From “Sports Goddess” to “Mold Goddess”
Toxic Mold Awareness Diana Meier’s journey from “Sports Goddess” to “Mold Goddess” Who would think a microscopic organism could make your whole life spin out of control? I’m 6′ 2″ and a former professional basketball player in Europe. Being athletic my whole life, with excellent health, I never could have imagined the journey I was about to embark on because of MOLD! From the moment I moved into a moldy Santa Monica apartment, I have never been sicker in my entire life. At the time, I was marketing my women’s sports TV show and training for a try-out with the WNBA. My entire body ached. My sinuses kept getting worse. After a few years in the apartment my ears had become so swollen I could barely hear! I kept telling myself, “There’s got to be an answer to all of this.” A little voice popped into my head, “Call the Gas Company.” Their carbon monoxide expert, Robin Dunn, explained it all. “I know what’s making you so sick.” I was listening with all ears but couldn’t believe him immediately when he said, “mold.” Under my one-story building, we saw this white chalky stuff. Robin said, “that’s it.” He told me it could take me a long time to recover and the landlord might not take me seriously. The landlord told me I was “crazy” — maybe I was allergic to my cat. One person said remove the carpet and I’d be done with the problem. I got even sicker. The mold spores got dispersed into the air when the carpet was removed. Our family doctor for 13 years wasn’t convinced it was mold. He told me to place petri dishes in my apartment and if anything grew on them he’d believe me. By the 2nd day mold grew in two of the dishes, in my bedroom and living room. Dr. Jorgensen finally put me on State Disability. Almost immediately I was challenged by the State.
Many of the doctors I saw didn’t have a clue how to help me, and thought I looked healthier than most of their patients. Hey, I’ve worked out most of my life, but even though I look like an Olympic Athlete, I sure didn’t feel like one! I decided to move since my landlord would not fix the problem properly. I had a difficult time finding a mold free apartment in the LA area due to the housing shortage and poorly maintained buildings. I questioned my new landlord about maintenance and asked if there was any mold at this apartment. I looked for leaky pipes or signs of water damage of any kind. I was bold enough even to look under the carpet. This small but safe apartment is where I have been healing. My twin sister Dawn & I started going to a wonderful support group called CEFCA, run by Pat Gurnick. Pat asked me if I could help others who came to the support group. She started sending me mold victims because I had become an expert by experience. On May 8th, 2001, Dawn and I were flown to Sacramento to testify on our experiences with toxic mold. Currently, there are four mold bills being considered by the California State Legislature. It will take a few years to get mold protection laws enacted, but help appears to be coming. I’d been known as the Sports Goddess with my women’s sports radio and TV shows, so why not now be the Mold Goddess?
I created the web site MoldGoddess.com to bring hope and help victims become survivors of mold. Dawn and I have been on a public awareness campaign to educate people about the health hazards of mold. We’d love to do the Oprah Winfrey Show and any other shows that really care about people. Email me at meierworld@earthlink.net. Dawn & I will be on Adelphia Cable (Ch. 77) July 16th at 7pm on “Changes” – Our show is called, “Mold Goddesses” – we tell our story and give tips. August 12th, I’ll be on Lifetime’s, “Strong Medicine” as the tallest female detective on TV. Co-incidentally our birthday’s on the 12th. I hope I can shoot some hoops by then!
Diana Meier wins our May 2000 Intention Story award. We intend that you like it as much as we did. I was chronically ill for almost 3 years and I decided to really set an intention and prayed to God, “Show Me.” Show Me (what’s making me sick). I prayed that all night and the next morning. I also agreed to “listen” to the answer.
The next day, a small voice came into my head and said, “Call the Gas Company and have them bring out their expert.” I had called the Gas Co. when I first moved in but decided to “just do it” since this could be the answer to my prayers. Heck, I was desperate and didn’t have any other leads. When the CO expert came I told him how sick I’d been and was desperate to figure out what could be making me so sick when the doctors had come up with nothing.
After a few minutes in my apartment he looked at me and said, “I know what’s making you so sick.” I was listening with all ears (pretty swollen)! He said, “It’s mold.” I said, “MOLD”? His eyes had become a bit watery and his throat was scratchy and he said he was having a mold reaction in my apartment. He then showed me where it was coming from (under the building). It was in the floor boards. He said it was microscopic and that it could make me this sick. He then told me that I’d probably have to move because the landlord would not fix it “properly” to a standard to my health. He was right, I did have to move.