Author: Rebecca Collinsworth

Biotoxin sensitivity can feel like you’re falling through the cracks of conventional medicine—living with symptoms that don’t respond to typical treatments, while being told everything looks normal. If you’ve ever wondered whether your body might be reacting to environmental toxins long before a formal diagnosis, you’re not alone—and there is a path to clarity.

This post explores the emerging science behind biotoxin sensitivity, including how early clues can show up in the body, the brain, and even your life history. You’ll learn how to assess your own patterns, what testing can reveal, and why some people—especially those with specific genetics—are more vulnerable than others. A printable self-reflection checklist is included to help you track what resonates and begin advocating for informed care.

What Is Biotoxin Sensitivity?

Biotoxins are harmful substances produced by biological organisms like mold, bacteria, algae, and certain parasites. When the immune system doesn’t recognize or clear these toxins properly, they can create a chronic, systemic inflammatory response. This is the foundation of what’s now called Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (CIRS).

People with biotoxin sensitivity often experience multi-system symptoms—brain fog, fatigue, body pain, digestive changes, anxiety, and more—that are hard to pinpoint on labs or imaging. Their illness may flare in specific environments or after stress, making it feel mysterious or psychosomatic to uninformed providers.

VCS Testing: A Non-Invasive Early Screening Tool

One of the earliest and most accessible tools to screen for biotoxin sensitivity is Visual Contrast Sensitivity (VCS) testing. This test measures your ability to detect subtle contrasts in light and shadow—something that gets disrupted when neuroinflammation affects the optic nerve or brain pathways. My VCS testing and full CIRS care are managed through Christian Medical Ministries, a provider experienced in the Shoemaker Protocol and supportive of biotoxin-aware healing.

Studies show that a failed VCS test is associated with a high probability of biotoxin-associated illness and can be used as part of a differential diagnosis when lab work is inconclusive.

• Shoemaker et al., demonstrated its relevance in identifying CIRS-related impairments (PMID: 26878761, Neurotoxicol Teratol., 2016)
• The test can be taken online through CIRS-aware organizations and repeated over time to monitor improvement.

Genetic Susceptibility: HLA-DR/DQ Markers

Not everyone exposed to mold or biotoxins gets sick. One major reason why? Genetics.

Certain HLA-DR and HLA-DQ alleles (human leukocyte antigen types) impair the immune system’s ability to recognize and clear biotoxins. This genetic blueprint creates what Shoemaker called the “immuno-compromised” responder: someone who becomes persistently ill even after exposure ends.

• Research confirms a strong correlation between specific HLA subtypes and inability to clear biotoxins (PMID: 30557014, Int Immunopharmacol., 2019)

While HLA typing isn’t a diagnosis in itself, it can explain why some people develop chronic symptoms from short or moderate exposures, while others recover easily.

The “Canary in the Coal Mine” Pattern

People who are biotoxin sensitive often describe themselves as being “too sensitive” for environments that others tolerate just fine. This isn’t fragility—it’s early warning.

Do you feel dizzy, nauseated, irritable, or exhausted in buildings with water damage, musty smells, or synthetic fragrances? Do you feel immediately unwell around air fresheners or heavy cleaning products? Do you bounce back quickly in fresh air, nature, or clean environments?

These lived patterns—often dismissed as overreaction—are among the most consistent clues of biotoxin sensitivity. This “canary” response is a valid and increasingly understood expression of how inflammation can manifest in real time.

Self-Reflection Checklist: Signs of Possible Biotoxin Sensitivity

Use the checklist below to reflect honestly and compassionately on your symptoms and life experiences. You don’t need to check every box—many people begin with just a few.

Environmental Sensitivity

• I feel worse in water-damaged or musty buildings.
• I have trouble with strong smells, fragrances, or cleaning chemicals.
• I feel physically better when I leave certain environments.
• I notice a relapse in symptoms when I return to the same environment.

