Day 6: Disaster bites...err, strikes

Day 5 turned out to be the best day yet. Broeder even said I did a good job. Today (Sunday, 5/17/09) appeared as if it was going to be even better. I was ready to leave well before Broeder was, did everything correctly, got $16 in donations on my own, had a great breakfast, picked out good food for Broeder to eat, delivered it to him on time, and got some pictures. Then things took a turn for the worse. I was waiting on the top of a hill for Broeder on I-10 West and had to pee really badly, so I decided to go to the nearby bush to take care of business. Now, Broeder may have said that shitting in a field was really living, but I guess that statement doesn't extend to pissing by a bush in Texas. As I was finishing up, I felt a sting on my ankle. My first thought was that I had been poked by a cactus. I looked down and right by my feet was a rattlesnake. The bastard didn't even have the decency to warn me before biting me! It did, however, rattle afterwards, as if to mock me. At least I got to piss on him and his home....Within 10 seconds I learned that dialing *999 in a roadside emergency is a myth (at least it is in Sonora, TX), so I called 911, gave them my location (which was much easier to do under pressure than I would have imagined), and called my mom to let her know I might be dead in a few hours. She looked up what to do online, and I found out that there is basically nothing that you are supposed to do other than get to a hospital. Broeder came biking along and with nothing to do, I took a pictures of the bite and pictures of Broeder while I sat on the trailer by the side of the road. The ambulance came about 15 minutes later and took me to the hospital. The local hospital in Sonora has a very friendly staff. They waited about 30-45 minutes to see if venom had actually been injected (apparently 25% of all pit-viper bites are dry, meaning that venom is not injected). It did begin to swell and the pain increased, so they gave me morphine and CroFab (anti-venom treatment). I'm told the CroFab is $4,000 dollars per treatment, and I needed at least 2, maybe more. Also, there is the potential for very serious side effects from the CroFab, like anaphylaxis, so they sent me to San Angelo community Hospital via ambulance. Before I left they said a very touching prayer for me, with the staff and me holding hands. At one point the nurse said something like, "God bless this young man as he leaves us, may he have peace as he goes on his way," which seriously made me feel as if I was listening to myself being given the Last Rites. The prayer was extremely heartfelt and meaningful to me nonetheless. NOw it is about 8:30 pm, I am at the hospital, still alive, but worried about compartment syndrome. Compartment syndrome is a condition in which swelling (inflammation) gets so severe that it cuts off the blood supply. My foot is quite swollen, numb, stiff, and the swelling is spreading up the leg. I was bitten at about 9:30 am, and 11 hours later it is still getting worse. Compartment syndrome must be operated on immediately or nerve damage and muscle death may occur. I am now receiving another dose of CroFab, and the nurse is going to measure the girth of the swollen areas every hour. Please keep me and my right leg in your thoughts and prayers.