Flying Critter Sting

[Veronica]

At the end of our ride yesterday something flew into my face. I brushed it away and it hit my leg and stung me. I woke up this morning with the area around it red and swollen. It got a little worse during our ride today - the gripper of my shorts was sitting right on it. We're monitoring for signs of infection of course.

It's the itchiness that gets me! I just want to scratch at it, but that only makes it more itchy!

I have no idea what the blasted thing was. :mad: I'm typing to keep from itching!

Veronica

[badgercat]

Yuck. :( I had a sort of similarly odd situation once out on a walk during an retreat in high school. Something flew into my face--didn't really hurt at the time, I just thought it was a bug with bad aim or something. But by the time I got back from my walk, I had like an itchy pink marble on my forehead. :eek: One of the retreat leaders offered me some Benadryl, which helped quite a lot (and I've used that since then, for random other itchy bites).

Have you tried any antihistamines? If you're worried about getting drowsy from Benadryl, you could also try topical anti-histamine cream instead, or a non-drowsy pill like Claritin?

I hope it clears up soon!

[Veronica]

I hadn't thought of taking some Claritin. I've been going through the topical stuff in our first aid kit. It works for a couple of hours.

Veronica

[OakLeaf]

Ugh. Hope you feel better soon.

I can totally sympathize - I've been dealing with an awful rash on the back of one knee that I have no idea what it is. It's ugly and really itchy. The walk-in clinic gave me a script for a combo steroid/antifungal, I think just on the basis that that will take care of 90% of rashes. I'm just hoping it isn't mange from these stray dogs that I've had contact with... :eek: If I have to go to a dermatologist it could be weeks before I can get an appointment.

[jessmarimba]

Try the Benadryl spray or cream right on the spot...should temporarily relieve the itching without any of the other effects.

[maillotpois]

Sorry - that stinks. I like that Sting Eeze stuff that comes in the yellow bottle with the green lid. I can't generally find it at drug stores; just places like REI.

[redrhodie]

Try icing it.

[Veronica]

Yep, I've been icing it. That helps a lot too.

Veronica

[kmehrzad]

I too was stung by a bee(?) 5 miles into a 66 mile ride. As I was riding down a fairly steep hill, a bee stung me on my abdomen through my jersey. The thought of and pain of the sting caused me to react by braking, I lost control of the bike and flew off onto the side of the road. After laying still for a minute or two making sure nothing was broken (me or the bike), I continued the ride.

The jersey rubbed against the sting which was very aggravating and the itchiness came later and lasted for at least a week if not more. I put hydrocortisone cream on the sting but it didn't really do a very good job of stopping the itch. I totally relate to wanting to scratch it for some temporary relief. I hope you're able to get beyond the itchiness sooner than I was.

[Tawnya]

Yesterday my 13yo daughter and I were on a ride and at mile 10 she was climbing a hill. When she stood up she opened her mouth and was stung on the tongue by what turned out to be a black wasp. Poor thing has allergic reactions to meds but has never been stung by anything...until now. She went into hysterics. Luckily we were close to a relatives house where we just filled her mouth with ice.

The swelling went down but it's still got a sting to it.

There's so many things you can put on a sting but what the heck do you do when it's in your mouth?

Luckily this was minor...looks like we carry an epi pen from here on out just in case.

Tis the Season I guess.

[kmehrzad]

So sorry to hear about your daughter being stung on her tongue. That's truly traumatic for a child. I'm glad too that she didn't have a serious reaction. I've heard one must be exceedingly careful when stung by a bee on or around the face.

Last yr. I was climbing a hill and had my lips parted. Sure enough a bee found its way inside and stung me on the inside of my lip. WOW! I have a pretty high pain tolerance but that sent me over the top. I almost lost control of the bike in my attempt to brush off the bee. The 20 mile ride home was no picnic ... I didn't have any ice with me and the lip was swelling big time and hurt terribly.

I try to be mindful now and keep my mouth closed as much as possible while riding.


Yesterday my 13yo daughter and I were on a ride and at mile 10 she was climbing a hill. When she stood up she opened her mouth and was stung on the tongue by what turned out to be a black wasp. Poor thing has allergic reactions to meds but has never been stung by anything...until now. She went into hysterics. Luckily we were close to a relatives house where we just filled her mouth with ice.

