Skeeter Syndrome...What!?
Updated: Jun 30, 2022
Do you know what Skeeter Syndrome is? I didn't know until recently...
When my 14-year-old son walked into the room, and I immediately noticed the bright red circular mark on his neck that had the trademark of none other than a hickey. My heart hit the floor. My 14-year-old's words echoed in my head, "no, mom, I am not ready for a girlfriend and all that goes along with it." As my brain reeled to understand what was happening and when or where this would have happened, and with who! I wasn't ready for this... or anything for that matter that came with the upcoming teen years. Unsure, I wanted the real answer, but nervously asking my son anyway, he swore up and down he did not know how the red area had gotten there. Always knowing when my kiddos are lying and wanting to believe him, but my motherly instincts wavering at this point, I doubted myself. As I stared at him, trying to find the flicker of a lie, I noticed another spot, this one on the back of his arm. Relief swept over me. No one would suck on the back of someone's arm, right? I decided to keep an eye on it. The fear rolled back when it did not improve over the next couple of days. It kept getting worse...its color grew in intensity and size. Wondering what could have bitten him that would cause this? Was it from the venom of a Brown Recluse Spider? Though at the very center of the rash-like area was only one tiny puncture hole, not the spider's signature bites marks. My research began, and I found images and descripti