It is the disease the medical community refuses to accept , and most experts claim is just a mental illness . Morgellons disease has been described by those who suffer from it as causing fatigue and memory loss , while also leading to large sores on the body which are constantly itching to the sensation of bugs or parasites crawling underneath the skin . From these sores they claim sprout colorful fibers that can not be described and , according to one person , ' can not be forensically identified as animal , vegetable or mineral . ' That person is Joni Mitchell , who claims to have suffered from Morgellons for most of her life , and who has recently been hospitalized after she was found unconscious at her home . Mitchell , who suffered from polio as a child , remains in the hospital , but is said to be in 'good spirits . ' Scroll down for video . Joni Mitchell ( above ) has suffered from Morgellons disease throughout her life , and has recently dedicated herself to trying to get it accepted as a medical condition . Sufferers say they are constantly itching , and large sore develop on their skin from which colorful fibers ( above ) grow . Mitchell spoke of the disease in a 2010 interview with the Los Angeles Times , saying ; ' I have this weird , incurable disease that seems like it 's from outer space . ' She went on to say ; 'Fibers in a variety of colors protrude out of my skin like mushrooms after a rainstorm ... Morgellons is a slow , unpredictable killer - a terrorist disease : it will blow up one of your organs , leaving you in bed for a year . ' This is far different than the way many in the medical community describe the disease however , which , according to the Mayo Clinic , is incredibly rare and effects predominantly middle-aged white women . The Centers for Disease Control reports that the symptoms are very similar to those of mental illness , from the sensation of crawling and bugs and parasites to the concept of false beliefs . The CDC even conducted a study at one point , and found that most people who claim to suffer from the disease were likely just experiencing anxiety , depression or , in some cases , issues with substance abuse . Mitchell admitted to briefly having problems with addiction in a Reader 's Digest interview , saying ; ' I didn ’ t get involved for years , and then I went on Rolling Thunder and they asked me how I wanted to be paid , and I ran away to join the circus : Clowns used to get paid in wine – pay me in cocaine because everybody was strung out on cocaine . ' A 2012 paper published in a peer-reviewed medical journal found that half of the 115 subjects tested positive for a prescription or illicit drug , among them ; amphetamines , barbiturates , benzodiazepines , cannabinoids , and even cocaine . Futhermore , most of the fibers collected from their skin were cotton , likely from clothing or bandages , and no parasites were detected in any of the individuals . The medical community believes Morgellons is likely a mental illness and that sufferers are anxious , depressed or even suffering from substance abuse ( Mitchell above in 1996 ) Cindy Casey Holman , the director of the Charles E. Holman Morgellons Disease Foundation and herself a registered nurse takes issue with this study . ' A serious and often deadly systemic infection is present in Morgellons samples . Still patients are being prescribed antipsychotics while the infection goes undetected and untreated , ' she told CBS News . 'Clouding the picture is that some patients do exhibit psychiatric manifestations . But spirochetal infections , such as Borrelia burgdorferi , are well known to affect the central nervous system and cause psychiatric symptoms . Yet the infection is ignored while dermatologists offer dangerous antipsychotics as the only treatment . ' Some individuals have said that taking antibiotics cured them of Morgellons , though some experts could bring that back to the idea of mental illness and claim it is simply a placebo effect . Researchers and experts meanwhile do accept that Morgellons exist , just not as an actual medical condition . Mitchell meanwhile has long been committed to having Morgellons recognized for what she believes it to be - an 'incurable disease . '
MitchellJoni Mitchell was hospitalized on Tuesday after being found unconscious in her California home . Joni Mitchell has suffered from Morgellons disease throughout her life , and has recently dedicated herself to trying to get it accepted as a medical condition . Sufferers claim they feel the sensation of bugs or parasites constantly crawling under their skin and biting them . They also say they are constantly itching , and large sore develop on their skin from which colorful fibers grow . The medical community believes it is likely a mental illness and that sufferers are anxious , depressed or even suffering from substance abuse . Joni Mitchell , who has been a heavy smoker since she was 9-years-old and had polio as a child , has admitted she dealt with cocaine addiction in the 70s . Individuals have said that taking antibiotics cured them of Morgellons , though some experts say it is simply a placebo effect .