Seeing as there's no treatment,
07:19bandages is the only way we can cope.
07:25So every other day I have to change the bandages of my body. Usually the process is from four to
07:31six
07:32hours, but then of course I have to do my hair, put on clothing, lotion, what the typical person does,
07:38but everything is very exhausting by that point.
07:49I was given one year to live. One year. Today I graduated from university. God wanted me here
07:5721 years later to achieve this. Unreal. Growing up with EB was very, very difficult. The bullying
08:07from other kids and just the pain and not being able to do the things that other kids were doing.
08:13So I had to be at the doctor's or stay resting at home. So it was definitely very isolating.
08:20It was hard for me to gain friendships. But I think as of growing up, my friends are what keep
08:27me going
08:27and a big part of my support system. When I first met Ariana, it was like any other person. She
08:35sat
08:35next to me and I sat next to her and we just started talking about anything we were going through
08:40at
08:40school. She just treated me like any other person. I mean, she never really asked any questions or I
08:46never really felt like she was staring at me or looking at me weird. So yeah, we stayed in touch
08:52all these years. I'm always thinking about her, like how she is and stuff. I do get worried. Yeah,
08:59especially after she told me she had sepsis.
09:05One of the reasons why EB is deadly is because many folks with this condition become septic. From
09:15something that started as a wound infection.
09:24It was scary because it was an infection in my bloodstream, which is, of course, very severe
09:31and very serious because it could either go worse or get better in a matter of hours.
09:41She's in and out of the hospital. Sometimes I'll notice she's MIA on social media and that she might
09:47be quite literally fighting for her life. It's not just a surface level skin condition that it affects
09:55her organs and the way she eats and the way she does daily routine, but there's no cure.
10:10I think social media has given Alize a way for him to express himself for them times that people
10:20don't understand him.
10:35You ready now?
10:39Okay, I'm ready. I'm here to Alize a problem on Plain Plain Hill and that's what you said. It's called
10:53Sip The Head Wilmer because I'm a tumor on Plain Plain Hill. I have this big idea that I believe
11:01wasn't really the notion that I have to attract a little bit. It's how I feel I'm talking to me
11:08when I remember myself because I'm writing. I know it's very important because it's so cute
11:18because if you know you have a certain thing, you would want to learn the best anytime you can walk
11:23out the door in the state. I've got my first tattoo, but I was 19 with girls.
11:29And so I like to Mama Mary to translate into 19. We got the angel leads.
11:39Our mother said that he died on the table and they revived him and that the doctors had told her
11:49that there was a chance he wouldn't make it, but she decided to keep him going and keep him alive
11:58because she had faith in him.
12:01I look like a miracle baby because I got bleeding. I'm trying to take it because I cannot bleed out
12:09of my mouth or no.
12:19I'm going to take it because of the day that I'm dying. I'm going to take it because I got
12:23a little
12:24sensitive to me because I put a hole in my neck and needed to bleed. So like the hole is
12:31basically a
12:34sensible treatment that they did to me when I was bleeding. This is actually right here.
12:41It is a good feeling.
12:51When it comes to beat, my tone is not like everybody else.
12:58Actually not get the L, actually not with the L, or nothing like that.
13:03Sometimes it's a little bit complicated to beat, clearly.
13:07What's up, and I am your team ladies in the L, and I am very surprised to you.
13:13It's me again, and again, and again, and again.
13:17My tradition is that me daily.
13:20You know, I'm a little bit funny, so I made it too different.
13:24Grab some ice cream for sure.
13:27Hey, you're up.
13:29Cool part two.
13:30Um, I'm no, sorry.
13:33Oh no, what's up?
13:35I do have to repeat my sound with your words, because people are having a challenging time
13:41to understand what I'm saying.
13:43The ice cream's not good!
13:59The ice cream's not good!
14:01I mean, that's good.
14:02No, I'm not good.
14:02You know, it would always hurt.
14:06It was like dealing with people comping you as little kid.
14:10We'll always laugh or tear from me, like I'm not good, or something.
14:24I think social media has given Alizé a way for him to express himself
14:31for them times that people don't understand him.
14:47Alizé has kind of had to grow a thick skin.
14:57He had had an issue with, like, some bullying online.
15:02If I see, like, a major comment, you know, how human is,
15:06it just kind of aggravates me, you know, a little bit.
15:12I had to break my fears.
15:16I want to try to do public speaking, you know, on social media.
15:22I never really thought that.
15:24I'm kind of like a shy person.
