Freaking out slightly
Alright, after confirmation that my spider was indeed a brown recluse and now that I am experiencing symptoms, I’d like to document and get some insight from those who have also gone through this.
Tuesday May 26: late at night in bed I scratched my leg and felt something wet. Looked down and had some spider legs in my hand and then found the head. Posted the head picture on r/spideridentifier and tried to think positively (my fears were confirmed however)
Wednesday May 27: 8am woke up with some more localized pain and hot to the touch. Drew around redness to document.
11am: redness increased in size. Took a Zyrtec
2pm: developed allergic reaction on parts of my body that had previously had reactions (old insect bite, old coral sting). Noticeable swelling and redness on my other knee and left upper arm where these reactions were before.
3pm: hives covered my lower body from my pelvis to just below my knees. Hives on my shoulders and my upper left arm.
4pm: went to urgent care. Was given an oral dose of steroids and was sent home with an antibiotic and steroid.
Spent the rest of the evening feeling pretty crappy with flu like symptoms and heat from the hives. Took a Benadryl.
Thursday May 28: 8am More spreading at the bite site. Hives had cleared some but the redness on my knee and arm was very pronounced. Took the meds as well as another Zyrtec and some Pepcid (recommended by the doc as another antihistamine)
Now, things are kind of staying the same as of 4pm but the bite site is looking bruised under the skin and is developing a small blister.
Sorry for the long post, I wanted to be as detailed as possible to help someone in the future and to get some advice from those who have experience this before. I will include pics and keep updating if things get worse.