Having an allergic reaction? Just pray!

[xReems]

So, a few months ago, I posted a blog, written by a 25 year old woman, named Ashley Hargest. Quick summary: she's the wife of an ex-Christian pop group (Jump5). She seems pretty fundie-lite in the stuff she posts and does whatever she can to convert those who do not believe in Jesus. She's also the one who got a job as an entertainer at Disney World but ended up turning it down when she found out she would have to wear a bikini top (apparently, it went against her convictions).

She doesn't post daily but this recent post bothered the crap out of me. She and her husband flew down to Florida for a quick getaway and she woke up to him having a severe allergic reaction to something. His throat was closing up and he couldn't swallow anything, HOWEVER, rather than driving to the hospital, he grabbed her hand, in the car, and put it on his throat and asked her to pray. She completely forgot about the Healer above and frantically prayed over his throat. He finally managed to swallow the benadryl (after 15 mins, mind you) and still had trouble with it throughout the night. Again, rather than DRIVING TO THE HOSPITAL, she called up family members and asked them to pray. Through the power of prayer, he was healed!

I have several problems with that post. I'm severely allergic to bees and if my throat started closing up, the first thing my boyfriend would do is rush me to the hospital or call up 911. The last thing he wants to do is take chances by shoving pills down my throat to help ease everything. I'm okay with her saying a prayer over his throat but she should have still drove over to the ER. Your throat swelling up is dangerous and can kill you if you don't seek medical attention fast. Just the mere fact they sat there for 15 minutes to get him to swallow a freakin allergy pill is stupid on their part-that's NOT a good sign. Then to say "Oh, Jesus healed him!" is just selfish. What if they had a little child and he or she was having an allergic reaction?! What, are they going to just pray over his/her throat and just let God fix it up?! Some people are just so irresponsible. :angry-banghead:

ashleyradford.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-power-of-prayer.html

[Joan of Snarc]

Somebody could follow her advice and watch someone die right in front of them.

:cry:

Godless heathen that I am, rather than pray, I make sure I always have an epi-pen close by. Ima stick with modern medicine, spank you very much.

[emesbe]

Not to mention she would be criminally liable for not getting him help if he died or suffered permanent injury.

[Claddagh]

I'm mildly allergic to bees and deathly allergic to Penicillin.

When I was five I was put on the mildest form of Penicillin and later I had to be rushed to the hospital for treatment. Sitting and just praying over me would have resulted in my death.

[sableduck]

Anaphylactic allergy to seafood here. Cardiac arrest twice.

I DO pray when I have a reaction. I also call 911 and give myself my epi pen.

[ILoveJellybeans]

My best friend has a ton of allergies......allergies arent really to be messed around with, especially the ones that close your throat up and kill you. I cant understand why she could just pray over him instead of call for an ambulance and then prayed, he could have died and I am very suprised that he didnt.

I have a mild allergy to oranges.

[iheartchacos]

I've called 911 when a child had a diabetic seizure. Shame on me for not trusting in the good Lord above! Gods will if he had died?

[ADoyle90815]

My ex husband had a dangerous allergy to coconut. As religious as he was, he would have wanted me to call 911 first if he had a reaction around me. I would have made that call as I trust modern medicine and I didn't want to be liable for not getting involved.

[Trynn]

Ugh. God created doctors for a REASON. There's nothing wrong with praying, but you also go to be emergency room! You have to reach out to grasp the hand which God is extending.

[Jezebel]

So he chose to suffer needlessly for at least 24 hours, spoiling their weekend, when he could have received medical help for it and been relieved of the symptoms within a couple of hours?

The only way this even remotely makes sense is if they don't have medical insurance and were afraid of the ER bill. And even then, it's stupid.

[VaSportsMom]

So he chose to suffer needlessly for at least 24 hours, spoiling their weekend, when he could have received medical help for it and been relieved of the symptoms within a couple of hours?

The only way this even remotely makes sense is if they don't have medical insurance and were afraid of the ER bill. And even then, it's stupid.

They are freaking lucky that she isn't having to pony up the cash for his funeral & burial.

[JMarie]

We have a boatload of medical conditions here. If I ask nicely, do you think she'd come to my house and heal us?

[LainieR]

Ooooooo. So THAT's why I was itchy for three months after I had antibiotics with my c-section! I didn't pray enough. Why didn't I think of that!! Could have saved me from taking boatloads of antihistamines and steriods.

