# Bee stings



## suzyq (Jun 30, 2014)

why are some bee stings more painful than others? Have had several stings this summer but 2 were humdingers. They were really painful.


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## AmericasBeekeeper (Jan 24, 2010)

Welcome Suzy! It matters where you are stung.


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## jfmcree (Mar 10, 2014)

The after effects may have to do with how quickly you remove the stinger and venom sack. I've had some very small lumps and one huge one.

My huge one was a sting into my thigh under jeans, while I was driving. I thought I would just check it when I got to my destination. I did not think about it much at the time, but the stinger and sac were still in me. The sac completely drained and I ended up with a "lump" from my knee to groin on the inside half of my thigh. I attribute that to getting the fullest possible venom dose.


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## phyber (Apr 14, 2015)

ive noticed it really makes a difference where you are stung, and where swelling is allowed to expand versus being focused... if i get stung in my hand/fingers, it will swell for days. If i get stung on my back/shoulder, it was about 30 minutes.

This is all relative to the amount of venom too though.


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## suzyq (Jun 30, 2014)

I got stung in the ankle and the lower arm. Both very painful stings right at impact where other stings no big deal. One swelled up the other didn't. from 1 to 10 in pain an 8. Most stings a 3. 
Jfmcree that sounds painful! Ouch!


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## bbruff22 (Dec 24, 2013)

Location, location, location... I go without gloves now, so I catch a few that way, but I got two under the ear last year. Wow, swelling galore, looked like Dumbo, and every time I opened my mouth, my jaw clicked. It was bad, and then the itch I do still wear a veil.


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## suzyq (Jun 30, 2014)

I've gotten stung in my scalp a few times so I wear a veil if I'm going into the hive so I can relate there! Both bee stings on the same side!?! Ouch!


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## dynemd (Aug 27, 2013)

The veil is smart, if you were to get stung in the eye you could become blind or require surgery.


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## mountainmanbob (Jun 3, 2015)

The sooner we scrap the stinger away the better
and
all take to the sting differently 
MB


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## snl (Nov 20, 2009)

Welcome! You’ll find this site, inspiring (sometimes), funny (sometimes), stupid (at times) but addicting all the time!


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## dobeedobeedo (Oct 21, 2014)

Ugh, I have had 3 stings this year (and a sketchy looking bite that I think is a spider).  My 3 stings were wrist and hands. OUCH. Major swelling, burning and itching. I always wear a veil, but after I got two at once, I will NEVER go without gloves again. Lesson learned.

Good luck to you


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## BHH (May 29, 2015)

My bees always sting me in the exact same spot, the left side of the wrist on my right hand. Never had one anywhere else. These sings can be separated by weeks so they're not all on the same day or anything. Always home right in on the same spot. I suppose since I'm right-handed I'm using that hand more.


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## Hops Brewster (Jun 17, 2014)

BHH said:


> My bees always sting me in the exact same spot, the left side of the wrist on my right hand. Never had one anywhere else. These sings can be separated by weeks so they're not all on the same day or anything. Always home right in on the same spot. I suppose since I'm right-handed I'm using that hand more.


Check for a tiny "X" or target at that spot. :lookout:


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## aunt betty (May 4, 2015)

It depends on how many times you get stung. The first one will hurt then swell and finally itch like mad. 
Once you get more experienced at it (lol) you will learn to scrape the stinger asap and to always wear protection.
Have been stung at least 60 times this year and maybe closer to 100. One day I got nailed about ten times for sure doing a cutout. 

In general a sting hurts like heck for almost 2 full minutes and once you're thru that it's pretty much gone UNLESS you don't scrape the stinger off. Then you get into some swelling but I've learned to scrape quick. That's why you almost never put down your hive tool.


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## aunt betty (May 4, 2015)

I pondered sting protection concerning hands and have had other beeks ask about it. Finally I've decided that I like using the surgeon type gloves and changing them frequently. (seems wasteful but follow along here)
When you have 10 or 15 bee hives its a lot invested. You might be taking care of other people's hives too. That is when hygene gets real important so why not use disposable gloves and change them a lot? 
The surgeon gloves are clean and keep your hands clean too. They also protect your bees from possible spread of sickness. They don't offer much sting protection but I think once you're marked that smoke on the gloved hand that got stung erases the mark quickly plus it feels good and I go on inspecting.


