I did. I let my guard down. I was not prepared. And it could've ended badly.
I thought my Chronic Idiopathic Urticaria Angioedema was being fairly well controlled by my daily meds. I've had some medication changes recently, but not related to the CIUA. The pollen has made my hives more prevalent than usual. And then there's the stress. The stress is winning. This has been the hardest year of my teaching career (11 years) for various reasons. The stress makes me swell and have more hives. Depression is winning. I'm sad. I'm frustrated. I'm lonely. I'm discouraged. I'm defeated. And then Friday happened.
My first anaphylactic reaction happened at school while they were cutting grass. I'm super careful around grass and have been since before I got sick. But, I'm able to cut the grass at my house (with a mask) with very little reaction. I'll get back to the grass in a little bit.
Epipens ✔️ Masks ✔️Liquid Benadryl ✔️ Benadryl pills ✔️ Emergency Care Plan ✔️ These were the things that went EVERYWHERE with me. You could find these things in my purse, my car, my backpack, and my classroom. That is until I let my guard down. I didn't buy more Benadryl for the car. I used all the masks from my backpack. My stashes were not refilled and I didn't think twice about it. I hadn't needed them in a while, so I just never got around to buying more stuff.
Back to the grass...they cut it about every two weeks at school. I haven't had any problems with it. That is until Friday. They had cut the grass on Thursday, so I was surprised to smell the grass coming through the air vents in my classroom. They obviously didn't finish Thursday and came back on Friday. Did I mention Friday was Easter Egg Hunt Day? 200 eggs and 37 kindergarteners. The Kindergarten friends were excited for the day.
It was recess time. We have recess before lunch. I looked for a mask in my backpack to no avail. I called the office and asked if the school nurse had any. No luck there. I decided that I would just use my shirt to cover my nose if I needed to. I did grab my epipens and took them with me (they usually stay in my classroom). The grass smell was especially strong as we walked towards the playground.
The other K teacher was already on the playground with her friends. I was sending mine from the back of the cafeteria sidewalk to the playground. I still had about five friends waiting with me. Then it happened. I coughed. I gagged. I almost threw up. The coughing became more frequent. I knew I had to get out of the outside. With what little voice I had left (another symptom of anaphylaxis) I sent my kids to the other K teacher on the playground. And I went as fast as I could to the closest building - the cafeteria.
I got some ice to test my swallowing. I sat down at a table and tried to calm down. I put ice packs on my neck and face. I texted my K teaching partner and quickly explained what had happened. Then I texted my mom. She was in Atlanta keeping my nephew for the day. She texted back some questions that determine the extent of my reaction. I could swallow. I could talk. I wasn't coughing or gagging anymore. But I wasn't out of the woods yet.
I was scared. Scared as to how close I'd come to stabbing myself with the epipen. If I hadn't gotten back inside so quickly, I would've had to use the epipen. I was also scared at how quickly my reaction had started. I was sending my mom selfies to show her how swollen my lips and face were. I was trying to stay calm. But that was hard. Really hard. I have super supportive coworkers and they helped in many different ways. From asking if I needed anything to praying for me, and making sure I wasn't alone (in case it happened again). It took a good 30 minutes before I felt like I was really out of the woods.
Shoutout to my awesome teaching partner. She got my Benadryl out of the car, ate lunch with me in my room, and even had our egg hunt in her classroom (so I didn't have to go back outside). I finished out the day (with an extra antihistamine and a swig of Benadryl).
I was emotionally and physically drained. I was very glad it was a Friday and I could just rest and recover. I tend to have an anaphylaxis hangover after major reactions like this one. I didn't feel well on Saturday and spent most of the day in bed. Thankfully, I was feeling back to "normal" on Sunday.
Lesson learned. Bought more Benadryl. Bought new masks. Bought new epipens. Just in case.
I thought my Chronic Idiopathic Urticaria Angioedema was being fairly well controlled by my daily meds. I've had some medication changes recently, but not related to the CIUA. The pollen has made my hives more prevalent than usual. And then there's the stress. The stress is winning. This has been the hardest year of my teaching career (11 years) for various reasons. The stress makes me swell and have more hives. Depression is winning. I'm sad. I'm frustrated. I'm lonely. I'm discouraged. I'm defeated. And then Friday happened.
My first anaphylactic reaction happened at school while they were cutting grass. I'm super careful around grass and have been since before I got sick. But, I'm able to cut the grass at my house (with a mask) with very little reaction. I'll get back to the grass in a little bit.
Epipens ✔️ Masks ✔️Liquid Benadryl ✔️ Benadryl pills ✔️ Emergency Care Plan ✔️ These were the things that went EVERYWHERE with me. You could find these things in my purse, my car, my backpack, and my classroom. That is until I let my guard down. I didn't buy more Benadryl for the car. I used all the masks from my backpack. My stashes were not refilled and I didn't think twice about it. I hadn't needed them in a while, so I just never got around to buying more stuff.
Back to the grass...they cut it about every two weeks at school. I haven't had any problems with it. That is until Friday. They had cut the grass on Thursday, so I was surprised to smell the grass coming through the air vents in my classroom. They obviously didn't finish Thursday and came back on Friday. Did I mention Friday was Easter Egg Hunt Day? 200 eggs and 37 kindergarteners. The Kindergarten friends were excited for the day.
It was recess time. We have recess before lunch. I looked for a mask in my backpack to no avail. I called the office and asked if the school nurse had any. No luck there. I decided that I would just use my shirt to cover my nose if I needed to. I did grab my epipens and took them with me (they usually stay in my classroom). The grass smell was especially strong as we walked towards the playground.
The other K teacher was already on the playground with her friends. I was sending mine from the back of the cafeteria sidewalk to the playground. I still had about five friends waiting with me. Then it happened. I coughed. I gagged. I almost threw up. The coughing became more frequent. I knew I had to get out of the outside. With what little voice I had left (another symptom of anaphylaxis) I sent my kids to the other K teacher on the playground. And I went as fast as I could to the closest building - the cafeteria.
I got some ice to test my swallowing. I sat down at a table and tried to calm down. I put ice packs on my neck and face. I texted my K teaching partner and quickly explained what had happened. Then I texted my mom. She was in Atlanta keeping my nephew for the day. She texted back some questions that determine the extent of my reaction. I could swallow. I could talk. I wasn't coughing or gagging anymore. But I wasn't out of the woods yet.
I was scared. Scared as to how close I'd come to stabbing myself with the epipen. If I hadn't gotten back inside so quickly, I would've had to use the epipen. I was also scared at how quickly my reaction had started. I was sending my mom selfies to show her how swollen my lips and face were. I was trying to stay calm. But that was hard. Really hard. I have super supportive coworkers and they helped in many different ways. From asking if I needed anything to praying for me, and making sure I wasn't alone (in case it happened again). It took a good 30 minutes before I felt like I was really out of the woods.
Shoutout to my awesome teaching partner. She got my Benadryl out of the car, ate lunch with me in my room, and even had our egg hunt in her classroom (so I didn't have to go back outside). I finished out the day (with an extra antihistamine and a swig of Benadryl).
I was emotionally and physically drained. I was very glad it was a Friday and I could just rest and recover. I tend to have an anaphylaxis hangover after major reactions like this one. I didn't feel well on Saturday and spent most of the day in bed. Thankfully, I was feeling back to "normal" on Sunday.
Lesson learned. Bought more Benadryl. Bought new masks. Bought new epipens. Just in case.
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