Chicago Area Couple: Lumber Liquidators Flooring Made Us Sick

(CBS) -- Can your floor make you sick?

For the first time, a Chicago area couple talks about how their floorboards were loaded with formaldehyde.

Newlyweds Michael and Amber Robinson did a do-it-yourself floor make-over using flooring from Lumber Liquidators, the retailer now at the epicenter of an international consumer alert.

Their pride ended up being ripped apart, piece by piece.

"Instantly I noticed we started getting headaches, and then in August I was admitted in the hospital for severe asthma and shortness of breath," Amber says. "Chest pain and they couldn't figure out why."

They had dropped more than $2,000 for flooring from Lumber Liquidators. The company was the subject of a "60 Minutes" expose. The report showed some of the discounter's wood had extremely high levels of formaldehyde, a carcinogen.

Amber Robinson says her doctor says the flooring likely has caused her to get the autoimmune disorder lupus.

The Robinsons are now spending more than $8,000 to get rid of and re-do the floors. She says the retailer has not been responsive.

"We're maxing out our credit cards," Amber says. "It sucks."

The couple has retained a lawyer. Like many American homeowners, they wonder what the long-term fallout will be.

Lumber Liquidators did not respond to a request for comment.