15:27I want to get out there and, like, use my voice, my actual voice.
15:38I want to say that it's a little bit of nerve-wracking.
15:42I want people to understand me.
15:46Hi, I'm Julia.
15:48Hi, how are you doing?
15:49Hi, nice to meet you. Come on in.
15:51Have you ever given a speech in front of people before?
15:54Uh-huh, yeah.
15:55How are you feeling about it?
15:58I'm really moving.
16:06I've been eating oats and formula three times a day for seven years.
16:11I get through four pounds of oats in a week,
16:15about six or seven cans of formula.
16:19And I have had enough.
16:21It makes me nervous to be around people who are eating something I'm allergic to.
16:25I could go into anaphylaxis at any point.
16:27We're going to make some lunch.
16:29I'll probably make pancakes.
16:31So I have my own dedicated cabinet drawer.
16:34This is my prep area.
16:35I keep it very clean.
16:37I wash my dishes separately.
16:39This is my separate dishware.
16:46While those cook, I'm going to help you out.
16:49We're going to make some for Ryan, too.
16:51Okay.
16:52He'll be here soon.
16:54Get in here.
16:55Oh, sorry.
16:59Caroline and I have been dating for about a year and a half now.
17:03When I know I'm going to go see Caroline two days before,
17:05I just make sure I avoid all the foods that she's allergic to.
17:10I need to think about my meals and make sure that I don't eat three hours before then.
17:15I need to make sure that my clothes are completely clean
17:17and that I brush my teeth and that I mouthwash.
17:21When we were first starting our relationship,
17:24I definitely had a fear that something that I would bring in
17:27could cause a life-threatening reaction.
17:30I was extremely nervous that one kiss would send her to the hospital.
17:35Yes, he does have to follow some rules prior to kissing me.
17:40Hello.
17:40Hey.
17:41How are you?
17:42Good.
17:43How are you?
17:43Good to see you.
17:44Well, me and my mom made lunch.
17:46How are you?
17:47Good to see you.
17:48This is exactly how it started when you guys met.
17:50It was the three of us.
17:52I just remember being on the back of the ferry with Caroline
17:55and I just had to drum up conversation with them.
17:59And then I was like, this is Caroline.
18:03Carried on from there.
18:05Great wing woman.
18:06No, we'd have to wait three hours from the time that I take my last bite
18:08in order for us to kiss again.
18:10Well, hope it's good because that's three hours to...
18:13I hope it's worth it.
18:18Usually Ryan just eats my food if he wants to kiss me right after.
18:22Ryan, that is so sweet.
18:24It really is.
18:26It means the world that Ryan takes all these precautions
18:29and is so careful and cares so much about my health.
18:34Ha ha ha!
18:40So I've bought a camper van.
18:42I call her Hippo.
18:44The idea is that this is my safe bubble.
18:46You can go to places I haven't been before.
18:48So I stripped it down bare, completely cleaned it,
18:51and made sure that there was nothing that could trigger me.
18:54The rules are going to be strict for the van.
18:56Same as the house.
18:57Nobody comes in here unless they have clean clothes,
19:01they've freshly showered,
19:02and they haven't eaten any of my airborne allergens.
19:06This is opening my world up so much,
19:08and I'm really excited for it.
19:10I think that fear can isolate me,
19:14but I refuse to let my allergies stop me
19:18from living a full and happy life.
19:29So I'm grabbing lunch with my friends today,
19:32but that means I need to bring my own food.
19:35So we're going to make oat waffles with formula syrup.
19:38Part of tackling the fear is also preparation.
19:43Perfect.
19:44I mean, that looks pretty good.
19:48Does the camera crew want some?
19:50All right, let's try.
19:51Okay, great.
19:54Mmm.
19:55Are you ready to have the most beige meal of your entire life?
20:07Oh, it's pretty dense, isn't it?
20:10Okay.
20:13It's got a nice crunchy outside, right?
20:17Mmm.
20:18Yeah.
20:19It's kind of more savory.
20:21Yeah.
20:22It's more savory than I thought.
20:23That's probably because I added too much salt.
20:25Yeah.
20:26I don't have anything else to flavor.
20:28I just imagine that would push everything down.
20:33We are packing this up.
20:35I'm going to bring a disposable fork.
20:38There's a risk with using the communal utensils at the restaurant.
20:41It's just not safe, and I'm not willing to risk it.
20:43I guess the biggest fear is to be back in the ICU.
20:46I'm always living in fear of anaphylaxis,
20:49of simply not being able to breathe.
20:51You are actively dying.
