Very close call today.

[formariz 11,987]

Picking some weeds on side of house and unknown to me there was a subterranean hive of the little greenish devil hornets. One got inside my shirt and proceeded to work all around my arm pit. I am terribly allergic to any bee or wasp bite already being hospitalized for it 30 years ago and almost succumbing to it. Had a good run up to today. 
  Within 5 minutes it became obvious that this was going to be a big problem. Drove to the town’s emergency care center. By the time I went through door my throat was half closed and I looked monstrous. A quick shot with an epipen and Benadryl IV, along with some other injections. Blood pressure kept dropping. At 75/35 they called 911 and off I go to the hospital. Ambulance personnel was in contact with hospitals and receiving instructions on what to do. By the time I got to hospital I was feeling a little better and blood pressure stabilized and raising slowly.  Spent rest of day there up to 9PM.  In photo I already look better and smiling? I look and feel like nothing happened now but it was a close call. I think I took years of wife’s life today. My body looked like aliens were bursting out of it.I was incredibly hot to the touch and shutting down. All from a 1/2”hornet. 

[wh500special 2,184]

Glad you had the presence of mind to get on the move to help immediately!  Rest up and be careful!

 

my neighbor is equally allergic.  She’s the only reason I make any effort to control the clover in my yard…

 

Steve

[rmaynard 15,460]

Glad this was a happy ending. You don't need anymore medical issues. 

[ebinmaine 67,502]

Good to see you got the right care, and fast.  

 

Do you carry a med kit with the proper supplies? 

[Pullstart 62,883]

Wow Cas, glad to hear it all went as well as it could have, all things considered!  I was thinking of you yesterday.  I found a pick ticket on some wood and ultimately figured out what TMA means.  Thermally Modified Ash.  It goes through oxygenless heat treating like processes to chemically modify the wood structure to resist rot, repel moisture, etc.  That’s what the brown wood is.  

[Sparky-(Admin) 21,318]

Glad to hear your doing better. 
  What’s the plan to eradicate your garden of the green hornets? Maybe hire a professional to exterminate 

[squonk 41,118]

Glad you're ok Cas. My father was also very allergic to bee stings. Late in life he lived in a trailer home out in the country which equaled bees nests. I bought him a case of Brake cleaner for Christmas once. He asked what was it for and I said Bees!! Best bee killer there is and back then those cans would shoot a good 10 feet. He could crack the door and destroy a nest from the safety of the inside of the trailer. Following Christmas he asked for another case. 

[JoeM 7,874]

A few years ago the wife got stung and had the same reaction. Straight the to the ER. Kind of just made it to boot.

One thing the ER Dr. ask me was I going to be around and home with my wife that evening. I said yes, what is up. She explained after those med wear off some of the problems can come back and your wife should not be left alone for the next 12 hours. Other wise we should keep her here. 

i did not know that. 

She has those pens with her all the time now. 

[WHX?? 48,815]

Bee stings can be serious to some. Old Walt ran the hardware store in town. Trimming his bushes got stung and died on the spot. 

Another friend is deadly allergic and always carries a epi pen on his person. 

Get one Cas and carry it as close as a pocket knife. You just never know. 

Epi pens do have a shelf life tho and need to be replaced. 

[stevebo-(Moderator) 8,330]

Oh boy… glade to hear you are ok. 

[Pullstart 62,883]

1 hour ago, WHX?? said:

Epi pens do have a shelf life tho and need to be replaced.

Funny question, can one get those OTC or only by prescription?

[rjg854 11,362]

Glad you're on the mend Caz.  I've got a brother that is allergic to bees, nothing to mess with.  He always has an epi pen close.

[WHX?? 48,815]

7 minutes ago, Pullstart said:

Funny question, can one get those OTC or only by prescription?

Pretty sure it's script...

[953 nut 55,230]

1 hour ago, WHX?? said:

Epi pens do have a shelf life tho and need to be replaced

Cas, Glad to hear you are recovering well. If there is a next time just call 911.

 

Funny thing about the Epi Pens is that during the "Supply Chain fiasco" the expiration dates were extended to double the amount of time. Makes you wonder if the dates are just a gimmick to sell more product?

[elcamino/wheelhorse 9,299]

Glad to hear you are okay .  Seems like a lot of folks are getting stung this year including me. Wasp got me in the throat and it still is sore after a week.

[oliver2-44 9,752]

Good to hear your on the mend. Prayers for no lasting effects.

[squonk 41,118]

2 hours ago, elcamino/wheelhorse said:

Glad to hear you are okay .  Seems like a lot of folks are getting stung this year including me. Wasp got me in the throat and it still is sore after a week.

