Anaphylactic reaction

[RichardR]

I just returned home from the emergency room, apparently I have developed an allergy & thus the resulting sever anaphylactic reaction to the penicillin that I took this morning.

Scary stuff, I am very lucky that I was able to dial 911 but I was literally passing out as I was dialing so thankfully the emergency responders were on scene within minutes & everything turned out ok.

The odd thing is that I had taken penicillin before in the past & had no adverse reactions, in fact I was not allergic to anything up until this morning, but I have learned that this is fairly common for people to develop an allergy to penicillin even though they were not previously allergic to it.

Anyway the steroid injections seem to have cleared up most of my symptoms, I am still a little dizzy & swollen but my chest/heart pains have subsided & I can breath freely again so they released me.

So I hope that everyone does me, themselves & their families a favor, if you or anyone close to you starts to experience anaphylactic symptoms do not hesitate to dial 911!

 

[POC]

The body has some little quirks like that....
You can become allergic to, or not allergic to anything at any point in time.
Glad you got it taken care of in time. Did you get an epi-pen? Did they give you any other suggestions?
A true anaphylactic reaction can kill you, and that sounds like what you had.

 

[DagerOne]

And of course, recognize that any of the 'cillins are now off of your list of possible antibiotics. Considering the severity of your reaction, I'm sure your doctor will strike cephalosporins off your list as well. Glad you were able to call 911 before the reaction advanced too far!

 

[RichardR]

Since the allergy is to penicillin & not something like peanuts or bee-stings that could be "accidently" ingested or injected they said I really didn't need an epi-pen but they did give me an inhaler just in case my breathing problems returned.

 

[paddling_man]

Mrs Paddling_Man became allergic to seafood/shellfish/iodine. The first event happened when she was twelve. An epipen is always in her purse.

It's fun to "inject" them into an aluminum can after expiration.

 

[RichardR]

And of course, recognize that any of the 'cillins are now off of your list of possible antibiotics. Considering the severity of your reaction, I'm sure your doctor will strike cephalosporins off your list as well. Glad you were able to call 911 before the reaction advanced too far!

Yea I am glad too, I really have to give kudos to the paramedics for their rapid response time, I thought I was going to die for sure, it was a pretty frightening thing to go through that's fo'sho!

 

[Fletch]

Scary stuff, I've been there... Ironically as a result of an allergy shot that was supposed to help my allergies, not inflame them.

 

[indykid]

You are very lucky. A few years ago I lost a friend to anaphylactic shock. He was stung by a bee and collapsed as he ran into his home. His wife dialed 911 but by the time they arrived he had lost oxygen to his brain for too long. His wife said he had been stung as a child and didn't have any reaction, which makes life even more scary.

These days, like carrying a pistol for protection, an epi-pen sounds like a thing to carry as well.

Glad to hear you are ok and now aware of future potential issues.

 

[RichardR]

Yikes Indy, sorry to hear about your buddy, anyway yea it sounds like I am very lucky, I talked with one of the paramedics after wards he said they couldn't get a pulse or blood pressure reading off me while I was in the ambulance, so it had to have been a pretty severe reaction.

Thankfully I didn't need CPR or the defibrillator though, but my guess is that I was pretty close to needing them.

 

[indyartisan]

Scary stuff, I've been there... Ironically as a result of an allergy shot that was supposed to help my allergies, not inflame them.

Mom had a reaction after one of these shots. Left doctors office and started feeling bad driving down the road, pulled in a CVS and passed out as she entered the store. The staff got her some help and she was OK. Sometimes the cure is worse than the sickness.

 

[GARANDGUY]

glad to hear your ok now! Make sure to get you an Epi pen!