Poll - Reacting to stings

[FROGDOGDIVER]

I have extremely bad hayfever from june to about now and if not treated causes asthma with me. I never get a bad reaction.

 

[Hombre]

are all reactions to the histamine that ones own body generates, not to the venom.

Is not the histamine produced actually the body's reaction to the venom in the sting. The reaction to histamine is therefore a secondary consequence. In lay terms of course; i have no medical training or knowledge.

 

[JCBrum]

Is not the histamine produced actually the body's reaction to the venom in the sting. The reaction to histamine is therefore a secondary consequence. In lay terms of course;

1. if you didn't make the histamine you wouldn't have the reaction to it.

2. different people react differently to histamine.

3. differing amounts of histamine produce differing reaction.

4. stings vary in the amount and strength of venom.

5. different sting sites transmit venom differently.

i have no medical training or knowledge.

Neither have I. I'm recalling what I think I read. The person who wrote the article was med qualified and had researched (supposedly).



p.s. we do have three doctors in the immediate family though, but personally I never take much notice of them.

 

[Hombre]

Yes, I think that xyxyz we are on xyuxye the same xyxusa wavelength! You stated it so much better than I did though.

Nice bit of sun in our local area today. Enjoy.

 

[wbchive]

No hayfever, but a few years ago if I got stung on the hand my arm would come up like an elephant's leg. I got one on the face once and the next day I could have got a part in Star Trek. Nowadays I don't swell up. My only reaction to a sting is to shout, "Ouch, you little b*st*rd!"

Steve

 

[Ellie]

Hello

Hello, I am new to the forums and a new beekeeper too. I am interested by the allergy thing because I have large swellings after bee stings and feel a bit unwell, feverish. (No anaphalactyc stuff) the bee keeper who has been teaching me thinks I should not continue bee keeping. It is hard having been taught by only one person to know how others view this. Can anyone help me with this?
Ellie

 

[RoofTops]

Ellie, Before following this advice see you doctor to ensure there are no other health issues. If all is well try taking daily hayfever tablets. You may have to try different ones as some make people drowsy but their anti-histamine effect can reduce the body's reaction. The vital thing is to take them before being stung, so as a beekeeper that means taking them every day during the beekeeping season. It almost certainly won't eliminate the reaction but there is a very good chance it will reduce it.

If you continue to feel unwell after stings then you may well have to give up.

 

[Rosti]

Ellie, this may be a granny sucking eggs obvious thing to say, but .....

When are you getting stung?

Are you dressing for the worst but hoping for the best?
I wear a very thin fleece over my upper body while inspecting - gives more depth of clothing than warmth.
I also wear a baseball cap to keep the brim out of my eyes but protects contact part of head as well?
I also have a red badge on one of the pockets, this seems to draw their attention and it regularly gets stung -but its on a double layer pocket - so I dont.
Gloves, only wear something thin if you plan to handle/mark bees otherwise go for thickness. I have some good thick black nitrile gauntlets, still got more feel than leather but easier to keep clean, the girls can't even get a sting into them, let alone through.

There is nothing macho about getting stung 'because I don't need gloves' etc

Perhaps I am lucky? I know my suit gets stung with regularity, but I don't
Risk assessment: eliminate risk if you can, manage/mitigate if you can't.
I hope there is a way through this for you. R

PS ammonia applied immediately after a sting in theory helps because highly alkaline, also a scraping action to remove the sting - never squeeze the venom sack to remove!

 

[wbchive]

Hello, I am new to the forums and a new beekeeper too.
Ellie

When you're a newbie you get stung a lot more, mainly because

a) you do dangerous things like standing too close to the hives when you're not suited up or even opening them because you think you can be in and out before the bees notice.
b) you're not confident so you have the hive open for longer and you're nervous so you sweat a lot and bees hate sweat and you're a bit clumsy and somehow your nervousness seems to transfer to the bees - sounds daft but it's true.
c) you persevere with angry colonies because you don't know when to close them up and give them a chance to calm down.

In my "elephant leg" days I used to feel strange after being stung. It was almost as if I was a bit high - you could say "buzzing" if it were not such an awful pun. I was advised by an old hand to take antihistamine (basically a hay fever tablet) an hour before I went near the hives. This helped a lot. Much less swelling and the high was a lot lower.
Nowadays, as I said in an earlier post, I don't swell up, but I still itch like mad around the sting. I still take the tablet if I remember - better safe than sorry. I don't get stung nearly as much though just because I'm less reckless and more confident.

Hope this helps. It would be a shame to have to give up the bees.

Steve

 

[Ellie]

Thank You

Thanks a lot Steve, That all sounds familiar stuff that I do especially nipping in and out thinking they won't notice!! Not daft are they! I got a really big sting that way no gloves!! I will be more careful in future, and try the antihistamine.

 

[Frisbee]

I take anti-histamine only if I have been stung, not on a regular basis. I didn't feel unwell but had plenty of swelling/itching for 3 days and swelling getting more and more angry, the tablets have reduced that to a bit of an itch. I take 1 a day for 3 days. Try that first and up to every day if it doesn't work..........I get them now from Tesco, own brand non drowsy - 79p for a pack of 7. Identical Boots own are £7.90

Also my first year and second year of beekeeping I got stung every time I went into the bees, but now it's just occasionally (I think they are warming to me ) Your handling skills do improve.

Frisbee

 

[oliver90owner]

I still itch like mad around the sting

Have you tried the heat devices (Therapik) - Thorne used to sell them. We bought ours from Lee Valley in Ottawa (much better value!!! Made in France and half price compared to the UK!).

I have not found it too effective on bee stings but marvellous for bites (and nettle stings says Jacquie in the background)!

Regards, RAB

 

[wbchive]

I take anti-histamine only if I have been stung
Frisbee

The guy who advised me said I had to take it before I got stung so that it's already in the system. Apparently it's slow to act so if you take it after the venom's in it's too late. Wasp-eze is good for after the event. It reduces itching and swelling locally, but it's not as good as a hayfever tablet before.

Steve

 

[Ellie]

Antihistamine

Thanks for all your advice. I went to the doctor when I first got a reaction and he told me to take 2 antihistamine at the time of the sting. I think after reading all this I am going to try one before I go then one when (if) i get a sting. Belt and braces!!

 

[BKF Admin]

I think taking an anti histamine is fine at the begining but you have to be aware that some research shows that continued use can lead to major problems long term regards bee sting reactions/histamine release.

 

[ribblesbees]

Although I've not been diagnosed with hayfever, when it's really bad for hayfever sufferers, I can get mild symptoms, including sneezing, itching eyes.

However usually,when I get stung away from any joints in a muscle area, its a sharp burning pain for maybe a few minutes, a bit of soreness and then it completely goes. After say an hour I really have to look for the site of the sting, there being no pain and a miniscule red pinprick of an area. After about 7 -10 days, the site of the sting starts itching and I then get the red raised area around where the sting was and it itches like mad. This can last for anything up to two weeks. I do take an antihistamine tablet at the time of the sting, but usually only one

Does anyone else react like this to stings?

 

[Heather]

Am not too bad- except the little b.....s got in my suit yesterday (they were determined) and I got 5 stings to the head, one being below the eye so that is nearly closed. The only sore one is on the temple where little muscle tissue. Otherwise no probs, just irritating after 1/2 hr. I always just ice-cube.

But i started with asthma last year, and have had hayfever since I was 8. Used to be really ill with it- now really mild. So there is hope out there for fellow sufferers - just wait 50 odd years