At the end of last week, Lunchbox left work early after feeling unwell. He went to the doctor, where a throat swab confirmed he had strep throat. What initially seemed like a routine illness quickly became more severe.
Soon after the diagnosis, Lunchbox began experiencing significant swelling in his face. His eyes became so swollen he could barely open them, his tongue felt enlarged, and his lips were noticeably puffy. By Friday night, the swelling had worsened to the point that he was waking up every 30 minutes because he was struggling to breathe comfortably. Swallowing became extremely painful, even when trying to swallow saliva, making it nearly impossible for him to sleep. Concerned by the rapid progression of symptoms, Lunchbox returned to the doctor on Saturday. The swelling in his throat was so severe that the doctor was unable to see down it during the examination. She immediately called for medication, and a nurse administered a shot in his hip. At that point, the doctor believed Lunchbox may have been having an allergic reaction, possibly to amoxicillin, and changed his prescription to a different antibiotic.
Despite the new medication, the swelling did not fully subside. Lunchbox went back to the doctor again on Sunday, where he was given oral steroids to help reduce the inflammation. The doctor continued to believe the reaction was allergy-related. Later, when reviewing a photo taken during his initial doctor’s visit, Lunchbox noticed that the swelling around his eyes had already begun before he started taking amoxicillin, even though he had not realized it at the time. Throughout the ordeal, he had difficulty speaking, could not eat, and struggled to read or respond to messages due to the swelling in his eyes.
After several days of treatment, including antibiotics, steroids, and the initial injection, his condition finally began to improve. The swelling decreased, his breathing became easier, and he was able to return to work feeling significantly better. While the illness was unusually intense, his recovery progressed quickly once the proper treatment took effect.
