Brown recluse got me

On Tue, 17 Jul 2007 09:31:16 -0500, "Pat"
yodeled:


wrote

| Pat,
|
| That site has all the hallmarks of a scam. "Finally, after much prayer
| they discovered a combination of ingredients which they applied
| topically to the bite wound. They began seeing results immediately."
| That's not the sort of language you should find on a respectable
| medical site.
|
| It's snake-oil. It's quackery. It *screams* it. Please don't waste
| your precious time by making up home-made witches remedies. Call 911
| and get yourself treated, before your arse falls off like Pam's did
| (*waves at Pam*).
|
| And please do it now.
|
| Alphonze
| (Yes, I know I haven't posted in donkeys years, but I still read the
| group every day. As an active member of a skeptical society devoted to
| investigating traditional Chinese medicine, I am *very* familiar with
| the hallmarks of the snake-oil web site...)

Traditional Chinese medicine saved my life on more than one occasion, so I
am a bit slower to be skeptical.

As to the brown recluse site, do you think the BBB report would reflect a
problem if one existed?

What I find at
http://www.theozarks.bbb.org/bindrre...&gen=0& lid=1

"a total of 0 complaints about this company in the last 36 months"

I've had serious insect-bite issues in the past and dealt with them
herbally. In fact once because I was traveling I waited too long to start,
and ended up with a deep hole in my leg, but within a few days using a blend
of traditional Chinese herbs, the wound started healing from the inside out.
This was almost 31 years ago, and I still have the scar from it. No skin
grafts were done.

My point is I've learned from personal experience not to be so easily
frightened by this kind of problem.

I appreciate everyone's concern, but I also think it's kind of silly to call
an ambulance over a spider bite - especially when there haven't been any
life-threatening symptoms. So far all I have is a sore spot on my leg. I'll
take care of it at home for now. If it gets much worse, I'll think about
getting to a hospital, but not before making proper arrangements for the
cats' care in my absence.


FWIW let me piggy back on and echo what everyone else is saying. If
what you have is a brown recluse bite. not just another "insect bite."
They carry their own nasty toxins, and are exceptionally high in some
very nasty and FAST-ACTING staphlococcus bacteria which you can't just
fight on your own without antibiotics. I don't mean to scare you for
nothing, but gangrene is a frequent result of these bites. You have
to act fast, and I really hope you already have.


Theresa
Stinky Pictures: http://community.webshots.com/album/125591586JWEFwh

Make Levees, Not War

jofirey wrote:
"Pat" wrote in message
et...
Can someone tell me the cure? I can't afford to get very ill right
now. It just happened an hour ago. Caught the little bugger in the
act but too late
to stop it biting.

Just a note for those of you who are both worried and frustrated.
Actual brown recluse bites are very rare. More than 80% of suspected
bites are from something else. They have the name recluse for a
reason.

And not all brown recluse bites cause severe reactions. A big reason
Pam had such a horrible time is because she is diabetic.

Here's my experience (no, I wasn't bitten). You don't have to be diabetic
to have a severe reaction to the secondary infections resulting from a
spider bite. Damn, if it were only secondary infections would anyone even
bother to go to the doctor?

I was at the doctors' office a couple of years ago... I had to go even
without insurance. While I was getting my receipt there was a guy there
limping... he had a horrible red welt on the back of his leg and an open
wound. Puffy and raw, on his right calf. I heard one of the nurses say "He
was bitten by a recluse." He had sense enough to go to the doctor.

When I was moving out of my rented house back in 1988 I had had some shallow
clothing packing cardboard boxes in my closet. I decided to go through the
boxes to see what I needed to take with me and what to donate. I removed a
sweater and found a brown recluse lurking in the box. The closet had been
dark, you see. And that's what they go for. Dark; seclusion. They are
easily identifiable - they have a 'fiddle' design on their backs, much like
black widows have a red hourglass shape. If I'd been bitten by it I'd have
rushed to the ER immediately.

I took the clothing box and shook the spider into the toilet and flushed it
down.

I don't have any sympathy for someone who pronounces she was bitten by a
brown recluse and then won't do a thing about it other than "ancient Chinese
secret". Sorry, that's an advertisement for how to wash clothes..

But you better believe if it were me, me and the dead spider would be
in the ER in record time, even though we supposedly don't have brown
recluse spiders anywhere west of the Rockies.