Well, now I know.

[CelticGoddess]

And the next time this happens, while she is praying over his throat, she can wonder what went wrong, as the coroner is taking his body away. aye yi yi

[RosyDaisy]

I'm deathly allergic to bees and wasps, and have to carry around an Epi-Pen and Benadryl. The last time I got stung, I was outside and my SO was inside. He found me passed out in the backyard. Since he's a paramedic, he knew what to do. He treated me with the Epi-Pen, called 911 and then prayed for me. If he had done that in reverse order, I would be dead.

[freealljs]

I have food allergies. My throat closes up fast and swells. I can't swallow anything.

First I grab my epipen. Then I get someone to drive me to the hospital. Last I say a prayer that I make it to the hospital on time.

These people are utterly irresponsible.

[divadivine]

They're stupid! It's not like it was a rash on the skin (like dermatitis that isn't life threatening) that you could take some Benadryl for and be okay. Dude, your throat starts to swell shut you pray help gets there quick! I think (like someone said up-thread) they don't have insurance. Idiots. If she had taken the job with Disney, she'd probably have insurance. Douchecanoes.

Just started reading the post. They're in my favorite place- PCB! I am thinking I know about where they were staying- it has to be close to Pineapple Willys because the Wal-Mart is close and there is a Walgreens right around there, too. There are also a few Immediate Care facilities. I can't believe they could go to PCB... women might be wearing bikinis.

[frumper-rump]

I find this behavior crazy. Don't get me wrong, I'm a Christian and pray for my children, even when they are mildly sick. But I'm not.crazy- we go straight to the Dr when it is warranted. My 1 year old baby is showing signs of asthma- I use the inhaler and then pray. He has RSV in the Fall and I did a lot of praying, but also spent a lot of time at the Dr's office. God gave us brains and medical science for a reason!

[Arete]

Something about being this fundie screws with their ability to multitask, because personally, I have never had a problem simultaneously praying AND driving someone to the ER.

[tralala]

As someone in training to enter the health care field, it actually boggles my mind to see such disregard for safety. I'm not terribly religious anymore but I really can't see why it's so impossible that God has given you the blessing that you live close enough to people who can heal you. The brainpower needed to be able to take the facts and diagnose, the empathy needed to care for someone and the abilities to perform the lifesaving tasks to allow one more person to go home to their families. Do they think that these gifts are just elements of one persons selfishness and godlessness? There isn't a single person in my class that doen't have a desire to help people. FFS. My mother is far more religious than I am has found great spiritual fulfillment in her health care job. And I doubt she's the only one. To disregard the people who want to help you is so dangerous and ignorant that it makes my blood boil.

[NurseNell]

Somebody could follow her advice and watch someone die right in front of them.

:cry:

Godless heathen that I am, rather than pray, I make sure I always have an epi-pen close by. Ima stick with modern medicine, spank you very much.

I pray as I'm injecting my epi-pen.

She's darn lucky he didn't die. We had a patient once who was severely allergic to bees. My DH told him to never be more than 5 to 10 minutes from the hospital.There are 5 rivers in this town and many lakes so people who love fishing can fish and still be close to the hospital. But no, this guy went out to the boonies, with his son fortunately. He got stung, his son used both epi-pens. The man died in the truck as his son was driving him to the hospital. There was no cell phone coverage where they were. Very sad.

[mlady]

It boggles my mind as well but IRL I know people who make up stuff for attention, making situations sound worse than they actually were/are. I've personally seen the "testimonies" of Christians change and evolve over time so that they pack emotional punch too. I'm not going to sit here and call anyone a liar, but many people are. And many of them are Christians who need a good story to blog about.

[hapamama]

I have two kids with a history of anaphylaxis (life threatening food, drug and dander allergies). I wanted to slap the s**t out of my MIL the time she gave my son a bath to "make the allergic reaction go away"... I can't even begin to imagine how I'd react to someone wanting me to pray an allergic reaction away.

[Vex]

I'm not even going to mention anaphylactic shock.

But next time I get an outbreak of hives I think I'm gonna stick with my telfast, if it's all the same to them. I've tried showers, having heard they can help hives, but the water just made the itching more intense.

[CruitLvr]

Wow, that's just awful. You don't play around with this, ever. Is he even planning an appointment with a physician so he can find out what he's allergic to?

Without knowing the cause, this could happen again at any moment. Does she not realize that?