Did it effect your ability to talk? 

[elcamino/wheelhorse 9,299]

No but it sure slowed me down. Felt like heck all week. How are the shoe boxes working on those size 12 W feet of yours?

[Brockport Bill 1,662]

scary, scary -- good news ending tho thankfully -- Not sure what is drive time to urgent care for you or if ambulance is nearby ----- but generally its much safer to call 911 and get ambulance to house so can be treated asap -- but most importantly, if person had a crisis driving in the car the person would have grave risk with no help available! Same thing with chest pains or any serious medical situation !

[formariz 11,987]

Thank you everyone for the well wishes. It was a crazy day and a wild scene at the town's Urgent care. I had about eight ladies in a total panic around me as my blood pressure continuously dropped and then they called 911. My wife was in the waiting room and oblivious as to how serious things were getting inside until the police arrives there and knowing us (on a good way) said to her they hoped they were not there for her. She replied that it had to be for me since there was no one else there. They were kind to calm her down and accompany with a patrol car to the house so she could take her medication which was now overdue . After she realized how bad things were she was shaking so much she could barely function. They calmed her down and since she insisted on driving to the house they escorted her there and then to the hospital which is in the adjacent town.

 Very close call like 30 years ago.Today except for some itching in the affected areas I feel like nothing happened.They got me on some steroids , antibiotics, and allergy medication. These steroids make me feel young again.

Of course now because of what happened she has me under house arrest so it looks like a lot of progress is going to happen in the shop. I am just glad that all these facilities are within a few minutes from me otherwise who knows what could have been.

[formariz 11,987]

5 minutes ago, Brockport Bill said:

scary, scary -- good news ending tho thankfully -- Not sure what is drive time to urgent care for you or if ambulance is nearby ----- but generally its much safer to call 911 and get ambulance to house so can be treated asap -- but most importantly, if person had a crisis driving in the car the person would have grave risk with no help available! Same thing with chest pains or any serious medical situation !

Good advice. However I was taking a few things into consideration. When I decided to go I was still in relatively decent shape excepts for hives but I knew things would get worse. It was a one minute drive to the Urgent care and I thought they could take care of it. I didn't want to alarm my wife by calling 911. With her condition they might have had to take the two of us so I decided to drive there and take her. Within the one minute drive things started to escalate but I kept it from her. At the reception I whispered to them the problem but also informed them of my wife's condition and asked them not to alarm her. I went in immediately with out them even asking my name. I know all of this was foolish, but at the time my concerns were as misguided as they seem not to alarm her as much as I could.

[formariz 11,987]

10 hours ago, ebinmaine said:

Good to see you got the right care, and fast.  

 

Do you carry a med kit with the proper supplies? 

I used to carry an Epi Pen after the big incident 30 years ago but little by little I relaxed on that. They also expire after a while. I am happy to inform however that today there is one in the house in an obvious place that everyone knows and has access to,  one in each of the vehicles, and one in my wife's purse. 

 

[formariz 11,987]

8 hours ago, Sparky said:

 What’s the plan to eradicate your garden of the green hornets? Maybe hire a professional to exterminate 

I actually have a bit of experience with them. They occasionally show up here but usually in the middle of the lawn. Vibration on the ground such as from a lawn mower spooks them and that is usually when you see them storming out. You can not address them the same way as a yellow jacket since they tunnel underground and one cannot get to them. They go deep and in a wide area . My son found a product called Deltadust that you sprinkle around hole . They like it eat it and take it to nest killing queen and then others follow. Its effective. Our first experience with them was when he was young and was mowing lawn. All of a sudden I see him abandoning mower left running and running like a wild man from it all over the place. Those thing are relentless when spooked.

  There was no swarm in my case and they were in the ground under a Perrywinkle ground cover which I was pulling weeds in. I only saw one which I found inside my shirt and grabbed and killed. It stung me first in my hand that I really did not feel but when it took residence in my arm pit that i felt.

[formariz 11,987]

5 hours ago, Pullstart said:

Funny question, can one get those OTC or only by prescription?

I am not sure but if you get a doctor prescription insurance pays for it. The ones I got cost 120.00 for a package of two. I paid less than five dollars.

[formariz 11,987]

5 hours ago, 953 nut said:

Cas, Glad to hear you are recovering well. If there is a next time just call 911.

 

Funny thing about the Epi Pens is that during the "Supply Chain fiasco" the expiration dates were extended to double the amount of time. Makes you wonder if the dates are just a gimmick to sell more product?

Thank you Richard. And I am very glad to hear from you. Good to have you back. Don't go anywhere again.