Mrs. Tennessee Bitten By Rattlesnake

[Zkribbler]

Rattlesnake Bites Mrs. America Contestant
Woman Spends Several Hours In Intensive Care


TUCSON, Ariz. -- It was a case of beauty and the bite when a Mrs. America contestant was bitten by a rattlesnake in Arizona on Sunday.

Christina Ryan, who is Mrs. Tennessee, spent hours in the hospital after suffering the bite while on her way to rehearsals for the pageant.

She's now watching the pageant from the sidelines.

Ryan had been coming down some stairs when she saw a brown recluse spider on the ground and backed away from it.

However, she didn't see the rattlesnake that was behind her.

"Suddenly they jumped and they were screaming and we assumed they had encountered some kind of a critter," said Mrs. Iowa, Taryn Schuyler, who is a nurse.

Schuyler's training paid off. She was able to pull the snake's fang out and help calm Christina.

She wasn't the only one to help: Mrs. Wisconsin called 911 and Mrs. Mississippi helped calm Christina down.

But Ryan said she wasn't going to let the bite rattle her. "Even if I have to hobble across the stage, I'm still going to compete," she said.

Christina spent several hours in intensive care receiving antivenin. Doctors are still keeping a close eye on her.

[Grandpa Troll]

That happened like last week..

/me think she should be glad she didnt get bit by a troll..they say those hurt real bad, plus all the venom ooozing out, awgh, terrible sitch-e-ation

[b etor]

there's a MRS usa pageant too? wtf

[DRoseDARs]

There are worse places to be bitten (or better, depending on your facial expression...):

[Grandpa Troll]

Originally posted by b etor
there's a MRS usa pageant too? wtf

Indeey

[b etor]

some of those women have wayyyyyyyy too much makeup on. eww. i approve of mrs tennessee tho

[Grandpa Troll]

Originally posted by b etor
some of those women have wayyyyyyyy too much makeup on. eww. i approve of mrs tennessee tho

well, perhaps for you, but not for all

[LordShiva]

[Berzerker]

Ryan had been coming down some stairs when she saw a brown recluse spider on the ground and backed away from it.

Brown Recluse dont make a habit of sitting on stairs... hence the name. They are aggressive but hide away in clothes/blankets tucked in closets. I assume this was an outside staircase, maybe a tarantula. Recluses are smaller so I'm surprised they even noticed it.

[Winston]

I think any Miss / Mrs. contestant should be bitten into as part of the contest. Not necessarily by rattlesnakes. For $20 plus expenses, I'd.. No, forget the 20. And the expenses.

[Grandpa Troll]

Originally posted by Berzerker


Brown Recluse dont make a habit of sitting on stairs... hence the name. They are aggressive but hide away in clothes/blankets tucked in closets. I assume this was an outside staircase, maybe a tarantula. Recluses are smaller so I'm surprised they even noticed it.

Indeedy

I have been bit by both black widows and Brown Recluse's here in North carolina.

I thought I would die, as I lost about 25 pounds over a very short time, terrible headaches, couldnt keep anything, including fluids down without vomiting.

Now a Tarantula looks nothing like either, they are huge with furry legs, in Honduras, we saw some that were about 3" across on main body, plus those legs

Freaky deaky

[Grandpa Troll]

Originally posted by Winston
I think any Miss / Mrs. contestant should be bitten into as part of the contest. Not necessarily by rattlesnakes. For $20 plus expenses, I'd.. No, forget the 20. And the expenses.

If a lot of contestants were needing such treatment, I know a dang old Troll who locks down, and could conceivably be drug down the stairway, receiving a serious red rugburn

Im experienced, I know all to well to hang tough til all da venom flows outs

[Berzerker]

I have been bit by both black widows and Brown Recluse's here in North carolina.

I thought I would die, as I lost about 25 pounds over a very short time, terrible headaches, couldnt keep anything, including fluids down without vomiting.

I've been bitten several times while asleep but the damage was limited to a surface welt, so I doubt it was one of the more venomous spiders - especially the time I got it on the back of my neck.

Which was worse? Did all that happen with both spiders and where'd you get bit? My dad got it from a Recluse about 50 miles south of Topeka so I know we got 'em here. And it was pretty bad but limited to his leg. I guess people have varying tolerances for different kinds of venom, I've heard of people who are essentially immune to rattlesnakes because they've been bitten so many times.

[Zkribbler]

Originally posted by b etor
there's a MRS usa pageant too? wtf

Married women can be babes too!

[Straybow]

Originally posted by Zkribbler
Married women can be babes too!

Yep, the good ones are taken and the rest are psychos.

From what I understand I'd rather be bit by a rattler, but if it really is a brown recluse you don't have to back away. It won't jump or charge in to attack.

I do know many bites from other small spiders are mistakenly attributed to the brown recluse. The bite itself is nearly painless, and may go completely unnoticed. BR venom is a fully localized effect. It doesn't travel through the blood, it seeps through the soft tissues, dissolving cell walls over hours or days.

The enzymes themselves aren't consumed in the process, so the destruction slowly spreads. They do break down over time.

Apparently brown recluses don't always do a "full attack." Their venom is an enzyme they use to pre-digest their prey, and so if they don't anticipate eating you a purely defensive bite won't have the full flesh-eating effect. If surprised or hurt they'll release more venom.