Can you imagine being allergic to the sunlight or radiator heat?
Brianie Copeland, 17, from County Durham has multiple allergies which include bright light, pollen, manmade fibres, dust and many more. If she is exposed to any of the allergens, she suffers from severe eczema, dermatitis, arthritis and asthma.
The teenager has to apply cream two or three times a day and wear bandages every night to keep the cream on her skin. She also has to have a bath at least twice a day: “If I don't my skin cracks and dries out. It is really painful” – Brianie explained to the Daily Mail.
“People say to me if there was a cure would I take it but I don't think I would”
It might sound hardly possible that coming into contact with items such as cleaning products, make-up products and even the heat from the radiator could make the girl’s condition even worse.
As a result, the teenager is almost a prisoner in her own home as exposure to the outside world leaves her with blistered skin and painful rashes.
However, her life at home is also full of minefields; Eating is a careful procedure for Brianie as she is allergic to a lot of different food groups.
“I have to avoid certain foods such as dairy products, wheat, soya, nuts and oats,” she explains. “If I eat them, my throat starts to swell up and close. I also take ten tablets a day.”
“My brothers and sisters all help me. If we go out for a meal they always enquire about the ingredients and we avoid going anywhere where there is pollen.”
Thanks to her allergies, Brianie, who has three sisters and three brothers, is unable to lead a normal life and will never be able to wear make-up or get a tattoo or piercing.
The teenager’s body also takes twice as long to fight the illnesses and recover from injuries.
Even though there’s currently no cure for the rare condition, Brianie left school with excellent GCSE's and is now studying childcare at New College Durham in the hope of working with children with special needs.
“People say to me if there was a cure would I take it but I don't think I would” the brave teenager confesses. “Although it is hard sometimes, I like being different to everyone else. I wouldn't have it any other way.”
By Toma Sukyte - for Female First
Tagged in bizarre