Severe reaction to bee stings

4sausagedogs · May 26, 2019

Last week due to tiredness, I neglected to do my suit fully up and left a tiny gap near the neck line.
A nosy bee decided to investigate, followed very shortly by lots of her friends.

Long story short, despite taking anti histamines immediately within a couple of hours I was admitted to hospital with a severe reaction ( not anaphylactic) and on a drip for four hours.

The hospital told me to stay away for a couple of weeks at least
My question is: will I have such a severe reaction if it happens again, as I am now quite wary although desperate to get back to my hives.

Anybody else had similar ( bet there are a few!!) and were there stings as bad the next time

Sorry if this sounds strange! I know all my fault and not the bees

jenkinsbrynmair · May 26, 2019

4sausagedogs said:
Last week due to tiredness, I neglected to do my suit fully up and left a tiny gap near the neck line.
A nosy bee decided to investigate, followed very shortly by lots of her friends.

Long story short, despite taking anti histamines immediately within a couple of hours I was admitted to hospital with a severe reaction ( not anaphylactic) and on a drip for four hours.

The hospital told me to stay away for a couple of weeks at least
My question is: will I have such a severe reaction if it happens again, as I am now quite wary although desperate to get back to my hives.

Anybody else had similar ( bet there are a few!!) and were there stings as bad the next time

SWMBO had similar week before last, one sting in the corner of her eye socket (the non fleshy area) head swelled up like but luckily she was sent home with just advice to keep on taking high octane anti histamines from my Africa pack - she looked like John Merrick's ugly sister for a couple of days but she's alright now (Ish ) Ill try and persuade her to get stung again to see how she reacts but I doubt she'll play ball.
Stedic on here has had a similar experience but seems OK now https://beekeepingforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=43773
But definitely wise to leave it settle down completely before risking another sting

enrico · May 26, 2019

My reactions have been bad this year compared with others. Not horrendous but heavy swelling. Put it down to not being stung for a couple of years!

4sausagedogs · May 26, 2019

Mine were roughly 10-15 in my hair and neck.
Was severely itchy especially bottom of feet!
Then two hours later shaking and violently sick

Bit scared now &#55357;&#56881;

thedozzer · May 26, 2019

4sausagedogs said:
Mine were roughly 10-15 in my hair and neck.
Was severely itchy especially bottom of feet!
Then two hours later shaking and violently sick

Bit scared now ��

10-15 stings in one area is enough to give anyone an amount of venom shock, i would say you have done pretty well!!

B+. · May 26, 2019

4sausagedogs said:
Mine were roughly 10-15 in my hair and neck.
Was severely itchy especially bottom of feet!
Then two hours later shaking and violently sick

Bit scared now ��

So you should be.
My 17 year old son died after a single sting on his leg.
My wife ended up having emergency treatment after a single sting. She has undergone desensitization at Addenbrookes hospital for the last 2 years.
It's no joke. If you are sensitive to stings, get medical help.

Newbeeneil · May 26, 2019

thedozzer said:
10-15 stings in one area is enough to give anyone an amount of venom shock, i would say you have done pretty well!!

Sorry to hear about the stings 4sausagedogs, I would agree that that amount of venom would probably cause a nasty reaction even if you are not sensitive to stings.

I spent an evening in a lecture from a guy from my local hospital who does the desensitising courses. It was an extremely interesting talk but what stuck in my mind was his comment that if you have had a reaction it does not mean you will necessarily have one next time you are stung and vice versa. Reactions can be very random.
Another comment he made was statistically beekeepers are most likely to have a reaction after 15 years of beekeeping!
His last point for the evening was that during the previous year only 4 people had died from anaphylaxis caused by bee AND wasp stings in the UK. The figure for the whole of US was 40.

B+. · May 26, 2019

Newbeeneil said:
His last point for the evening was that during the previous year only 4 people had died from anaphylaxis caused by bee AND wasp stings in the UK. The figure for the whole of US was 40.

1 is too many

Ian123 · May 26, 2019

If/when next time you inspect insure you have a partner, contact your association if you need a buddy if nothing else for some confidence.

Newbeeneil · May 26, 2019

B+. said:
1 is too many

I certainly agree but it does put into perspective the actual risk of death from stings.

