I'm puzzled.
Circa 2002, flying career ended, thank God, it was less than two years before I had my first serious reaction. I had been in Clacton hospital to have me back stretched - no drugs and no breakfast yet. Lots of cheerful banter with the lovely physio. Get in car to head home having washed my hands in hospital soap.
5 minuets, hands itch like hell. 7 minuets, hands fat and red and itch like hell. 8 minutes, feel unwell. 10 minutes, feel so ill it's almost impossible to describe. Just able to holla on 999.
Now, end of 40+ years flying. No forewarning I was starting to react to, of all things, soap. So it seems, anyone can be disabled by a lot of things and no one is free from the possibility.
Last job, one of my FO's had the peanut thing on his JAR licence. Life threateningly severe reaction - presumably learned from experience. It gets worse, not better.
My GP refused a 3rd eppipen because of the cost. "why? It only buys you 10 minutes".
In haste, end, for tonight. I'll come back on this thread but just add that I had my second severe reaction last year. Although I don't usually use strong soaps, I used Mr Muscle, and what's more, sprayed it on the bath. I suspect the mist got me. 5 mins, stomach cramps and felt ill. This time I knew what had happened. I had the presence of mind to unlatch the front door - staggered back slowly collapsing. Just see grey with some white spots. Not being able to see made me get a 999 call in and fantastic young chap was telling me to "stay with me". He was in the house in 7 mins. I kept him waiting due to having a reaction like ten packets of Picolax at once.
BP was some silly figure that's impossible. Rate was 40-something. My temperature was falling. Apart from that, I was fine :-)
What's so odd is that during the intervening years, a young lady at Addenbrookes, a consultant, said I could not possibly have had anaphylactic shock. I would not have survived. She went on to say I must have got over excited about my fat red hands and made a fuss. I almost filed a formal complaint, but with other problems in my life, just didn't have the energy.
Last edited by Loose rivets; 16th Feb 2017 at 22:32.