20:55Everyone says, oh, love will come when you least expect it,
21:02until you have a body that makes you feel like you're running out of time.
21:13I wish I could go out more with friends.
21:16I tried to push the pain for the pleasure.
21:19Got to live.
21:20Yeah, I got to live, and at the end of the day, I'm still 26.
21:24I'm still a woman.
21:25I still like to go out and just enjoy life in general,
21:28just like anyone else.
21:30I am very protective over her,
21:32so whenever I'm with her, I just tell everybody,
21:34excuse me, excuse me,
21:35because they don't always see her.
21:36They're not always paying attention.
21:39I'm currently getting ready for a quick brunch with some of my friends,
21:42and I'm just finishing some of my makeup routine.
21:46Obviously, I still have EB on my face.
21:49I have it everywhere.
21:50But despite that, I'm able to use all types of beauty products,
21:55and I'm very grateful for that.
21:57Usually, to get ready whenever I need to go out,
22:01it's a very tiring process.
22:10Some of my fears or worries when I go out would be just being bumped into,
22:17like the risk of blisters or getting open wounds,
22:20and people don't know that they may be around someone that's very fragile.
22:24So it's something to worry about when I go out.
22:26Let me help you with this.
22:28We should all get, like, a drink or something.
22:30Yeah, you want to drink more than you do?
22:33Well, it's hot when you're gonna cool off.
22:43There was a summer, like, three summers ago,
22:45and we were supposed to hang out,
22:47and she cancelled because she got sepsis.
22:50Mm-hmm.
22:56Because of EB, we get blisters internally,
22:59and which results to the esophagus becoming very narrow and closed,
23:04and so they do a procedure that's called esophageal dilation.
23:12Unfortunately, it didn't go as planned.
23:15They did some blood work, and they showed that I had sepsis.
23:19I was in the ICU.
23:21It was a very scary time for me and my family.
23:32Hey.
23:34Hey, bestie.
23:36Oh, my gosh.
23:37You look great.
23:39You look so beautiful.
23:41That red on you.
23:43Hey.
23:44Hey.
23:44And you're a hug.
23:46There you go.
23:48Friendships is something that can be very difficult with EB.
23:53Sometimes the individual may not be comfortable
23:55with the idea of being around someone that's so fragile,
23:58and yes, I have a condition,
23:59but at the end of the day, I'm still a woman.
24:01I still, like, enjoy dating, talking to men.
24:04No, but I miss it.
24:05Yeah, of course.
24:06Yeah, the social life.
24:07Because now it's like, what?
24:08I'm just at home.
24:10It's like talking to people.
24:11The boys, I can't lie.
24:12The what?
24:13The boys, but, yeah.
24:14Ooh, boys, you say?
24:16But what's going on with that right now?
24:18Nothing serious.
24:19I think at the beginning, it goes all, like, cool and whatever,
24:22but then I think once they, like, realize how, like,
24:26serious my lifestyle can be, they're like,
24:29like, you know, which I get it.
24:31Like, even for myself, like, I want out.
24:34I'm like, where's the quit button?
24:35Yeah.
24:36Yeah.
24:37Oh, that's for me.
24:38Ooh.
24:39Toast to Ari.
24:41Thanks for making it out today.
24:43Aw.
24:43Thanks for being friends with us.
24:45Aw.
24:45Thank you for being such a great friend.
24:47I hear you.
24:52The activities that I really love can be frustrating.
24:56Coming to, like, restaurants and stuff,
24:57sometimes, like, too hard or too painful or something.
25:00Like, I never know, you know, like, what's impacting me.
25:03My body tends to often control my life
25:06and control what I do and don't do.
25:15Well, I'm just going to speak to my project really quick.
25:19It's a little bit nerve-wracking, sorry.
25:22I'm hoping that it can learn how to be more confident
25:25and not myself by using my voice.
25:31So you are here to practice your speech
25:34and gain some techniques and some tools
25:37and hopefully feel a little bit more confident
25:39about projecting and breath control
25:43and articulation.
25:45Sound like a good plan?
25:47Yeah, absolutely.
25:52We're going to go into some breathing techniques.
25:55So we're going to breathe our shoulders up to our ears
25:58and then roll them back and drop them down on the exhale.
26:02Beautiful.
26:03Good.
26:04How does that feel?
26:05Yeah, I'm a lot of good.
26:07Yeah, good.
26:09So we're going to connect our breath to sound,
26:11just kind of, like, exercising the kind of mechanisms
26:15that are responsible for articulation.