The swelling went down but it's still got a sting to it.

There's so many things you can put on a sting but what the heck do you do when it's in your mouth?

Luckily this was minor...looks like we carry an epi pen from here on out just in case.

Tis the Season I guess.

[Roadtrip]

OUCH. I hate bees and have a mild reaction (it's been ten years+ since) when stung. When I was little my sister got stung on the lip by a bee who had found it's way inside a can of soda for the surgery "nectar" and was still there when she took a sip and didn't realize. ZAP.

I've also found mosquitoes nearly always find me first when out in the yard. I can be working in a group and getting ATE up and look like a fool swatting and hissing at the blood sucking beasts while everyone else is wondering if I've finally lost it.

Gotta love nature!! At least we don't have Black Flies here. Too far south.

[OakLeaf]

Ow, stung on the tongue! :eek::eek: Hope she feels better soon. The only time I had a systemic reaction to a sting, I was stung on the face. So good she didn't! But yeah - I keep a current Epi-Pen even though I've never needed one. My doctor will give me a script, I've had systemic reactions to things before, and the way I look at it, it's just a stupid thing to die of for want of a $35 kit.



I guess what we have in Ohio are deer flies, not black flies, but I don't know how anything could be worse. They're on you any time you're outside, unlike mosquitoes they stay out all day long and they don't hover so you can't hear them coming, you can't feel them biting until they're done (and then it HURTS), and they leave a huge welt that lasts for a couple of weeks. Awful.

[marni]

oh your poor daughter. For future reference,anything non acid and with some base ingredients will take the sting out of wasp and bee stings.

too bad there wasn't anything like that around when the bee got caught in my bran and stung me on the nipple. I rode off the road and crashed without feeling anything except the pain of the sting. someone sslapped some yogurt from a squeeze tube on itt and the pain eased considerable. then I took an antihistamine and slept well that night. The next day I looked like a Wagnerian Soprano on my left tit but that was also the end of that.

Insect stings are a PITA.

manri

[OakLeaf]

Owwww!!!! Marni :eek: :eek:

[kmehrzad]

...too bad there wasn't anything like that around when the bee stung me on the nipple. I rode off the road and crashed without feeling anything except the pain of the sting. Insect stings are a PITA.


OMG!! :eek:

[Tawnya]

Daughter is doing fine. Thank goodness it was on the tongue and not the face....(school pics today).

A friend of my hubby's had an incident last month with a wasp trapped between him and his saddle. Sure the padded shorts saved his "parts" but he was still stung a few times on the thigh. He stated the feeling was.."interesting to say the least."

Who knew we'd have to battle nature every time we get on our bikes. :)

[badger]

could these said "bees" really, in fact, be wasps?

I personally love bees and hate to think they're the cause of all this pain. They normally don't sting unless they are trying to defend their hive as they'll die, whereas a wasp will pretty much sting for the sake of stinging.

One way to tell if you've truly been stung by a bee, they'll leave behind a venom sac. Don't try to grab it with your fingers as that will pump more venom in you. Instead, take a straight edge like a credit card and take the edge to it to "pull out" the sac. If there was nothing there, then it was a wasp sting.

I woke up this morning scratching my elbow. Turns out I was pretty much mauled by a mosquito or two, had at least 4 bumps. I found this thing called "Inflam-eze" which contain things like "oil of pain root, karabash, sage, rosemary, and oregano". Smells really herbal-y but it really took the itch out, haven't felt itchy all day.

[OakLeaf]

There are a lot of species of bees. Only honeybees die when they sting.

Most species of wasps aren't aggressive either.

Most anything will sting, or bite, or defend itself however it can, when it's minding its own business flying around and you plow into it at 20 mph (or 10, or even 6, like the bee that got me on the thigh in the middle of a big climb :eek:).

I don't think it works on hymenoptera stings, but heat will destroy the stuff in a mosquito's saliva that people are allergic to. If you can get a heating pad (as hot as you can stand without burning) or a towel soaked in boiling water on it within 5-10 minutes of being bitten, it won't leave the huge welt.