B+. · May 26, 2019

Newbeeneil said:
I certainly agree but it does put into perspective the actual risk of death from stings.

Yes - everyone assumes it will never happen to them....until it does.

Gilberdyke John · May 26, 2019

4sausagedogs said:
Last week due to tiredness, I neglected to do my suit fully up and left a tiny gap near the neck line.
A nosy bee decided to investigate, followed very shortly by lots of her friends.

Long story short, despite taking anti histamines immediately within a couple of hours I was admitted to hospital with a severe reaction ( not anaphylactic) and on a drip for four hours.

The hospital told me to stay away for a couple of weeks at least
My question is: will I have such a severe reaction if it happens again, as I am now quite wary although desperate to get back to my hives.

Anybody else had similar ( bet there are a few!!) and were there stings as bad the next time

Sorry if this sounds strange! I know all my fault and not the bees

You've learned to pay attention to what you are doing I hope. Tip have a mirror mounted somewhere handy to check your zips before starting work and look for passengers before opening up on completion.

philipm · May 26, 2019

Even nice bees sting 'it always amazes me the amount of people who don't wear any protection when handling their bees.Fair enough we all forget to do the zips up some times.We may have been keeping bees for some years but for some unknown reason some stings seem to react worse than others.

eltalia · May 26, 2019

"Anybody else had similar ( bet there are a few!!) and were there stings as
bad the next time."

This question is as ancient as Methusala himself and asked about as often
as Sunday comes around - the only answer which should work for rational folk
is "put yourself (often) in close proximity to better than a 1/2million bees one
of them is going to sting you".
Sooo where the reactive does not diminish over Time - or worse, sometimes
escalate - stay well away from beehives.

Bill

Adam Bee · May 26, 2019

B+. said:
1 is too many

I am really sorry to hear about your son. One is too many.

Antipodes · May 26, 2019

I'm interested in the 15 year comment. Can anyone please explain about reactions increasing over time or about sudden reactions after years of beekeeping? Is there some sort of build up in the system over time and then a sudden reaction? I've also read that family members living with beekeepers are more likely to have reactions to bee stings because of the sting chemicals coming into the house on the bee suits and then being breathed in by anyone living there....any knowledge about this?

eltalia · May 26, 2019

"I'm interested in the 15 year comment"

Lecturers luurve definitive 'barriers', believing such adds a layer
of credibility.
For mine (based on observation) this whole "whom is targeted" gets bundled
into the same basket as asbestosis - like, you're born to die the cause is
simply the unknown.
Sweating out what that is or could be is pointless.

Bill

Newbeeneil · May 26, 2019

Antipodes said:
I'm interested in the 15 year comment. Can anyone please explain about reactions increasing over time or about sudden reactions after years of beekeeping? Is there some sort of build up in the system over time and then a sudden reaction? I've also read that family members living with beekeepers are more likely to have reactions to bee stings because of the sting chemicals coming into the house on the bee suits and then being breathed in by anyone living there....any knowledge about this?

The 15 years was purely based on statistics of beekeepers in France if remember rightly, I think the guy was surprised and could give no reason.

4sausagedogs · May 27, 2019

Oh that is so sad about your son.
I am so very sorry.

I definitely will be super cautious from now on and always take a beekeeper friend
Another episode like last time and I may be put off sadly

Stedic · May 27, 2019

4sausagedogs said:
I definitely will be super cautious from now on and always take a beekeeper friend
Another episode like last time and I may be put off sadly

I’m still sorting myself out with all this. I also had a systemic but not anaphylactic reaction I’ve since had 4 stings and been fine. The difference for me seems to be the use of sntihistsmines BEFORE beekeeping.

If you have had a systemic reaction it is ESSENTIAL that you see an allergy specialist urgently. It is an incredibly complex issue which required an expert view. This is svailable via your GP or privately. They can determine if you have a genuine allergy or were unlucky (possible but unlikely). They can also advise how/if to continue with beekeeping and refer to any further treatment.

Happy to discuss my current experiences via PM if you want. I’m still beekeeping, awaiting treatment and have modified what I’m doing and how.

Severe reaction to bee stings

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