# nasty spider bite

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasty-spider-bite/70558>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [June 29, 2001, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasty-spider-bite/70558 "2001-06-29T03:33:25Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![gwar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/96bed5/32.png) [@gwar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gwar)\
**Post date:** [June 29, 2001, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasty-spider-bite/70558/1 "2001-06-29T03:33:25Z")

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I live in Northern California, and we have lots of spiders, and I get bitten everyone night it seems.

A couple of weeks ago, however, I awoke in the middle of the night with a nearly uncontrollable urge to scratch a bite that occurred on my bicep. It didn’t swell up immediately around the area of the bite, like most of the spider bites that seem to occur, but in the morning my entire bicep had swelled up to nearly double its size. The itch was gone, but I could see the bite marks. The swollen area was mildly painful and very hot to the touch, and I was groggy all day. The swelling and pain did not subside until four days later.

Can anyone identify this despicable little creature based upon my description?

PS It’s not fleas, brown recluse, bedbugs, or anything like that.

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**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\
**Post date:** [June 29, 2001, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasty-spider-bite/70558/2 "2001-06-29T04:17:35Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by gwar \*  
> **The swollen area was mildly painful and very hot to the touch, and I was groggy all day. The swelling and pain did not subside until four days later.**

Groggy all day? From a spider bite? Not to sound like an alarmist but… Listen, when a bite from anything makes you feel “GROGGY”, get your butt to a doctor.

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**Author:** ![KarlGauss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/karlgauss/32/3713_2.png) [@KarlGauss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGauss)\
**Post date:** [June 29, 2001, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasty-spider-bite/70558/3 "2001-06-29T04:17:46Z")

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Nasty spider bite? [This](http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/339/6/379?ijkey=vUzs7PY0nLA.U) is a nasty spider bite.

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**Author:** ![Sultan\_Kinkari](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7bcc69/32.png) [@Sultan\_Kinkari](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sultan_Kinkari)\
**Post date:** [June 29, 2001, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasty-spider-bite/70558/4 "2001-06-29T04:26:02Z")

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Some brown recluse bites won’t heal for up to _two years_! They rot the flesh and there’s little you can do to curb the decay. :eek: