Severe Allergic Reaction Part 2

          So I was sitting on our kitchen bench with my eyes closed praying that I didn't get any worse. As I sat I could feel my heart rate start to slow down. When I felt that I was good enough to walk I made my way for the stairs. Slowly I worked my way down and began to head for my room to get my phone. As I started moving I heard a car puling in. I looked out the window and saw my brothers jeep in the driveway. I watched as he made his way to the back of the house. I moved towards our back door and opened it up.
          I started yelling to get my brothers attention. Thinking that I was just being a pain he told me to stop yelling. I than heard my mom and yelled for her. She also thought I was yelling for no good reason and asked what was wrong with me. Finally, she was in view to actually see me and I told her that I was having some kind of allergic reaction. She immediately ran in the house and had me sit down on the couch while she got me some kind of medication. My dad than walked in asking what had happened.
          I explained to both of them how the symptoms started after eating the two Slim Jim's. They both took me upstairs, than my mom called a friend in the medical field to get her opinion about what to do. Her friend said that it would be best to take me to the hospital to be on the safe side. Before heading off though my mom wanted to check online to see what could be wrong with me. At this time I was sitting on our couch starting to feel a bit better. I noticed that my heart was starting to calm down and my body temperature was returning to normal. My mom eventually found some information about an allergic reaction that is called "Anaphylaxis". Here is a copy of the article we found that tells about Anaphylaxis:

Anaphylaxis refers to a rapidly developing and serious allergic reaction that affects a number of different areas of the body at one time. Severe anaphylactic reactions can be fatal. Most people experience allergy symptoms only as a minor annoyance. However, a small number of people are susceptible to a reaction that can lead to shock or even death.

Anaphylaxis is often triggered by substances that are injected or ingested and thereby gain access into the blood stream. An explosive reaction involving the skin, lungs, nose, throat, and gastrointestinal tract can then result. Although severe cases of anaphylaxis can occur within seconds or minutes of exposure and be fatal if untreated, many reactions are milder and can be ended with prompt medical therapy.

The symptoms of an anaphylactic reaction may occur within seconds of exposure, or be delayed 15 to 30 minutes, or even an hour or more after exposure (typical of reactions to aspirin and similar drugs). Early symptoms are often related to the skin and include:

• Flushing (warmth and redness of the skin),
• itching (often in the groin or armpits), and
• hives.

These symptoms are often accompanied by:

• a feeling of "impending doom,"
• anxiety, and
• sometimes a rapid, irregular pulse.

Frequently following the above symptoms, throat and tongue swelling results in hoarseness, difficulty swallowing, and difficulty breathing.

          After reading over the article it sounded exactly like the problems that I was having. Realizing how serious and potentially fatal my condition was, my parents and I hopped in the car and headed for an emergency hospital. We got ourselves checked in and waited for our turn to see the doctor. After about an hour and a half of waiting, the doctor was able to see me. The doctor looked me over, gave me some medication to take and sent me on my way. So far I have been feeling fine.
          Too bad my family had to go back to another emergency hospital today because my sister got into an accident and smashed up her face. I'm considering having my next post be about what occurred, but I want to check with my sister first to see if she would be OK with me posting what had happened. Aren't my parents lucky to have kids like us?