Being that I have always been allergic to shellfish, I make sure that I am careful when going to unknown restaurants or cafeterias. I was excited about my official visit to Penn State. I had already talked to my host about the food at the cafeteria, to which she informed me that the food was healthy, and there were some organic options for me. I arrived at Penn early but did not have time to eat breakfast, so needless to say, I was famished. I knew that I had to wait for lunch, which was ok with me since I was very excited to see the soccer field. After going on a campus tour and meeting with the coaches and some of the team members, we were off to lunch.

We arrived at the dining hall at a time when it was fully packed, and I got way too excited to eat. I decided I would make my lunch a two-course meal and begin with some soup. The choices were French onion and miso soup. I went for the latter to be adventurous, due to the fact I rarely ate miso soup. I sat down with the soccer team, and all eyes were on me. I tried to make small talk as I sat down, “so guys, what is your go-to meal the night before a big game?” Everyone said pasta. And I thought that was the right choice due to the carbs. Honestly, I was all about the soup I was about to eat. I gobbled down the soup, and then in an instant, I started to feel funny. I felt tingling in my mouth, abdominal pain, and I felt as though I was about to vomit. I went into a state of panic. I stood up in front of the whole cafeteria and yelled, “does anyone have Benadryl or an epi-pen?” No one responded. Alarm set in big time, and now I was weezing.

I started to run around the caferteria, I went up to as many tables as possible, yelling, “does anyone have an epi-pen!” I felt as though my tongue was going to swell up so big that I would not be able to breathe. This was it, I was going to die on an official visit, my soccer career was over. Just as I was about to give up hope, a faculty member was running my way, yelling, “get out of my way.” Then I felt it; I felt the epi-pen pierce my skin. I started to feel better, but I knew that the effects of the pen could wear off in 20 minutes. I asked to go to the hospital.

I could hear the sirens roaring, and once again, all eyes were on me. I felt like a fool. I knew that once I was in that ambulance that the whole cafeteria and team would be talking about the incident. Yup, talking about me. Once I got to the hospital I called my host to ask if I had ruined anything, she said, “nope, the whole team loves you and hopes that you will be playing for us.” I ended up getting a scholarship to Penn State and love playing here.

Moving forward, I will never eat miso soup again!

* Originally published on July 25, 2016, by LRT Staff