Well, you've really done it this time.
Whether marrying a murderous temptress with a heart of stone,
or chewing on a wild forest mushroom,
you got yourself poisoned.
Your throat is closing up,
and your gut clenches with pain.
Will you die?
Luckily, there are steps you can take to live another day.
Here's how to survive being poisoned,
Even if you aren't aware of ingesting anything toxic,
you'll know you've been poisoned if you have any of the following symptoms:
vomiting, difficulty breathing,
drowsiness, redness around your mouth,
and mental confusion.
Before you do anything else,
Tell the nurse on the phone your age, weight,
information about the poison,
all medications that you take, and describe your symptoms.
Tell them how much you took.
Also, read them the label on the packaging,
so they'll know exactly what poison they're dealing with.
If it's a household cleaner or other chemical,
the good news is that
that will outline what to do in case of accidental poisoning.
If the poison is in your eye,
Do this for at least 15 minutes, or until medical help comes.
If you wear contact lenses, take them out.
If the poison is something you've inhaled,
And if you've come into contact with a hazardous substance,
or poison on your skin,
get it off.
then hop in the shower for 15-20 minutes to rinse yourself off,
using a mild soap to remove the substance from your skin.
If you feel like throwing up,
make sure that you're not lying on your back.
If you absolutely have to lie on your back,
turn your head sideways to avoid choking on your vomit.
Now, here's a big "don't."
Many people assume that if you've swallowed poison,
reversing the risk simply means throwing the poison back up.
it can make you aspirate,
or make vomit go into your lungs,
and that could be deadly.
The old way of doing things involved swallowing Ipecac,
which induces vomiting.
Unfortunately, both the American Association of Poison Control Centers,
and the American Academy of Paediatrics
no longer advise people to use Ipecac,
as there's not enough evidence proving its effectiveness.
Ipecac poses a major risk of esophagitis,
and aspirational pneumonia if it's used to purge corrossive poisons.
It may seem like a good idea to dilute the poison, but in reality, it doesn't work.
Drinking water will not reduce the amount of poison absorbed by your body.
Now, what if it's a snake that poisoned you?
Well, people used to think that you could suck the venom out of the wound,
but that only worked in old Western movies.
Snakebite kits are useless,
and so is the old practice of applying ice to the wound.
The only thing that works is to call for help and get to the hospital immediately.
Insects can poison you, too.
If you have an adrenaline autoinjector,
like an Epipen, stick that sucker in immediately to prevent an allergy attack.
Loosen tight clothing, and breathe slowly, to calm yourself.
Call for help and get to a hospital right away.
Do you see the pattern?
The best way to deal with being poisoned,
any kind of being poisoned,
is to get professional medical help.
It will be very unpleasant,
but being poisoned doesn't have to be deadly.
Get yourself to a hospital as soon as possible,
for your best chance of surviving being poisoned,
According to Science.