Jo

I'm worried about Pat now. Ping Pat!!!

Susan M
Otis and Chester

"Pat" wrote in message
et...

I appreciate everyone's concern, but I also think it's kind of silly to
call
an ambulance over a spider bite - especially when there haven't been any
life
wrote

| Pat,
|
| That site has all the hallmarks of a scam. "Finally, after much prayer
| they discovered a combination of ingredients which they applied
| topically to the bite wound. They began seeing results immediately."
| That's not the sort of language you should find on a respectable
| medical site.
|
| It's snake-oil. It's quackery. It *screams* it. Please don't waste
| your precious time by making up home-made witches remedies. Call 911
| and get yourself treated, before your arse falls off like Pam's did
| (*waves at Pam*).
|
| And please do it now.
|
| Alphonze
| (Yes, I know I haven't posted in donkeys years, but I still read the
| group every day. As an active member of a skeptical society devoted to
| investigating traditional Chinese medicine, I am *very* familiar with
| the hallmarks of the snake-oil web site...)

Traditional Chinese medicine saved my life on more than one occasion, so I
am a bit slower to be skeptical.

As to the brown recluse site, do you think the BBB report would reflect a
problem if one existed?

What I find at
http://www.theozarks.bbb.org/bindrre...&gen=0& lid=1

"a total of 0 complaints about this company in the last 36 months"

I've had serious insect-bite issues in the past and dealt with them
herbally. In fact once because I was traveling I waited too long to start,
and ended up with a deep hole in my leg, but within a few days using a
blend
of traditional Chinese herbs, the wound started healing from the inside
out.
This was almost 31 years ago, and I still have the scar from it. No skin
grafts were done.

My point is I've learned from personal experience not to be so easily
frightened by this kind of problem.
-threatening symptoms. So far all I have is a sore spot on my leg. I'll
take care of it at home for now. If it gets much worse, I'll think about
getting to a hospital, but not before making proper arrangements for the
cats' care in my absence.

"EvelynVogtGamble(Divamanque)" wrote in message
...


Pat wrote:

"CatNipped" wrote

| *RUSH* to the emergency room. This is what caused Pam S.'s extended
| hospital stay in critical care and several surgeries. A brown
recluse's
| bite causes the flesh to literally rot off the bone.
|
| If you don't have the money, go to a hospital that accepts federal aid
and
| they will be forced to treat you even without payment.

Closest hospital is 55 miles one way, and me without transportation.

You can't dial 911? I think, even under Bush, emergency
services HAVE to respond if required - worry about paying
for it afterwards. (Better to be in debt than dead!)

Pat has made her decision to ignore the advice she sought out, and to argue
with anyone who offers helpful, practical suggestions and emotional support
to her. I have seen her do this on so many occasions, I eventually had to
plonk her otherwise my blood pressure couldn't cope and I'd have posted
rather nasty posts to RPCA, something I don't want to do. I'm glad Lori
expressed her views in a more charitable way than I probably would have.

I hope Pat *lives* with the consequences of ignoring the unanimous and
resounding advice to seek immediate medical care, however, I cannot offer
any sympathy to a person who continues to play on the sympathies of this
group, to continually beg for attention, to continually ask others to solve
her problems, only to ignore and argue with it when solid, pratical
solutions is offered sincerely and in kindness.

Eventually, every adult has to take responsiblity for his or her own
actions. Pat has to accept the consequences of her decisions in this life,
and the effects of the lifestyle she chooses to follow, both good and bad. I
have a great deal of sympathy for those who either find themselves in tough
circumstances through no fault of their own, or indeed, those who are big
enough to learn from their mistakes. However, I feel Pat is pretty much a
victim of herself, and seems unwilling to learn from anything or anyone
(including herself).

I don't wish her ill or hurt, but suspect that the best thing we can do for
her is to stop enabling her to make excuses and duck responsibilty for the
problems she has made for herself. I am trying to say this in a spirit
kindness and with an eye to her future wellbeing.

YMMV.

Yowie
(PS, I will not see any response (if any) Pat posts to this)

Susan M wrote:
I'm worried about Pat now. Ping Pat!!!

Susan M
Otis and Chester

Oh please. That's just what she wants you to do... worry about her. She
doesn't worry about herself, so why should you? I've finally accepted she's
a major drama queen.

