While in route back home from our vacation we got an alarming phone message to call my home town and family in Tennessee. I pondered the call and decided to wait until we got back to Maryland where I felt I could best handle any bad news, opposed to trying to deal with something on the highway, and being in no position to do anything. Tania was an incredible person. She was in her mid/late thirties, married with three children. Her heart was so big, she opened up her home to two children relatives for a year when they were in need. I remember her as a baby and then as a grown woman. She was always respectful, pleasant and nice to be around. She was the glue to her family, and to her mother's family. The one everyone could count on. Over a week ago, she was in her van and was bitten by a Brown Recluse Spider. She didn't go to the hospital for a week, her mom, (my sister) after seeing the swelling and pus, insisted she go to the doctor. Before she could go, she got hot and was running through the house naked saying she was hot. They called the ambulance and she was taken to the hospital. She was given antibodies and was sent home. She seemed to be getting better but then she began to get worst. Upon going back to the hospital there she would not let them put an IV in her arm, she was finally subsuded and given a Cat scan, more meds, and then was able to put in the IV. She began to seize and the family was cleared from the room for them to work on her. She was given another Cat scan and there was no activity. The family had a meeting and made the decision to remove her from life preserve. Please pray for her children and the family. The service is next week and God willing; I will be there. Thank you P.S. The irony is that in route back on the drive home, there was a total of 3 spiders in our van and our kids got hysterical and I rebuffed them saying "it was only a spider." I didn't know it was really a sign.
Oh my! I will certainly be praying for your family, both immediate and extended. I will pray for comfort and understanding.
That is so sad. I will keep you all in my prayers. We have lots of those around here and I had a brown recluse bite about 10 years ago. They hurt horribly, but if I understand correctly (and I may not!), the poison is not what does the most damage, it is if the bite gets infected. Either way, keep an eye out for them!
Yes, I googled it and it depends also on the immune system of the victim. Her bite(s) had gotten filled with pus, so I do believe that an infection set in. It sounds to me that an infection had traveled up into her blood system and maybe even into her brain causing violent seizures. Causing her system to shut down. Here's what one site said: "Most spiders are absolutely harmless to humans. In fact, of the 20,000 different species of spiders that inhabit the Americas, only 60 are capable of biting humans. Within that small group, only four are known to be dangerous to humans: brown recluse, black widow, hobo or aggressive house spider, and the yellow sac spider. Within this select group, only the brown recluse and the black widow spider have ever been associated with significant disease and very rare reports of death." Its' so hard to believe that the last time we see people, may be the last time forever.
'So very sorry to read this, GeekyMom. It reminds me of a saying, "Life is fragile, handle with prayer." I pray that the family will find the path which God has prepared for them.
