A woman said she's lucky to be alive after being bitten by Britain's only venomous snake in an attack that left her in hospital for two days.
Beau Avis was walking her dog Bonnie in sandals on a country lane near Brentwood, Essex, on Wednesday when an adder sprung up on her and sunk its teeth into her ankle - sending her into anaphylactic shock within minutes.
The 26-year-old, who luckily was with her dad Kevin at the time, was rushed to Queen's Hospital in Romford where doctors, by chance, had anti-venom to hand.
"I was put into resus and was drifting in and out of consciousness," said Beau, a PR worker from Brentwood.
"I didn't have any control over any aspect of my body. It was truly terrifying.
"I'm really lucky, because I was told a lot of hospitals don't tend to hold anti-venom but this one did. The consultant had to ring the Poisons Information Service to find out what dose was needed."
Beau was given morphine and held at Queen's Hospital overnight, but when her leg began to swell to "double the size", doctors had to administer a second dose of the antidote and kept her in for another day.
"It was like acid being poured over your legs," she added.
While adders are the only poisonous snake in the UK, incidents of the reptiles biting are only about 50-100 per year, with the majority (70%) of these not resulting in serious injury.
But Beau, who is now recovering from the attack but still struggling to walk and experiencing agonising pain, has shared her story to raise awareness of what to do in the rare scenario a person is bitten.
While adders can be dangerous, they're only known to bite when threatened - such as when stepped on or approached by a dog.
Beau said that, had it been Bonnie the dog who was bitten, she was almost certain the pet wouldn't have survived.
"There isn't much in the way of aftercare because it's so rare in the UK," she said.
"Apparently you're more likely to be hit by lightning, the odds are so small.
"I ended up calling the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine and London Zoo for advice on what to do now I'm out of hospital.
"My leg has turned yellow and I'm on crutches for now. Even lifting my leg to get into bed at first was just agony.
"I'm still in pain now, six days on. The only way I can describe it is like when you get painful lactic acid build-up when you're exercising, only all over your body and it being constant.
"I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy."
Adders are found across the UK, although are more common in the south of England than the north and Midlands, along with Scotland and the east of Wales, with attacks almost always in rural areas.
In the rare scenario someone is bitten, NHS advice is to stay calm and seek immediate medical attention.
"I was lucky we were about 300 yards from the car when it happened," Beau added.
"If I'd been on my own and in the middle of nowhere I don't know if I'd have been as fortunate."
