Who's been bit by a Black Widow? Or a different spider? ?

Question

Ive been bit twice, both at night. I know this because my whole leg cramped up for a good ten minutes, and in the morning I found a spider bite not a huge spider bite, but not small. This has happened twice.

And a mystery spider bit me, that left me a swollen lump, although a painless bite that lasted for 2-3 months. I guess it left its fangs in my leg.

If anyone wants to share, I'm curious to see what other have to say about their own experiencess

Answer 1

I've been bitten several times before by random spiders. For me, the bites were like big mosquito bites that didn't itch. Sometimes, there was a lump below the skin.

My father was bitten by a brown recluse spider a few years ago. They are super poisonous, and can kill people. He had a terrible fever and was hallucinating. He had a huge knot on his leg (where he was bitten) where the poisons were literally killing/eating the flesh. He had to get the whole area cut out at the hospital, and 10 years later, it is still terribly scarred.

As if I needed another reason to be totally arachnophobia...

Answer 2

Black widows cant bite. They cant pierce through human skin.

Answer 3

I've been bitten by a brown recluse.  My reaction was about the same as yours, with a wen or abscess under the skin that lasted for months.

This is about the same as my reaction to scorpion stings except at the time of the stings (4 so far and counting) the scorpions were a lot more painful.  

Neither did any real lasting damage,and all of them left knots that lasted for months, and one knot behind my knee is still with me after at least 15 years If I had been a soprano I suspect my shrieks would have broken any nearby glass.