The Illness: My allergies seemed to come on very sudden. I would be fine in the morning and then by the afternoon I was so ill that I was put in the hospital with pneumonia. The first time this happened was when we were on vacation in New York. I was a very healthy person and had not even been to a Doctor in quite a long time. That morning all was fine. We were going on tours and having a great time. Then that evening on the way back to the hotel I started feeling very strange. By the time we arrived at the hotel I just wanted to go to bed. A couple of hours later I woke up and told my husband that I thought maybe we should go back to the hospital. You can't imagine the shocked reaction that I had! We took a taxi (and that was a real experience on its own) to the hospital. There was more blood and police than there were Doctors! After being checked the Doctor asked me how long I had been sick. I told him that it was since that afternoon. He could not believe that anyone could be that bad in just a few hours. He wanted me to be put in the hospital immediately. I chose to fly back to Indiana and went to the hospital at home. That was the beginning of my many hospital stays.

The Searching: This went on for a few years. No one could find out what the problem was. The only treatment that would help at all would be IV's of antibiotics. Most of my hospital stays are from 5-8 days. I knew that to be on antibiotics so much was not good. It didn't take long and the scars were showing up on the X-rays of my lungs from having the pneumonia so often. They did constant blood tests to try to find out the cause and came up with noting. After several severe bouts of pneumonia I lost my sense of smell.

The pain of trying to breathe was so intense that a few times I prayed to just stop breathing. I just wanted it to be over.

I went to an allergist for testing. We did find out that I did not have asthma. That was about all we found out. Still no answers. Then one day quite by accident we found out a possible cause. We were with a group of people and one of the young girls had just put on perfume. When she came back and sat behind me, the coughing, wheezing and shortness of breath started! It was so bad that we had to go to the emergency room. That was the first time we could ever put something with the start of the problem. Then my husband would notice that whenever I was around perfume or after-shave or other scents the reactions would start. Since I had lost my scents of smell, due to severe pneumonia so many times, I could not tell when people had on smells. The allergy got so bad that I was housebound for almost 4 years. I could not be around people or go shopping or anything. I could not go to the grocery store unless I would go around 2 A.M. There were no people out at that time and it was safer. I would only go to the store once every 3 months or so. Even then there were several isles that I could not go down at all.

During this time at home I had lots of time to get information off the Internet. I was a people person and just did not want to live the rest of my life as a hermit. There had to be something out there and all I had to do was find it. I then came across the information about NAET. It did sound strange, but then again it was new and different. The more I found out about this treatment the more encouraged I became. The came the challenge of finding someone that could do the treatment. That was almost as hard as finding the information. I found a Doctor in Indiana who was an anesthesiologist and did acupuncture. I went to him a few times and did get a lot of relief. Then we moved to Florida from Indiana and the hunt was on again.

The Miracle: This is the time that Rusty Gaffney came into my life. I was getting so discouraged since I just could not seem to find anyone that I felt could do a good job. I had called several people that did acupuncture, but just did not feel confident in their method of treatment. After talking with Rusty I knew that she had that special gift. There was a real difference about her and her way of dealing with people. She also worked with the Bio-set which I did not know about. I first went to her on April 3, 2002. That was the day that my life changed! She did the testing and found so many things that I was allergic to. I had no idea! The computer then tells the top 10 problems. With me the first 3 were allergies! No wonder I was having such a problem.

The Treatment: I had treatments with Rusty for 2 months. The change in my life is nothing short of incredible. All of the allergies have been cleared and I once again have a life! I have been able to go shopping and am actually regaining my sense of smell again. It is so nice to be able to smell the flowers and to be able to be outside and working in them again. We can now go out to a restaurant for dinner and be able to stay and enjoy the meal. I can go to the Kingdom Hall again and associate with the people. It is such a wonderful thing to be able to be around people once more.

A couple of months ago I had to fly to Indiana. I was concerned about being trapped on an airplane with people. What would happen if I would be next to a person who wore perfume? I knew I was better, but had no idea how much. This was going to be the real test. Because of the time frame I had to fly alone. That made it even more difficult. There would be no one around if I did start having trouble. The first part of the flight seemed to go fine - then came the next segment. A woman sat next to me and of course had to wear her perfume. What a shock that it did not bother me at all! It was wonderful to not have the terrible reactions that I used to have. That was a real breakthrough for me.

The Life: I now tell everyone that they need to come to Rusty for treatment. It is just incredible to be able to be a person again. Life is wonderful. I am so thankful that Rusty has taken the time and effort to learn this technique and is willing to share her skills to make people well again. To think that something so easy and painless can give people a life free from all the suffering. We owe our thanks not only to Rusty and her mentor Dr. Ellen Cutler, but also to our wonderful God and Creator - Jehovah - who made our bodies the incredible way that He did. He made our bodies to work in harmony with each other; we just have to learn what He intended. Rusty has been so kind as to take the time to get to really understand how the body works inside, and can work with the body's short-circuits. There is just not enough I can say about her skills.

My sister came for a 10 day visit from Arizona. She is so drastically allergic to cats. I have 3 cats (Gateway, Dos, and Mouse) who weighs 16-20 pounds each. I cleaned, mopped and shampooed carpets for days. I swept walls, ceilings and baseboards. I was ready for her! She came in and within 45 minutes she was sneezing, coughing, and had red, runny eyes. All of my hard work for nothing! I took her in to see Rusty on Monday. She and her husband told me that there was no way you could have needles put in your body and lie on a table for 25 minutes and have anything happen. She said that while she was on the table she just knew that this was not going to work. She only went to see Rusty to humor me - the older sister. She did not have to take any drugs the rest of her visit with us. I took her back for a "tune-up" on Friday. That evening for the first time in 35 years she was able to sit on the floor and play with the cats! She was so happy. My sister and her husband are believers now.

I tell everyone what a wonderful change has taken place in my life. I now have several people who are coming to Rusty and they are getting better all of the time. There are so many stories of what she has done for my friends. Some with chemical allergies, fibromyalgia, skin problems and various other problems.

My Plea: Rusty - Please keep up the good work! There are no words that can ever express not only my thanks, but also those of my dear husband. It is so good to be a person again.

Rusty, thank you again for so much!

N.H.