Immune and Inflammatory Signs

• I have had repeated infections or unusual responses to antibiotics.
• I experience swelling, body aches, or inflammatory pain without a clear injury.
• My labs often show inflammation, but my doctors can’t explain it.

Neurological and Cognitive

• I have brain fog, trouble concentrating, or memory issues.
• I feel overwhelmed by light, sound, or motion in ways that weren’t true before.
• I sometimes feel disconnected or “off,” even when my vitals are normal.

Digestive and Hormonal

• I experience food intolerances or sensitivity to medications and supplements.
• I have unpredictable digestion or new-onset symptoms without a clear cause.
• I’ve had menstrual changes, adrenal fatigue, or thyroid dysfunction.

Mood and Nervous System

• I’ve developed anxiety, irritability, or depression without a clear trigger.
• My sleep is disrupted, even when I feel exhausted.
• I am hypervigilant, emotionally reactive, or sensitive to stress.

Personal and Family History

• I have a personal or family history of autoimmune illness.
• I have a history of trauma, toxic stress, or nervous system dysregulation.
• I have tested positive for HLA-DR or HLA-DQ genetic risk types.
• I have failed or borderline results on a Visual Contrast Sensitivity (VCS) test.

You’re Not Making This Up

Biotoxin sensitivity is real, and it’s measurable. You may not have a formal diagnosis yet, but your body is already communicating its truth. The good news? When we start to track symptoms, remove environmental burdens, and restore functional resilience, the body begins to heal.

If this post resonates with your experience, consider printing the checklist, tracking your symptoms over time, and reaching out to a provider trained in CIRS, environmental medicine, or functional neurology. You may also benefit from joining advocacy groups or support networks focused on mold illness and biotoxin exposure. If you’re feeling overwhelmed or unsure where to begin, I welcome you to schedule a one-on-one Zoom call with me. While I cannot diagnose or treat any condition, I’m here to listen, share helpful resources, and offer insight based on my own lived experience and ongoing recovery journey. Sometimes, having someone who understands makes all the difference.

You are not too sensitive. You are aware. And awareness is a strength.

I didn’t expect to become a case study in medical failure.
I didn’t expect to be hospitalized twice in one week.
I didn’t expect to explain my diagnosis—biotoxin illness, also known as Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (CIRS)—to a team of providers who had no framework for it, even with documentation in hand.

But here I am. And I’m no longer willing to stay quiet.

The Long Road to Diagnosis

My first known exposure to a biotoxin-contaminated environment began in August 2023. I knew something was wrong almost immediately—but I didn’t have the clinical diagnosis, and I’m not a doctor.

What I did have was professional experience working with clients who had been diagnosed with “mold sickness,” and I had already learned firsthand that I’m allergic to molds and mildews. So when symptoms began escalating, I didn’t dismiss them. I listened to my body. I tracked what changed. I avoided the exposure as much as I could, and I did everything I knew to stabilize.

I knew what was happening—and I could not find help through any agencies or organizations.
The health department had no answers. The housing system offered no protection. Medical providers waved away my concerns. The systems I turned to didn’t understand biotoxin illness—or chose not to recognize it.

In November 2023, I sustained a mild brain injury during a motor vehicle accident, adding a short-lived neurological complication to an already complex picture. That injury resolved fully by early 2024 with appropriate care.

From March through August 2024, I limited my time inside the contaminated apartment to a few hours a day. On August 1, 2024, my diagnosis of Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (CIRS) was confirmed through Shoemaker-aligned testing: positive VCS screening and high-risk environmental results on ERMI and HERTSMI-2. I began treatment immediately—without binders, due to lack of safe housing.

By August 31, I stopped entering the building entirely.

I followed the protocol as best I could.
I relied on my professional training, somatic awareness, and scientific evidence.
And still—I got sick again.

The Breaking Point

In February 2025, a re-exposure triggered a full-body inflammatory storm. Within days, I had bile disruptions, nausea, vagal suppression, dry mouth, and destabilizing fatigue. Then in late March, after attempting to resume limited professional activity, I experienced a neurological collapse—complete loss of coordination, cognitive function, and physical stability.

