Stonefish - A Boulder Variety of Fish

Fortunately, I was at least reef-walking and snorkeling with a buddy (it's a cardinal rule--you NEVER go reef-walking or snorkeling or scuba diving or boonie-stomping --hiking-- without a buddy--it's a safety thing!). I hollered loud enough to rattle the coral, and my buddy came over and helped me walk about a quarter-mile back to the beach and then up the hill from the Marine Laboratory to the University of Guam dormitories and my room.

The pain was throbbing in alternating excruciating stabs running up and down my leg and then with my leg going numb. At the dorm, I quickly took a hot shower (heat is supposedly good for breaking down the protein in the venom--not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it's what we tried). The pain wasn't getting any less, so I convinced my buddy to drive me to the Guam Memorial Hospital--I didn't have any medical insurance, but I also didn't want to risk dying.

It was tough bending my leg to get in my buddy's Honda Civic, but we managed to get me into the car and we then raced across the island to the hospital.

I must have made an interesting sight when I hobbled into the emergency room and staggered to the reception desk. The nurse started giving me all sorts of bureaucratic paperwork and telling me to "wait my turn" and all sorts of other baloney... and at that time, the pain was again searing up my leg. I'm afraid that I wasn't very nice... I yelled that I didn't care if they got me a witch-doctor or whatever, but I needed to see a doctor *NOW* or I'd start ripping the chairs off the wall before I died. That freaked her out and within minutes a doctor came down the hall. When I told him what I believe happened ("I stepped on a stone-fish"), he rushed me into an unoccupied area of the emergency room and asked to see the wound. When I pulled my foot out of my flip-flop, the gash in the bottom of my foot (still oozing blood) and the fact that my leg was swelling up and turning a weird shade of purple-green was convincing enough to get him to tell a nurse to bring him a syringe with 4-cc Benadryl stat. Unfortunately, I had to get the shot in my butt (on the side where the gash was). The doctor then gave me a bottle of pain-killers (I can't remember what --probably Tylenol with Codeine or something... by that time, my head was spinning anyway). I was sick, extremely sick, for about a week... couldn't bend my leg, couldn't stand up without getting nauseated, and couldn't eat much (just drank lots and lots of water and hot tea). I just laid in my bed all day watching the ceiling spin (not sure if it was the pain killers or the affects of the venom). In about a week, I could finally eat soup without feeling too sick.. and soon after, I was able to walk about again. But it wasn't an experience I ever want to have again. I've learned my lesson.