Grandpa Felt Like He Got ‘Punched’ in the Leg Before Going into Anaphylactic Shock. Then He Learned Rattlesnake Was to Blame

Grandpa Felt Like He Got ‘Punched’ in the Leg Before Going into Anaphylactic Shock. Then He Learned Rattlesnake Was to Blame https://ift.tt/MfSysui

“I’m just so freaking thankful that I came out as well as I did,” Michael Padilla said

NEED TO KNOW

• Michael Padilla and his family were hanging out at a roadside stop along U.S. Highway 34 when he felt something on his leg that prompted him to seek medical attention
• He learned at the hospital that he was bitten by a rattlesnake three times
• Padilla is now recovering at his Colorado home

A Colorado grandfather’s family outing at a favorite roadside stop turned into a harrowing, near-death experience when he was bitten three times by a rattlesnake. 

“I literally almost lost my life,” Michael Padilla, of Windsor told NBC affiliate KUSA. “I’m just so freaking thankful that I came out as well as I did, even though it was as bad as it was.”

After celebrating his grandson’s 13th birthday in the Colorado town of Estes Park, Padilla and his family decided to stop off at their “secret spot” along U.S. Highway 34, according to the outlet.

As he was walking on some rocks along a river, he felt something on his leg, which he described as feeling “like somebody punched me with a thorn.”

Minutes later, Padilla began feeling “weird” and his wife noticed that in addition to the pain and swelling, his eyes looked bloodshot.

His family called 911, and soon after he went inside an ambulance, Padilla went into anaphylactic shock. 

At the hospital, Padilla learned that a rattlesnake snake bit him three times, requiring 18 vials of antivenom to treat, KUSA reported.

Padilla, who is continuing to recover at home, told the outlet that the snake was probably hidden under a rock that he didn’t notice.

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Colorado has seen about 200 rattlesnake bites on average annually, The Coloradoan reported, with 25 percent of those bites characterized as “dry bites,” in which no venom was injected. 

To avoid rattlesnake bites, Denver Health recommends such tips as wearing hiking boots, tennis shoes and thick socks; dressing in long, loose-fitting pants; and avoiding sticking your hands or feet in holes or spots where you can’t see a snake that may be lurking.