Prill,
What a frightening episode you had! You're so lucky you survived it.

It does sound exactly like anaphylactic shock -- an allergic reaction to something you ingested. You might want to look at all the ingredients listed on the chocolate -- it might have been the chocolate but it might have been something else.

Usually there's a warning before such a severe reaction -- like maybe the previous time you ate this food, you experienced something like asthma perhaps, or stinging in your throat, etc.

I've had food sensitivities/ allergies and once experienced my throat closing after eating pistachios, but my episode wasn't anywhere as severe as yours.

A family around here lost a 15-year-old son a few years ago, to a peanut allergy. His dad brought chocolates home from work, and the son put one in his mouth, realized there was peanut in it and spit it out, but still he went into shock almost immediately. They got him to the emergency room within about 15 minutes but he died. Some people are so sensitive that even something that's been in a machine with the food they're allergic to could put them into shock.

[ January 15, 2005, 12:49 AM: Message edited by: DJ ]