Bee Incident Revisited

This morning's bike ride was going really well.  I had just maxed out on the Dug Hill Rd. climb in Hurley and was cruising along the rollers when I felt something trying to sting my left shin.  I looked down and there was a big yellowjacket clinging to my lower let.  I tried to swat it off, but missed and by the time the pedal came back around, he stung me.  It hurt a little, but not too much, so I announced to SJ and Justin that I had been stung but was ok so we could keep riding.  I used the next intersection as an excuse to stop and assess the damage.  No stinger, but there was a little red dot from the sting.  No big deal, it still hurt, but only as much as a bee sting hurts, so we kept going on our ride around the reservoir.  A few minutes later my leg started itching, but not in the place of the sting, so I ignored and kept going.  Finally at about 40 minutes later, my head started itching and I could feel the sensation going down my back.  At this point, I knew--allergic reaction.  The hives were coming.  Just like they did when I got stung by a fire ant in Clermont 5 years ago.  We pulled over again and I took off my helmet which was a relief.  We checked and there weren't any hives, so we got back on the bikes and carried on.  No more than 5 minutes later, the feeling got worse.  It feels like when you have poison ivy and try to take a shower.  We stopped again and I took off my jersey and we got back on the bikes with the hope of making to the nearest town, Stone Ridge, 20 minutes away or more.  Not having a jersey was a relief but I could see the hives popping up everywhere.  We continued riding until we just happened to pass the DEP police station.  This was the first sign of life we'd seen since the sting.  Not a lot of car traffic out there.  We went in, figuring they might have some benedryl or at least some cool air.  As soon as we got inside, the reaction started to take off.  I could feel my face and eyes swelling and my breathing didn't feel great.  No sensation of my throat closing, but it did feel a little like I was still on my bike going up a moderately hard hill.  The cops at the DEP, who were very nice, thought it would be best to call an ambulance since they didn't have any benedryl.  After about 30 minutes, the emt's showed up and gave me an epi pen, a benedryl shot and a few other things that required an IV.  oh yeah, they also gave me oxygen with inhaler medicine in it.  The allergic reaction, which was still progressing up to that point, stopped within about a minute of the injection.  That was a huge relief because it was starting to get really uncomfortable.  Oh yeah, and to make matters worse, they couldn't find the vein for the IV, so I was poked and prodded too.  

After that, it was off to the hospital in an ambulance for the necessary 2 hour observance period required after an epi shot.  The entire way over there, I was reliving the infamous bee incident of '87.   That day, I managed to be the only one not stung, but I remember it vividly.  Sarah and Crissy crying, with multiple stings, being treated in the downstairs bathroom.  Karl, in the background, stumbling around with a sting right above her eye.  Finally at one point she said, I can't breathe.  At that point, my mom whisked her away to the thurmont guardian hose company and put her in an ambulance bound for Frederick hospital.  I'll never forget when the ambulance stopped on the side of 15 and waited for the life support vehicle.  My mom and I were in the car following and freaking out.  But, she was ok a few hours later, just like I'm ok now, a few hours later after the sting.  

Not how I wanted to spend the first dry, sunny day we've had in weeks, but at least everything turned out ok in the end!!