PLEASE read if you have children or know children!

Hey folks, this is unrelated to weight loss, but I need to share this with you. Nothing like the fear of God from an unexpected incident to make you feel like you need to blaze a trail and tell the world about this awful, awful thing. This is not a forward, this is about me - Emily (egh1974 on MFP) and it's not a joke. Please EVERYONE read this and share, especially if you have children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, or know any children at all and you live in North America. Yesterday, while at a wedding in Florida at a state park, I was holding one of the babies. Inside his blanket a Puss Caterpillar (aka Asp, aka Wooly Slug) had found it’s way into the folds. Apparently I rubbed the back of my hand all across this insect and what happened over the following 3 hours I can honestly say were the most painful moments of my life, and yes – that includes natural childbirth. This little *kitten* is the most poisonous caterpillar in North America, causing intense pain that comes in waves and feels like what I could only describe as having my hand slammed in a car door. When it first happened, I felt tingling and needle-like sensations that made me immediately feel like I was having an allergic reaction. It progressed into writhing pain that caused me to hyperventilate, cry, cuss… you name it. My heart was racing and I started freezing, and that’s when I feared going into shock. I had an intense headache and my breathing was labored. After the solid 3 hours of this unbelievable pain, it settled into what felt like my hand was recovering from severe burns. This morning, it feels like I’m still recovering from burns, I’m nauseated, I have a headache, muscle cramps, and generally don’t feel well at all. MY POINT in sharing this is that if God forbid that sweet baby had been attacked by this monster, we never would have known what was wrong with him. There were no visible signs other than a slight red rash and swelling. I got a hefty dose of this poison, and in some cases it can lead to respiratory failure, renal failure, and even death. In the hospital they give morphine for the pain, and had I been near a hospital, I would have welcomed that. PLEASE tell your children – DO NOT PLAY WITH CATERPILLARS. Please, PLEASE show the older kids a picture of a puss caterpillar and teach them to be aware. If this happened to a child you might not have any idea what had happened. We were in Florida yesterday when it happened, but these are all over the south and as far over as Texas and up North as well. They are no joke.