About Us - Information about the People Behind TalkAllergy

DEBORAH MASON - MANAGING DIRECTOR

My name is Deborah and TalkAllergy was created by me. TalkAllergy forms part of a group of patient information and support sites with TalkEczema being the first one launched in October 2000, closely followed by TalkAllergy. I live in Hampshire, UK, with my husband Mark and two daughters Sophie born in 1996 and Alice born in 1999.

My inspiration for starting these sites came from my daughter Alice. At 5 months old she developed severe atopic eczema following a short spell in hospital for suspected meningitis. Fortunately it was only a nasty viral infection, but the drip used to hydrate her contained an antibiotic which I believe was responsible for triggering her eczema. Alice also developed food allergies around the same time including intolerance to milk, eggs and pink fish. Since then she's also developed asthma, hay fever, allergic rhinitis and an allergy to Penicillin and Sulphites.

But it was her chronic eczema that made both Alice's life, and our family life, hard to handle. I couldn't see an end to the misery Alice was going through and the intense pressure it put on me was overwhelming at times. Coupled with, Alice had spells where her diet was very restricted and whenever she caught a cold her asthma started.

Alice was distressed a lot of the time. And so was I! I look back and remember the sleepless nights I had laying by her side, holding her hands to prevent her from ripping her skin to shreds and wonder how we ever got through it. But we did because we had help and support from family and friends and advice and treatment from our health professionals. Plus my desire to learn as much as possible about atopic conditions gave me the strength to cope.

When I started these sites, I never imagined that so many people would visit them and it would be the huge resource it is today. Nor did I ever imagine that TalkEczema would lead to a group of support and information web sites for other health conditions too. Over the last few years I have realised that there are many thousands of people out there, just like me, who need support and help. So I hope you find the help you need within these sites.

Best wishes
Deborah Mason

KAREN - WEB SITE MANAGER

My name is Karen and I am a mother of 2 boys who are both at Primary School. For several years I have suffered from hay fever and a mild allergy to cat and dog hairs. Neither of these allergies have caused me undue misery, however, I know friends and family who have more severe asthma, eczema and allergy conditions so am aware of the distress and frustrations these can cause both to the sufferer and family/friends surrounding them.

Having a web site you can visit to gain information, communicate with others experiencing the same issues or just somewhere to get ideas from allows you to feel you’re not ’alone’.


SAMANTHA - WEB SITE MANAGER

My name is Samantha.  I live in Hampshire, UK with my husband and two daughters.  As a parent I've always been interested in children’s health and when my children were very small I was very conscious of what I fed them and tried to avoid peanuts and anything that may cause allergies.  A close friend of mine has a gluten allergy and I can see what she has to go through on a daily basis and how hard it can be.

My interest in Asthma stems from a close friend of my husband who died from a severe asthma attack.  His death was very sudden and extremely shocking.  I have several other friends who suffer from asthma to varying degrees and some who live with allergies so I was keen to join the TalkHealth team. I am looking forward to “meeting” you all on the Talk web sites.


NADJA - WEB SITE MANAGER

My name is Nadja and I live in Hertfordshire with my husband and son and daughter, 9 and 11 years old. Coming from a family with a number of allergy and dermatology problems, my mother, brother and I are all affected in different ways. I have been interested in this area for a long time.

Seeing my mother suffer with psoriasis on her hands and how it determines what she can and cannot do. During particularly bad times it has always made me wonder why more cannot be done to help her.

My husband actually works in dermatology, which aids my understanding of eczema, dry skin, acne, psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis and helps keep me up to date with latest developments in treatments and research.

 

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