26:17So let's take a deep breath in.
26:20Me.
26:22Me.
26:23Good.
26:23My turn.
26:25May.
26:28May.
26:29Beautiful.
26:31What I sometimes like to do when I perform
26:32is just say a little mantra.
26:34So I breathe in and I think I am calm
26:38and I breathe out and I say, I am confident.
26:43I'm calm.
26:49I'm calm.
26:51Yeah.
26:52I'm very confident.
26:54Yeah, good.
26:55So simple, but it's so effective.
26:57Would you be up for standing up
27:00and trying to speak something out loud?
27:04Yeah.
27:04Just, like, practice?
27:05So we're not rushing.
27:07We're going to take in our time.
27:08We're remembering those deep breaths.
27:10Mm-hmm.
27:10Mm-hmm.
27:12You're paralyzed now.
27:13I'm going to let you feel it.
27:15Yeah, just like that.
27:17It did me so really good advice
27:20about, you know, taking my time
27:22slowly down on my top and pain.
27:35Yeah, it's been a pleasure.
27:37Sure.
27:39I'm so much.
27:40Yeah.
27:41We'll walk this way.
27:43Mm-hmm.
27:43Yeah.
27:44He spoke today about facing fears,
27:47so I believe if he takes these risks
27:49and he's just going to continue to gain confidence
27:51and it's a beautiful thing.
28:06All that anger.
28:08Oh.
28:09Oh.
28:13I'm calm.
28:16I'm calm.
28:19Some more drinks.
28:21We can.
28:21I don't know.
28:36I've worked really hard on expanding my life and doing more things.
28:40Fear could have, you know, kept me as the girl in the bubble.
28:44So if I leave the house, we have my big fat medical bag.
28:48And if you start going into anaphylaxis, take one of these EpiPens and stab yourself in the thigh.
28:55Because it opens up your airways and it gives you at least 15 minutes of life.
28:59And I carry four. It gives me an hour to get to the hospital.
29:07I'm going out to lunch with my friends.
29:11It's important for me to push myself to do things a little bit out of my comfort zone,
29:14even if it is a bit of a risk to my life.
29:18How are you?
29:19Okay, so looking at the menu.
29:20Yes.
29:20You guys know the drill.
29:21Yes, ma'am.
29:22So take a look. Let me know what you guys want to get and then I can sign off on
29:26it.
29:27There's always fear and anxiety when I go into a restaurant.
29:30I can't be sure that I won't react.
29:31...
29:44...
29:45...
29:45...
29:47...
30:12I've never seen Alizé do a speech before like we did today.
30:15I could tell he was a little nervous, but he gathered himself, he was able to compose himself,
30:20and really come together.
30:30I am so proud of Alizé and seeing how confident he is and just being more in tune with himself.
30:47Alizé, I'm happy that y'all looked up to me, you might be a clown every day.
30:54Can I sit first, my role model, my hero, and my number one amazing favorite person in my life.
31:06I'm not doing something like that.
31:15I think he did a wonderful job of speaking from the heart to everybody and to me, so I'm very
31:24proud of him.
31:28Alizé's speech was heartwarming.
31:30It's nice to know how all of us have played a part in his life in different ways.
31:35I feel late.
31:38I feel like I said, the tool that I met Julia, um, helped me with.
31:44It really helped.
32:06I feel like we've never had an issue where it's like, only, you really want to finish.
32:14It's because I'm only friends with people who don't eat my allergies.
32:17Exactly.
32:19Everybody that I see has to put in effort and forethought before they see me.
32:23And I know that's, like, an emotional tax, you know?
32:27That used to really upset me.
32:29I used to have been to a restaurant.
32:30There's a danger aspect, but obviously, you know, like, everyone's careful and, you know, we're aware of it.
32:35It's just like having a normal friend, and I feel like I don't think about it that much because we've
32:39been friends for so long.
32:41Yeah, fresh guys, any questions?
32:43Um, yeah, we were thinking the potato gnocchi.
32:46So, we were doing four of them?
32:48Uh, no.
32:49I have a ton of allergies.
32:50No worries.
32:51You might have bought bread from the table, or?
32:53I think we'll skip it because they'll have to check all the ingredients for that.
32:56Yeah.
32:57If that's right.
32:59She has her challenges.
33:01There's a little bit more to consider, but she has such a great time.
33:04And, honestly, her condition is, and her allergies are such a small part of who she is.
33:10You guys have never ever made me feel like it's been an issue.
33:13I think I just personally, like, assume.
