About 10 minutes later he got what looked like a bug bite on his neck. Then he got a couple more. Tiny, but definitely hives. So i stripped him down so that I could monitor his hives, and sure enough, they started spreading. And he started scratching. I gave him benadryl right away, and it did nothing. His hives spread FAST, all over his face, and to his whole body. By then we had called 911, but decided to wait on giving him his epi pen since he wasn't struggling to breathe. The paramedics got here and I told them all the details, and Jack was screaming and not only covered in hives, but his face was now so swollen he could barely open his eyes, and then all of a sudden he got super calm, and looked like he was falling asleep on me.... JUST like what happened last time minutes before he stopped breathing. I told the paramedic this, and she immediately said let's go, and we went straight into the ambulance, gave him his epi shot, and rode to the hospital with lights and sirens and everything. He was hooked up to oxygen and struggling to stay conscious, but he wasn't turning blue so that was a good sign! I think had he not been given his epi pen he would have definitely stopped breathing again.
We got to the hospital and we went through the whole routine again... they gave him more epinephrine because he wasn't getting better, more benadryl, some steroids, a breathing treatment, and at one point they were quite concerned with his blood pressure, but it resolved itself thankfully. His hives finally started to subside after the second round of epinephrine, but his poor little face was still so swollen and sad looking. I was very impressed this time around that they let me hold him the entire time they were working on him. I was on the hospital bed and he was laying on me, rather than laying by himself or sitting there with me pinning him down.
I never ever ever want to have to use an epi pen on him again or have him stop breathing. I replay it over and over again in my mind enough as it is.