Anyone familiar with spider bites?

animal_kingdom · #41 06/03/05, 06:20 PM

I just happened across this post and would like to share if no one minds me butting in...

I had gotten bitten by a brown recluse spider about 7 years ago. It bit the back of my leg. Felt like a mosquito bite no more than that. I scratched at it and thought nothing of it. About 6 hours later I noticed a black dot in the center and took a pin to see if it was a scab. It seemed crusty and I flaked it off and put cream on it. A few hours later, it was black again. The next day I noticed that it was black in the center with a light red ring around it and a whitish or light ring around that. I scratched and scratched. DH told me it was a brown recluse bite and to go immediately to the dr.

Dh wasn't home but I described it to me. He told me a horrendous story he heard on the radio just the day before.

Went to dr and dr asked me why I didn't call him right away. I told him I thought it was a mosquito bite.

Left a small scar on my leg.

A few years later, I got another bite. This time on my arm. Called doc and he called in a prescription immediately for me without being seen.

This medication was 2 different pills. It made me so sick to my stomach and gave me great cramps. Doctor was concerned with the first bite big time. He warned me to report any discomfort or pain in all the gland areas of my body and said the venom from the spider would work it's way up to my groin, then to my armpits and then my neck if it wasn't treated properly.

That was only 24 hours after the bite but it didn't go anywhere else that I know.

The black crust in the center was decayed flesh. The next area to decay would have been the reddish area.

Seems they like to live in barns. I was in my neighbor's barn while he was making brooms. I remember backing up against his broom sewing machine thing and feeling a quick bite. I had backed into recluse territory and the spider was threatened by me so it bit me.

I have never seen a recluse except in pictures and I thought they resembled a daddy long legger a little bit.

Spiders now creep me out.

Ravenlost · #42 06/03/05, 11:29 PM

Nope, haven't gone to the doctor or the County Agent with my spider (still have it in a jar). Hubby doesn't think the doctor can do much. The bite hasn't gotten larger today except the blister in the center seems to have swollen up bigger. It's still only mildy itchy, but more itchy than yesterday. My right arm feels achy, but hubby thinks that is just all in my head.

Like I said before, I take 75 mg Doxycycline daily. Hopefully this will keep the bite from becoming serious. From what I've read in the past couple days not all brown recluse bites get serious. I do plan to keep a close eye on it and if there are any changes I'll go to the ER this weekend.

Shygal · #43 06/04/05, 03:42 AM

so WHY do people come on here and ask advice, and get about 30 people advising the same thing....and dont take it?

Hubby doesnt think the dr can do much, Hubby thinks its all in your head.
What about what you and everyone ELSE thinks?
I just dont get it. I would NOT mess around with a brown recluse bite.

Pony · #44 06/04/05, 05:02 AM

Another thing: different antibiotics target different tissues and organisms. The target for your rosacea may be different than the target for spider bite.

Once upon a time, when I was very young and married to someone who was less than sympathetic, I received a wicked dog scratch to my eye. My then-husband (God rest his soul) told me I was making a big deal out of nothing, and refused to take me to the doctor. The pain got increasingly worse, and at 2 in the morning I finally got enough courage to tell him, "Take me to the ER, or I am calling an ambulance." Being the cheapskate he was, he took me to the hospital, where they found that my cornea was BADLY scratched. They gave me some heavy duty drugs, gave HIM a major ripping because I told them he said it was nothing.

Some things to think about....

Pony!

Irish Pixie · #45 06/04/05, 07:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shygal

so WHY do people come on here and ask advice, and get about 30 people advising the same thing....and dont take it?

Hubby doesnt think the dr can do much, Hubby thinks its all in your head.
What about what you and everyone ELSE thinks?
I just dont get it. I would NOT mess around with a brown recluse bite.

I don't understand it either, Shygal. You see it over and over tho, or when someone gives sound advice and the OP argues with them. I loathe going to the Dr. but for a spider bite, especially a brown recluse, I'd be there in a heartbeat. I've seen some disgusting gruesome pictures of neglected spider bites. Yuck. I'm glad the nasty things aren't common in NY.

Stacy

papaw · #46 06/04/05, 09:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ravenlost

Nope, haven't gone to the doctor or the County Agent with my spider (still have it in a jar). Hubby doesn't think the doctor can do much. The bite hasn't gotten larger today except the blister in the center seems to have swollen up bigger. It's still only mildy itchy, but more itchy than yesterday. My right arm feels achy, but hubby thinks that is just all in my head.

