FORT SILL, Okla., Jan. 26, 2017 -- "If you had not used your EPI pen and called 911, the most likely result would have been death for you."
I received those chilling words during a conversation with Brittney Little, a paramedic for Emergency Medical Services Authority of Oklahoma City, recently. Little was the lead paramedic who saved my life from my most recent bout of anaphylactic shock.
Anaphylaxis is an acute, life-threatening hypersensitive reaction, involving the whole body, which is usually brought on by something eaten or injected.
In my case, I ate sesame of which common forms are seeds, oil and tahini, often used in salad dressings. The frightening reaction first occurred about 15 months ago. Even worse, in the initial stages I didn't know what was bothering me.
I'd never experienced a food allergy before, though I suffer from various plant and other outdoor allergies, and I have asthma, which I understand are markers for people susceptible to anaphylaxis.
The closest I ever came to an awareness of this condition was from people who are highly allergic to bee stings. I often thought how terrible to be outdoors, far from medical facilities and be rendered so helpless.
My initial attack occurred eating hummus and veggies at a Middle Eastern restaurant with my wife and family. I began to notice my lips itched and what felt like an increasing fever. Leaving the restaurant a short time later, my breathing grew difficult and my complexion flared to a ghastly red.
According to Integris Health of Oklahoma City, common symptoms of anaphylaxis are:
-- Itching and hives over most of the body;
-- Swelling of the throat and tongue;
-- Difficulty breathing;
-- Dizziness;
-- Headache;
-- Stomach cramps, nausea, or diarrhea;
-- Shock; and
-- Loss of consciousness.
In that initial attack, we were close to an emergency room, drove over and received prompt treatment. Again, being unsure of what caused this flare up, I decided it had to be an ingredient I'd never had before called sumac. Seemed a safe assumption until I had another attack a few months later, and again after eating hummus.
This time I consulted my primary care manager, who put in a referral for additional allergen testing.
The University of Maryland Medical Center website states though a rare condition, anaphlyaxis may affect those people with: known allergies; cardiovascular disease; asthma and other respiratory diseases; initial exposure to the allergen by injection (intravenous medication); frequent exposure to the allergen, particularly if exposure is followed by a long delay and then a re-exposure; and low vitamin D levels, which evidence suggests may be associated with risk of anaphylaxis and food allergy.
I've dealt with a variety of outdoor allergies for a number of years, but again never with foods. The tests revealed sesame as the likely culprit with garlic, slightly elevated but at this time not a problem.
Getting back to this latest calamity, Nov. 19 promised to be a pleasant evening with dinner at a nice restaurant followed by tickets to the Oklahoma Philharmonic Orchestra. It was a night to get dressed up and celebrate the coming holiday season.
Sitting down to order I made a huge mistake by not reading the menu and selecting an item I thought I'd had before.
Ordinarily that's something I ALWAYS do these days along with asking the waiter if anything on the menu contains sesame.
I knew I was highly allergic to this seed, and had I chosen a chicken dish instead, this whole episode would never have happened. Even a cursory review of the menu would have revealed the previously mentioned "tahini," an oily paste that is created by soaking sesame seeds in water, then toasting and grinding them into the final product.
Being my fourth attack, I knew instantly I had a problem.
I felt lightheaded, along with an instantly irritation in the back of my throat making it difficult to swallow. I also felt the rush of internal heat and knew if I wasn't already, I'd soon become a ghastly sight. I turned to my wife and asked if I was getting red and the look she gave me confirmed my fears. Next week: Mistakes made, help on the way.
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