An ERCP confirmed ductal stones, which were removed, but I was discharged on oral antibiotics known to provoke inflammatory flares in CIRS patients. I followed the prescription. I stayed hydrated. I collapsed again three days later.

On readmission, I respectfully requested to remain for a few days to stabilize and re-evaluate a safer plan moving forward—whether that meant staying inpatient with continuous IV fluids, IV antibiotics, and oral hydration, or transitioning to an outpatient plan with daily IV fluids, oral antibiotics, and oral hydration.
I expressed clearly that inpatient care would be the least risky option based on my history and clinical presentation.

The team initially agreed. I improved.
I was receiving continuous IV fluids and IV antibiotics with full oral hydration—550 mL hourly—when I was notified of discharge less than 24 hours after admission.

This Is Why I’m Speaking Now

This post isn’t just my story—it’s a reflection of what happens when clinical frameworks fail to evolve alongside evidence, and when patient voice is sidelined in critical decision-making. My experience is not isolated. And as I continue to recover, I’ll continue to document, speak plainly, and advocate for systems that do better—for all of us.

When you hear the word biotoxin, most people think of food poisoning or a bad reaction to mold. But biotoxin illness—especially a condition known as Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (CIRS)—is something far more complex. It’s often invisible, deeply disruptive, and dangerously misunderstood.

This is the condition I live with. And while it’s shaped by science, my understanding of it has come through hard-won lived experience—after months of debilitating symptoms, misdirection, and a health system unprepared to deal with it.

What Is Biotoxin Illness?

Biotoxin illness is a multi-system, multi-symptom condition that develops in response to environmental toxins—particularly those from water-damaged buildings, certain bacteria, and other biological exposures. The impact is not limited to the lungs or skin; it’s systemic. It affects inflammation, detox pathways, neuroendocrine function, and cognitive performance.

People with genetic susceptibility (often related to HLA-DR/DQ gene expression) are unable to clear these toxins efficiently. As a result, the body remains in a chronic state of immune activation—even long after the exposure ends.

It’s Not Easily Seen on Labs

Standard labs often return “within normal range,” leaving patients feeling unseen and untreated. But CIRS has a distinct biomarker pattern when you know what to look for. Specialized labs such as MMP-9, C4a, TGF-β1, and a Visual Contrast Sensitivity (VCS) test begin to reveal the inflammatory picture that traditional panels miss.

This disconnect between subjective symptoms and objective validation is often what delays care.

Why I’m Speaking Up

I’ve been in the health and fitness space since 1994, always operating from an evidence-based, holistic approach. My practice bridges movement, manual therapy, and sustainable lifestyle design. Over the years, I’ve helped clients from all walks of life build strength, restore function, and take ownership of their health.

And then, in the middle of living what I teach, my body stopped responding. Despite everything I knew and practiced—clean nutrition, mobility work, lymphatic support, nervous system regulation—I declined. That’s the power of biotoxin illness. It bypasses “best practices” and creates dysfunction from the inside out.

The experience has challenged me. It’s also sharpened my voice. I’m no longer just a provider—I’m an advocate.

What You’ll Find in This Space

Here on RebeccaCollinsworth.com, under Professional Insights > Health Coaching > Biotoxin Illness, I’ll be sharing:

• Clear, accessible breakdowns of biotoxin science
• The labs, tools, and frameworks that helped me get answers
• Systems thinking for recovery—what works, what doesn’t, and why
• Resources to support patient advocacy and informed medical conversations
• Fully cited articles with PubMed IDs for all research references

Whether you’re navigating unexplained symptoms, supporting someone who is, or working in healthcare and want to better understand this illness—this space is for you.

I’m sharing my personal experience because I don’t want anyone else to lose a year of their life to confusion, dismissal, or silence.

You’re not imagining your symptoms. You’re not broken. You’re not alone.

Let’s begin.