A mum-of-five was left covered in an agonising rash within minutes of cutting down agave plants in her garden after toxic sap sprayed onto her skin.
Aleksandra Schmidt, 42, had been removing overgrown agave plants around her pool as part of a DIY landscaping project at her home in Florida.
She had several agave plants in the garden, with five on each side of the pool, and had decided to remove one row because they had become too large for the space.
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Aleksandra, who splits her time between the Tampa and Fort Lauderdale areas, said she knew the plants were sharp but had no idea their sap could trigger such a severe reaction.
Using a chainsaw after finding her machete wasn’t sharp enough, she was showered with agave sap and shards as she cut through the plants.
Within minutes, she noticed an intense stinging sensation on her legs.
Aleksandra said: “It felt like multiple bee stings.
“When I looked down, I saw countless reddish-copper spots on my legs.
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“At first, I thought I had somehow cut myself and was bleeding.”
The itching quickly became unbearable.
She ran into her swimming pool before realising the red spots were actually tiny agave shards stuck all over her skin.
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Aleksandra rushed inside and got into the shower, desperately rubbing the affected areas because it was the only thing that brought any relief.
She said: “My legs became extremely irritated and inflamed.
“What worried me most was that I started getting chills and generally felt very strange.
“I wasn’t sure how severe the reaction might become.
“It quickly became obvious this was much more than a minor rash or simple skin irritation.”
Aleksandra suffered redness, burning, itching and chills but, thankfully, did not experience breathing difficulties or anaphylaxis.
She applied hydrocortisone cream after showering and believes taking an Allegra tablet earlier that morning for seasonal allergies may also have helped.
It gradually disappeared over the following four days without the need for hospital treatment, as reported by Whats The Jam.
Now fully recovered, Aleksandra says there is no sign the incident ever happened.
She added: “I cut a plant that, unbeknownst to me, could cause a severe reaction.
“I learned something new and now I know.
“My biggest takeaway is that many people, like me, may not realise agave sap can cause severe skin reactions, especially when combined with sun exposure.
“If sharing my experience helps even one person avoid going through the same thing, then it was worth talking about.”
The video documenting Aleksandra’s horrifying reaction, shared Wednesday (27 May) has been viewed more than three million times on social media, with thousands of users sharing their thoughts.
One person said: “I had zero knowledge of this. Thank you for spreading awareness.”
Another wrote: “Hardcore! Gardening can be dangerous.”
Someone else added: “Thank you for sharing this education. I would have never known.”
A fourth commented: “Oh my!! That looks terribly painful!! You’re brave to post this. You will save someone else pain and misery. I absolutely hate those plants. They’re scary looking.”
However, not everyone was sympathetic.
One viewer wrote: “It’s the flip flops and sweats pulled to knees while using a chainsaw for me.”
