Sparky-0; Hornet-1

[Sparky-Watts]

I got nailed on the leg by a hornet today at work. I'm deathly allergic to hornets, wasps, and bees. I managed to get my epi pen and use it before calling 911. By that time, I could barely breathe enough to get the address out,and eventually passed out. They took me to the hospital, and after only a couple of block in the ambulance, I woke up and was breathing better, thanks to the epi pen. They treated me with benadryl and solumedrol enroute to the ER, and by the time I got there, I was doing pretty well. They held me for about 4 hours for observation. Since my condition had improved so well, and since it had been about5 hours since I got stung, they decided I wasn'y goig to have a relapse and sent me home. It's hit me one other time that bad before,and I was in respiratory arrest by the time the medics got there, because I didn't hvae an epi pen with me at the time. I'm pretty sure I would have died today without the epi pen. I doubt I would have had enough air to call 911 without it. My leg iand foot are swollwn up like a boalloon, and my chest is pretty sore still,but thank God I'm alive. Now I gotta go get horizontal, as thinsg are geting pretty fuzzy again. Nite nite.

 

[TwistedCU]

I got nailed at work a couple weeks ago. First time since I was a kid. It still hurts.

No need for an epi pen, but we didn't have one so I was fortunate.

I sould get one of them thingamabobs since I work around bees and kill their nests almost every day.

Glad you're okay!

 

[Sparky-Watts]

It's so scary to have that happen. When I was a kid, bees never bothered me more than a mosquito bite, but hornets and yellow jackets always made me swell up, and I'd be sick for 2 or 3 days after, but still never affected my respiratory system. By the time I got out of high school, the hornets and yellow jackets would make me itch like crazy and wheeze a little bit, but bees still didn't bother me. The first real bad reaction I had was actually by a bee. It was about 8 years ago when I was still a paramedic. We had just returned to the station from a call, and there was a bee on the door knob to the office. It stung me when I grabbed the door knob, and within 30 seconds my throat started swelling shut, 2 minutes later I was in full respiratory arrest. Our EMT's ventilated me with a bag valve mask enroute to meet another paramedic unit from the county. They got the epi, benadryl, and solumedrol on board and had me breathing again within a few minutes. That's when my doc prescribed my epi pen. I've carried one with me everywhere I go ever since then. Thank God I had it with me yesterday! I was alone, and nobody in the housing development I was in was home, either, or at least didn't notice me dying out in the front yard of the house! The ER doc gave me a script for 3 epi pens, so now I've got one for my work truck, one for the Jeep, and one spare for home or Sunshine's car. Funny, but scary thing: I came out of the ER, and the bossman had brought my Jeep to me there. When I got in, there was a bee sitting on the outside of the windshield, staring menacingly at me....as if he knew I didn't have an epi pen yet, since I didn't get the script filled at the ER. That bee is now mostly two-dimensional, or at least what was left of him is.

 

[TwistedCU]

That's scary stuff, allergies. A few years ago I spent New Years Eve (also my birthday) in the ER after an allergic reaction to the pound of steamed shrimp I ate. It probably didn't help that I brought 5 pounds of it home in a closed car about 30 before the party.

hives, trouble breathing, skin on fire... sucked!!!

I should get one of those pens. Maybe I'll give the good doctor a call tomorrow.

 

[Sparky-Watts]

That's scary stuff, allergies. A few years ago I spent New Years Eve (also my birthday) in the ER after an allergic reaction to the pound of steamed shrimp I ate. It probably didn't help that I brought 5 pounds of it home in a closed car about 30 before the party.

hives, trouble breathing, skin on fire... sucked!!!

I should get one of those pens. Maybe I'll give the good doctor a call tomorrow.

Yeah, and if you're allergic to shrimp, you might want him to test you for any other allergies, such as any type of shellfish, too.

 

[cewtwo]

I used to do outside construction in my past. Working on eaves and soffits, it was not odd to find a nest of any of a variety of the small, winged vermin. You always tried to get away beofre the wee ones could find you, but one time I was unable to. Several stings before I got off the high ladder and many more before I got "Out of range."
That was the time that I developed my allergy to them. My arms, legs and throat started to swell and a co-worker took me to the ER. Scary stuff. After that I got out of that game. I go everywhere prepared now, but I cringe with fear everytime I hear a story like yours.

Thank the good lord you're OK...

I commiserate!