A friend was sat on a park bench surrounded by long grass when he felt something hit the back of his leg.
“It was like somebody had thrown a little pebble at me.”
It didn’t hurt, so he ignored it. Within minutes, however, his leg began to ache and swell.
Several hours later, the pain was severe. He found two tiny puncture marks less than a centimetre apart, but never actually saw what had bitten him.
It may have been an adder. The area was known to have them, and the symptoms fitted. But perhaps it wasn’t. That is partly the reason for sharing this tale.
He had once been told an adder bite was like a wasp sting.
“That’s nonsense,” he said. “I’ve been stung by wasps. This was significantly worse.”
He didn’t seek medical help on the day he was bitten. He wasn’t convinced it was necessary, and Google told him to keep calm and stay relaxed if it was indeed an adder bite… something he doubted he could achieve in A&E.
The swelling subsided, but over the following weeks he lost strength and control in the leg. His calf wasted, his balance deteriorated, he also lost over 2 stone in weight without trying … and three months later he is still limping and having physiotherapy.
Nobody can say for certain that the later problems were caused by the bite. But what has struck me is how insignificant it seemed at first: no dramatic strike, no immediate agony, just a tiny pebble hitting the back of his leg.
If you think you may have been bitten by something venomous, please take it seriously, even if it doesn’t feel serious at the time.
NHS advice is to seek medical help immediately for any suspected snake bite.
- Call 999 or go to A&E.
- Keep the bitten part of your body as still as possible.
- Remove jewellery and loosen clothing near the bite in case it swells.
- Take paracetamol for pain if needed.
- If possible, remember what the snake looked like, but don’t try to catch it.
- Do not use a tourniquet or tie anything tightly around the bite.
- Do not cut the bite or try to suck out the venom.
- Do not drive yourself to hospital, ask a friend to drive you or call an ambulance.
Even if the bite initially seems minor, get it checked.
Source: NHS guidance on snake bites.