33:16I get why you would feel like it's been a transition, but it's really not.
33:19Yeah.
33:20Like, I'm really like twice about it.
33:21Yeah.
33:22That's really, really sweet.
33:23Very lucky to have you guys.
33:25That's illegal soup.
33:27Oh, thank you.
33:28Oh, yum.
33:29That smells so good.
33:30That smells really good.
33:31Wait, so what's on the menu for you today?
33:32We have oat waffles, and then I have the formula powder, and I'll add a little bit of water,
33:39and then I'll make it like a syrup, if that makes sense.
33:41Mm-hmm.
33:42Caroline has the best attitude out of anyone I've ever met.
33:45I know she struggles internally with it a lot, but she doesn't let that show.
33:48She'll know.
33:50So I think it's important that I include myself in those spaces, even if I'm not participating
33:54in eating or drinking.
33:57And those little moments of pain are overshadowed completely by the laughs and the memories and,
34:05you know, the good times.
34:07Right.
34:07The goal is to get off oats and the formula, because I don't want to be eating that for
34:13the rest of my life.
34:15I am hoping to try lots of foods, and I am so excited to see what works.
34:31Thank you for being such a great friend.
34:35Oh, thank you.
34:36You know, in recent years, I've always tried my best to, like, you know, I guess, share
34:41awareness or, like, you know, how to improve your self-esteem or self-confidence.
34:47And so I want to do it for the younger generation, because I was once that person, too.
34:56You guys, I'll never not hate my body.
34:58And if I had the ideal body, not the lean out of most of my body parts, I could do
35:06these
35:06outfits would be bomb.
35:09Cherish the body.
35:11Trust me.
35:11Cherish it.
35:12Try to incorporate more, like, photo shoots where I, like, show, like, my scars and my medical
35:17devices and just how I look in hopes that, like, people accept themselves.
35:24And a lot of healthy people take things for granted.
35:28I think having ED has taught me that the smallest things are what mostly matter in life.
35:36Yeah, I just really appreciate you guys, like, always supporting me.
35:39You know, I always grew up pretty isolated, and I never really envisioned having friends.
35:44Oh my god, don't cry.
35:45I'm sorry.
35:46I'm getting teared.
35:47No, we're not crying.
35:48I'm sorry.
35:48I'm excited for, like, more memories.
35:51Ten more years of friendship.
35:52I know, ten more years.
36:05I would say that my story is, I guess, an example that you are able to conquer a lot
36:12of things even when challenges are put against you constantly.
36:15All right, and your girl is ready.
36:18All right, now, wish me luck.
36:20It's kind of hard to see myself as a fighter sometimes, but I know I can be, or that I
36:26am.
36:37It's my friend, Alexei.
36:38Everybody keeps asking me what's wrong with his mouth and all that.
36:41Alexei is going to talk to y'all about it.
36:47Thanks a lot for Alexei, y'all.
36:50Hey, how y'all doing?
36:53I just want to come up here right quick and say that, you know, bullying is not okay.
36:58You know, it still hurts.
37:00And then when you say why, I know you're going to try to be bullied a lot.
37:05You know, you are your own person, and you have to show people that you won't give up.
37:10What does it tell you that you won't give up?
37:27So now that I've been stable for several years and I haven't been in the hospital,
37:31me and my doctors have decided that it's a good time for me to expand my diet.
37:34So I am food trial and carrots.
37:37I've been craving them and I think that's a good sign.
37:42A little tiny piece.
37:47And now I wait by 10, 15 minutes to see those reactions.
37:54It is a very long process.
37:56It's very tedious and it takes a lot of patience.
38:00If I have a pre-anaphylactic symptom, we have to stop the food trial.
38:06It's been about 10 minutes and I feel perfectly fine, so that's good.
38:10I'm afraid to hope for too much, but I really, really hope that we can get this under control
38:13and she can start to live a normal life.
38:16Yeah.
38:17It's been about an hour and I feel good, so yay!
38:27Cut to perfection.
38:31It has gone very well.
38:34I'm just like honestly savoring the flavor and thinking about how far I've come.
38:39It's taken almost a year to get to these chunks, but I think it's definitely been worth it.
38:48It's going to be so rewarding when I can finally fully incorporate it into my diet.
38:52I'm so excited to see what else works.
38:54I have so much hope for where I'm going health-wise.
38:58Hope is the reason why I kept dating.
39:02Hope is the reason why I finished school.
39:04I think hope and optimism is some of my superpowers.
39:09Bye!
Comments