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## mountainmanbob (Jun 3, 2015)

I have a arthritic right wrist. A while back while inspecting our hive I took a sting to the underside of that wrist. Although that is a sensitive area it didn't bother me much plus, it made that wrist feel good. 

A few days later I found a worn out bee on the ground and i encouraged the bee to sting the same wrist on the top side. I'm enjoying the results and stings seem not to bother me.

Slightly different story:
Around 40 years ago I was stung proxy 50 times in an hour. Not too exciting! 

Mountainmanbob


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## Steadfast (Sep 11, 2014)

Sooo, I had a scary close call last Saturday...

After working with my bees... and I pissing them off... (shaking them out if a medium super they refused to drawl out) 
several of them attacked me on my bee suit. I was fine.. normally they give up once you walk away 15 ft or so...

However, Several of them were still on the back of my hood when I took of my bee suit over 100 yards away on my front porch...


Several of them stung me on the very top of my head... It turns out that this is the worst place to get hit... 

I've been stung many times before and thought nothing of it...

Then my body started itching all over and by the minute the itching became exponentially MUCH worse.... 
With in 5 minutes all of my skin; every inch was on fire with intense itching...

I was in trouble...
Big trouble...

My wife and I look and looked, but could not find a single Benadryl in our house...

I was in danger....

I ran to my neighbors house with my lips and tongue swelling... he had no Benadryl either.... aaaaaah!

He poured honey over the sting areas... an old bee keeper's trick... it worked locally but my body was getting much worse.

Then as my speech started slurring he threw me into his car... we drove to the nearest gas station to get some Benadryl. 

I had the cashier open the STUPID PACKAGING because my hands where swelling and i could not get to the pills..my knees where buckling and my sight went white by the time he was able to get 2 out...

I refused to go to the hospital an pay the thousands of dollars they would charge me...

My neighbor kept me in his car watching my breathing warning me that if the Benadryl does not work we ARE GOING to the Hospital...

The Benadryl started working... the full body itching ebbed... he took me home and my wife put me in bed... 

2 hours later I woke up covered head to toe in a rash and had to barf... and I took a 3rd Benadryl and crawled back into bed shivering like I had a fever.

I'm out of the worst of it... what a messed up day...
If I had not had such a long delay before I took Benadryl I am convinced that I would have been just fine.

Now, I am freaked out. I have to go to a Doctor to get tested for honey bee allergies and to get an EpiPen. 
I will also have liquid Benadryl handy if this happens again...

It turns out that the only explanation which makes sense is that the bee must have injected me directly in one of my scalp's blood vessels for the poison to flood my blood stream and show up all over my body that instantly...

At least now you all know what Anaphylactic Shock feels like as it happens and will move fast if it happens to you...


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## bevy's honeybees (Apr 21, 2011)

Once I had a sting to the soft part between thumb and point finger, and it must have hit a vessel because within a minute I felt a strange rush feeling in my head, and the sting spot swelled in an unusual pattern. Not round like usual. It was the feeling in my head that scared me but nothing more happened and it's not happened since. That was 2 years ago. 

Yes, Benadryl gel caps, bite open and keep under the tongue for quick absorption. If you are getting liquid in a bottle make sure not children's because dose is too low.


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## aunt betty (May 4, 2015)

I keep a handful of meds in my bee tackle box. Allergy pills for them windy dusty tree pollen days in the spring, benedryl for if I get really hammered by bees, and some advil gel tabs. Other than that I'll just call 911 and let them figure out what's going on. 

Used the benedryl on the first 3 or 4 stings but I keep forgetting it's there now.


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## suzyq (Jun 30, 2014)

Steadfast that really scared the daylights out of me reading your story! I'm glad benadryl saved the day. Because of all the bee stings I get my brother sent me an epi pen just in case I get an allergic reaction! Only 12 stings so far this summer so compared to some of you I'm on the low end! Lol


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## Steadfast (Sep 11, 2014)

A bee sting SHOULD hurt...
but if it suddenly makes you itch all over... you're in real world trouble.


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## DeepCreek (Jan 23, 2015)

A sting to the arch of a bare foot is awesome. Feels just like stepping on a piece of glass.


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## aunt betty (May 4, 2015)

The best info I have gotten on this subject was above and should be repeated.
If you start itching everywhere you better skeedaddle quick to the horsiptal.
If you start talking like the above sentence get help fast.


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