Hug Otis & Chester for me.

Jill
"Pat" wrote in message
et...

I appreciate everyone's concern, but I also think it's kind of silly
to call
an ambulance over a spider bite - especially when there haven't been
any life
wrote

Pat,

That site has all the hallmarks of a scam. "Finally, after much
prayer they discovered a combination of ingredients which they
applied topically to the bite wound. They began seeing results
immediately." That's not the sort of language you should find on a
respectable medical site.

It's snake-oil. It's quackery. It *screams* it. Please don't waste
your precious time by making up home-made witches remedies. Call 911
and get yourself treated, before your arse falls off like Pam's did
(*waves at Pam*).

And please do it now.

Alphonze
(Yes, I know I haven't posted in donkeys years, but I still read the
group every day. As an active member of a skeptical society devoted
to investigating traditional Chinese medicine, I am *very* familiar
with the hallmarks of the snake-oil web site...)

Traditional Chinese medicine saved my life on more than one
occasion, so I am a bit slower to be skeptical.

As to the brown recluse site, do you think the BBB report would
reflect a problem if one existed?

What I find at

http://www.theozarks.bbb.org/bindrre...&gen=0& lid=1

"a total of 0 complaints about this company in the last 36 months"

I've had serious insect-bite issues in the past and dealt with them
herbally. In fact once because I was traveling I waited too long to
start, and ended up with a deep hole in my leg, but within a few
days using a blend
of traditional Chinese herbs, the wound started healing from the
inside out.
This was almost 31 years ago, and I still have the scar from it. No
skin grafts were done.

My point is I've learned from personal experience not to be so easily
frightened by this kind of problem.
-threatening symptoms. So far all I have is a sore spot on my leg.
I'll take care of it at home for now. If it gets much worse, I'll
think about getting to a hospital, but not before making proper
arrangements for the cats' care in my absence.

"Susan M" wrote:
I'm worried about Pat now. Ping Pat!!!

I just spoke with Pat on the phone to make sure she's all right, and
she sounds like she's okay. She says that if anything serious did
happen with the bite, she would have gone to the hospital right away,
but the swelling has gone down, and it's getting better.

I actually wasn't as worried as that time a couple of years ago when
she hit her head on the bathtub, since she posted this morning, but
after what happened to Pam, I wanted to confirm.

jmcquown wrote:
Oh please. That's just what she wants you to do... worry about her. She
doesn't worry about herself, so why should you? I've finally accepted she's
a major drama queen.

That's not a nice thing to say.

--
Victor M. Martinez
Owned and operated by the Fantastic Seven (TM)
Send your spam he
Email me he

On Jul 16, 6:17 pm, "CatNipped" wrote:
"Pat" wrote in message

...



"CatNipped" wrote

| *RUSH* to the emergency room. This is what caused Pam S.'s extended
| hospital stay in critical care and several surgeries. A brown recluse's
| bite causes the flesh to literally rot off the bone.
|
| If you don't have the money, go to a hospital that accepts federal aid
and
| they will be forced to treat you even without payment.

Closest hospital is 55 miles one way, and me without transportation.

Call 911! Seriously, Pat, if this was a brown recluse spider that bit you,
you could be in serious trouble!

Hugs,

CatNipped

I second, and third the motion. You need and deserve help, they have
to give it to you.

Please call 911.

Melissa

On Mon, 16 Jul 2007 19:36:51 -0500, Pat wrote:

Can someone tell me the cure? I can't afford to get very ill right now.
It just happened an hour ago. Caught the little bugger in the act but
too late to stop it biting.

As far as I know there is no cure just medical treatment to attempt to
control or alleviate the symptoms. The below links have more information.
Of the two the first is the best IMO.

http://www.answers.com/topic/brown-recluse-spider
http://health.yahoo.com/ency/healthwise/tm6499spec

In any case you will probably need to get medical attention especially if
it becomes necrotic. I wish you the best please be careful and seek
medical attention if it becomes bad as mentioned in the above links.

R

Susan M wrote:
I'm worried about Pat now. Ping Pat!!!

I'm worried as well. I haven't posted anything to this thread before because
as others have said Pat won't listen to any advice, but I certainly wouldn't
wish any harm to come to her.
--
Adrian (Owned by Snoopy & Bagheera)
Cats leave pawprints on your heart
http://community.webshots.com/user/clowderuk