A TEACHER claims a chicken nugget meal almost killed her when some frightening symptoms led to her being put in a medically induced coma.
Amanda Clark happily tucked into a chicken nuggets and fries meal while out with a friend in September last year.
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Half an hour after finishing her meal the 30-year-old said she started to feel seriously unwell, erupting in hives and her tongue ballooned in size.
The secondary school Latin teacher suspected it was triggered by her fish allergy despite neither her nor her friend eating any seafood, and that there was cross-contamination in the restaurant kitchen.
Amanda used her EpiPen to try and ease her symptoms but when her symptoms didn’t improve she drove to hospital.
There, doctors gave her different types of medication, eventually putting her in a medically induced coma.
Read more on allergic reaction
After being moved to a rehab hospital she fell ill with sepsis, underwent two surgeries and was discharged from hospital in October.
Amanda, from Richmond, Virginia, US, said: “I’m allergic to all fish. I was at a restaurant with a friend and neither of us had any seafood.
“I ate chicken nuggets and french fries – there was no fish in that.
“When we left the restaurant I started becoming ill and the only thing that we can think of was that something had been cross contaminated.
“I started to feel unwell 30 minutes after, I got hives first then the swelling started.
“That’s how I knew it was my fish allergy because my tongue swelled up, it’s my only known allergy.
“I went to ER. They gave me three different kinds of EpiPen, one an inhaler, then they had to intubate.
“I had hives and swelling in the tongue and throat, that was when I was put in the coma.
“After that I have no memory, it was a very frightening experience.”
Amanda spent 47 days in four different hospitals before she was discharged, believing her ordeal to be over.
Second horror reaction
But months later in February she suffered a second reaction that stumped doctors and led to a hospital stay that ended months later on December 6th.
Amanda was driving home from work and suddenly erupted in hives and was struggling to breathe due to her swollen tongue.
After calling 911 while injecting an EpiPen, an ambulance rushed her to hospital where stumped doctors said it was an idiopathic reaction – meaning there was no known cause.
While undergoing treatment for her second bout of anaphylactic shock she shockingly “forgot how to swallow” and suffered a stroke.
Amanda said doctors think the stroke was caused by oxygen deprivation she suffered while experiencing respiratory problems, but she believes it’s possibly linked to the original allergic reaction.
Amanda said: “After I came out of hospital the first time I thought I was back on my feet.
“I was driving home from school one day. I don’t know what happened, I just couldn’t breathe.
“My throat swelled up and I had hives all over. I gave myself an EpiPen in the car but it didn’t work.
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“I was on the phone to 911 and they couldn’t understand me because I couldn’t talk because my tongue was so swollen.
“They’d already sent EMS [Emergency Medical Services] to me, by the time I got to the house the ambulance was already there.
“At one of the rehabs I went to I ended up going into respiratory failure and had oxygen deprivation.
“I went to a different rehab and then ended up going into respiratory failure.
“A week later I was eating lunch when I suddenly forgot how to swallow, I was having a stroke. Doctors think it was caused by the oxygen deprivation.
“My body went through such a trauma on that Labor Day weekend it might possibly have caused it, but I don’t know.
“I’ve been in hospital since then pretty much. I was paralysed on my right side from the arm down.
“I started getting some movement back in my legs but still nothing in my arms until August.”
Food allergy symptoms
A food allergy is caused by the immune system overreacting to certain types of food.
It’s not clear why this happens, but certain foods are more likely to cause an allergic reaction in some people.
The most common food allergies include cow’s milk, eggs, peanuts, shellfish and wheat.
Common symptoms of a food allergy include:
- feeling dizzy or lightheaded
- itchy skin or a raised rash (hives)
- swelling of the lips, face and eyes
- coughing, wheezing, breathlessness, noisy breathing or a hoarse voice
- sneezing or an itchy, runny or blocked nose
- feeling sick or being sick
- tummy pain
- diarrhoea
These symptoms can occur straight after eating something or days later.
But you should call 999 if:
- your lips, mouth, throat or tongue suddenly become swollen
- you’re breathing very fast or struggling to breathe (you may become very wheezy or feel like you’re choking or gasping for air)
- your throat feels tight or you’re struggling to swallow
- your skin, tongue or lips turn blue, grey or pale (if you have black or brown skin, this may be easier to see on the palms of your hands or soles of your feet)
- you suddenly become very confused, drowsy or dizzy
- someone faints and cannot be woken up
- a child is limp, floppy or not responding like they normally do (their head may fall to the side, backwards or forwards, or they may find it difficult to lift their head or focus on your face)
You or the person who’s unwell may also have a rash that’s swollen, raised or itchy.
These symptoms can be signs of a severe allergic reaction and may need immediate treatment in hospital.
source: NHS
Long road to recovery
While many teachers looked forward to the Christmas break, Amanda said she’d do anything to be back in the classroom.
Amanda said: “It’s been so hard not being able to work, I miss it so much.
“I ask my teacher friends to send me videos of the classes so I can feel like I’m a part of it.
“Many were counting down the Christmas holidays, but I would do anything to be back at work.
“I still have a long way to go recovery-wise and I still have a lot of strength to build, at least another year or two.”
Amanda has had the ability to speak, but has slurred speech.
She continued: “I’m still trached [have a tracheostomy] so I can have humidified air at night.
“I’m sharing my experience to show how far I’ve come.
“I’ve been through so much in my life but nothing like this. I’ve come so close to death and by the grace of God I’ve been given a new life. It’s been tough but I’ve got a great support system.
“My advice to anyone with allergies is always carry an EpiPen and get medical help straight away.”
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