Be Warned, Be Prepared

I was at our Garfield Bay lake place on Lake Pend Oreille last summer when an incident happened that almost cost me my life. Maybe by telling my story I can help save a life or two as summer recreation begins.

I was mowing the lawn when I ran over a beehive of yellowjackets. I had on shorts and a loose shirt. One yellowjacket took a chunk out of my calf. I put the lawnmower away and as I walked into our enclosed porch, I got stung three more times by yellowjackets trapped in my clothing.

I’d been stung by bees a few times in my life and 15 years ago, I was even stung multiple times while playing golf. I had never had an allergic reaction, so I wasn’t worried about it. Actually, I didn’t have time to worry.

Within two minutes of getting stung while on the porch, I was having an allergic reaction. The world faded to black all around me. I walked into the house, laid down on the couch, and the next thing I knew I was on the floor, surrounded by paramedics.

I didn’t know it then but 30 minutes had passed. My wife Carol had called an ambulance and then called the emergency room when she knew things were turning serious. She realized it would take the ambulance some time to get to our remote cabin. The person at the hospital told her to get Benadryl down my throat anyway she could. She did. Benadryl is an antihistamine that helps cut down on the swelling.

By the time the ambulance arrived, my blood pressure was 80 over 40. During the entire ambulance ride, I had trouble breathing and was sweating profusely. At the hospital, I was placed on an IV and after about 30 minutes, I started feeling better.

After the emergency passed, I was thankful for many things. That my wife was in the cabin; if I had been alone, I probably would have slipped into oblivion on the couch, because I was unaware how bad off I really was. And I’m really glad we had the antihistamine on hand.

I carry an anaphylaxis emergency treatment kit with me now whenever I’m in the wilderness or fishing. I recommend you take precautions, too, even if you’ve never had an allergic reaction to bee stings before. I hadn’t and never expected to. At the very least, always have an antihistamine handy. And know the symptoms of an allergic reaction: difficulty breathing and swallowing, hoarseness, dizziness and fainting.

I later found out that between 50 and 150 people die each year from allergic reactions to stinging insects. I’m thankful I wasn’t one of them.

MEMO: Your Turn is a feature of the Wednesday and Saturday Opinion pages. To submit a Your Turn column for consideration, contact Rebecca Nappi at 459-5496 or Doug Floyd at 459-5466 or write Your Turn, The Spokesman-Review, P.O. Box 2160, Spokane, WA 99210-1615.