A Brown Recluse Bit You? Here's What To Do
by Julia Gregory
All spiders are venomous, but only a few carry enough venom to be potentially fatal to a human. One of these spiders is the brown recluse spider. If you believe you have been bitten by one, keep in mind that it is sometimes difficult to properly identify a spider. However, there are still some actions you should take to stay safe.
Identifying the Spider
If you can capture the spider, it will be easier to identify. Crushing the spider with a shoe may be good enough, but the spider will usually be too damaged to be quickly identified. Keep the spider as intact as possible by spraying it with bug spray instead.
There are many brown spiders, but the brown recluse can be identified by the violin-shaped markings found on its back. Another effective way to identify the brown recluse is by its six eyes. Most spiders have eight eyes.
How the Spider Bite Affects You
Brown recluses do not cause intense pain initially when biting. In fact, most individuals bitten do not even realize it. However, the location of the bite will usually begin to hurt badly and the area around the bite will become discolored. Then, the area will often gradually form a blister that might burst and expose an ulcer underneath. The good news is that some bites do not contain as much venom and you may only have a minor reaction. However, you should still take a trip to urgent care to be safe.
The brown recluse venom causes the destruction of tissue and eventually causes tissue death. The venom also usually induces an immune response, so you may develop a fever.
How Your Doctor Will Treat the Bite
If the reaction is not serious, your doctor might prescribe a medication and will provide instructions on how to care for it. This will often include washing the bite, applying ice and trying to elevate the portion of the body bitten. Regardless, you should contact your doctor if there are any changes in the bite.
Brown recluse bites can sometimes be fatal, so your doctor may instead recommend hospitalization at a clinic like 24 Hour Urgent Care of the Desert. If the skin is severely damaged, you may need a skin graft, which is a small portion of skin removed from one part of your body and used to create new skin for another part. Children and the elderly are the most likely to perish from a recluse bite.
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About Me
The decision to move one of my parents into assisted living was one of the most difficult I have ever made. I had extreme feelings of guilt that led to me being at the facility with my parent practically around the clock. It took a few months before I realized that I could not let my own life fall apart from the guilt I was feeling. I also learned that my parent was fine without me constantly hovering around. Since that time, I have had several friends express similar feelings of guilt. I started this blog to help others in the same situation understand not only their feelings about assisted living, but those of their parents.