Like I said before, I take 75 mg Doxycycline daily. Hopefully this will keep the bite from becoming serious. From what I've read in the past couple days not all brown recluse bites get serious. I do plan to keep a close eye on it and if there are any changes I'll go to the ER this weekend.

Is your Hubby a Doctor?
Good luck ... if your kidneys start to shut down, maybe then he'll allow you to go.
What's up with that????

Ravenlost · #47 06/04/05, 11:03 AM

LOL...I've asked the same thing myself about people posting. The reason I posted was because I've never been bit by a spider and I was wondering if anyone else had and what it looked like. Your responses pretty much convinced me that I had indeed been bitten by a spider.

However, hubby and I have an advantage that you do not. We can SEE the bite. It hasn't changed in three days. I'm pretty sure it isn't going to. I think I got lucky and didn't have a severe reaction.

Doxycycline is the antibiotic that is prescribed for brown recluse bites. I believe that because I'm already taking it, it kept the bite from getting bad. Again, I feel pretty lucky about that.

This wasn't the only site I went to. I have done extensive reading and research on the subject over the past few days and believe I know enough now to know what to do. Since I am showing no signs of necrosis after several days I do not believe the bite is going to get worse at this point.

Here is an excellent pictorial website showing the progress of a brown recluse bite. This is a day to day diary and I have not experienced this at all: http://www.highway60.com/mark/brs/linda_bite.htm

Perhaps it wasn't a brown recluse. Perhaps it was and I didn't have a bad reaction to it. I can assure each of you that I have read your responses and taken them to heart. They have helped ease my fears and helped me in my search for more information.

As far as my hubby is concerned - he knows me better than any of you. He knows I overreact sometimes. He has been keeping a close eye on this and last night he was getting concerned because my arm was aching a little bit...but that was probably from my shoveling and hauling dirt in the garden!

I do appreciate all the concern and advice. It hasn't been taken lightly on my part.

PLPP · #48 06/04/05, 12:10 PM

My daughter was bitten a few years back. We did not notice anything until the blister popped then the toe started dying. She now only has half a toe. If I would have know what a recluse bite looked like I would have taken her the minute I saw the blister but where I lived there were no recluses but we did travel to Nevada and the DR says we must have picked it up there.

I wish you luck. The infection can stay underneath for a bit but when it hits it hits.

Here http://www.surviveoutdoors.com/emerg...es_recluse.asp this guy didnt notice any thing bad for 7 days.

Here is another site. http://www.highway60.com/mark/brs/

Shygal · #49 06/04/05, 03:15 PM

You DO understand that brown recluse bites are not always dependent on a "reaction" to them, yes?

That its not an ALLERGY to the bite, or a reaction to the bite that causes the tissue to start dying, right?

I wouldnt trust the internet to diagnose myself with, these things are not worth fooling around with.

But hey, if you are sure...

Ravenlost · #50 06/04/05, 05:00 PM

Heck, I'm not even SURE if it's even a spider bite, much less sure that it's a brown recluse spider bite!

It looks a lot better today...the blister in the middle is getting smaller and the redness is fading, but hubby and I talked about it and I'm going to have the doctor look at it Monday. Hubby needs to get a shot for poison ivy so I'll tag along and let Doc give me his two cents.

animal_kingdom · #51 06/06/05, 09:22 PM

I feel badly for you Ravenlost.

Your husband can go get a shot for poison ivy and take care of himself but you don't take care of yourself...Even if your bite is not any poisonous spider bite, it's better to be safe than sorry. Life is too short to mess around with one's health. You don't really know how important health is until you have almost none left.

But I am so glad you are going to have it checked out. Good job! You have a lot of concerned people here wishing they could get you and take you themselves to the doctor for peace of mind. Glad you made a good choice and hopefully today you went and had it looked at. I've been praying that yours is not a serious bite of any kind.

Kenneth in NC · #52 06/06/05, 09:54 PM

Ravenlost my spider bit quickly developed into a BullsEye and I felt like crap. My DW took me first thing next morning to Doctor. we searched the bedroom and found the dead female b.recluse in a pair of sweat pants I'd worn outside the day before. Don't know how it got here to NC but I am not a fan of spiders.

Ravenlost if your ok with waiting and depending on antibiotics your already taking. So be it.

Kenneth