Rebecca, mother to several young children, had not noticed anything wrong with her children until she took them to the doctor for a routine exam. The pediatrician performed a blood lead levels exam and found that her two children, Olivia and Taylor were lead poisoned. She had observed no symptoms of this in Olivia, and she had noticed Taylor was behaving more hyperactively, but she had not attributed it to lead poisoning.
The children were poisoned from the lead dust in and around their home, in the dirt in the yard and the dust on their windowsills. The children would put their hands in the dirt when playing outside, or touch the windowsills as they looked outside. And from the normal childhood process of putting their hands in their mouths the children became lead poisoned.
After Rebecca found out she called everyone she could to try to get information and help with her lead poisoned house and children. From HUD, to national organizations, to the city, to the health department, Rebecca called everyone she could. She found that the pediatrician and the city not helpful. But, thankfully, the parent support group in her area, as well as a national lead hotline and an area midwife have been very helpful to Rebecca.
When Rebecca learned of the lead poisoning of her two very young children she was understandably very upset. She felt panicky, nervous, guilty, and angry. She felt that she could not get straight answers from people who were supposed to be helpful, and she felt ashamed of her house. The situation was also stressful for Rebecca financially. She had to take a second mortgage, which has left the young family struggling to make ends meet.
She now feels adamantly that parents need to always get their children tested for lead poisoning, and to just assume that they are at-risk, instead of the other way around. She also feels that lead screenings should automatically be included in well-child exams as well. Her plea to civic, governmental, and business leaders is that they have a responsibility to the people to help get information to parents and the general public about lead hazards and lead poisoning.
Taylor has questionable behavior these days, still wrestling with hyperactive and angry tendencies. Rebecca’s hope for the future is that the city will become more involved and helpful in working to inform and support parents, and that her family can move beyond lead. She has some fears as well, she fears that her daughters life will be forever marred by lead poisoning, that she will be developmentally delayed because of the lead toxin which has affected her body.