Even walking through long grass brings me out in a skin rash … so perhaps I should have known better.
I had become blasé. When we next went to check on Darren’s hives, I tucked my jeans into my socks and put the top half of the bee jacket on.
I already knew from experience that my jeans were not bee proof and I was rather nervous as Darren’s bees tried penetrating my button fly, only half of which were done up. I have noticed bees make a high pitch whine when they are stuck or in the process of stinging you. I hoped the whining sound coming from my fly was just a stuck bee.
And then it happened. I got stung where there was only a thin layer of sock. No not there, the sock on my foot.
The other bees identified my weak spot and in text book fashion my ankle was attacked by several bees, then my other ankle, then the top of my upper thighs!!
I made my excuses to Darren and headed to the other end of his garden.
I counted about 7 stings in one ankle, 4 in the other and 3 in my thigh. I pulled about 30 bee stings out of my clothes. What had Darren just said, it takes 200 bee stings to kill you … or was it 20?
A bee sting |
My swollen foot the next day |
I woke up the next morning at 6am with my ankles itching like crazy, my ankle swollen so that it looked like an elephants, bruising and an over welcoming feeling of tiredness. Later that day, I felt slightly feverish and it was all I could do to hive a swarm of bees that a new bee friend had caught the previous day. Honeymoon arrangements will have to wait!
My pregnant wife, who has a natural tendency to negate my feelings at the best of times, told me to man-up. She will be horrified by the following analogy: Like a hippy woman approaching labour and not wanting to use any drugs or an epidural, I initially resisted anti-histamine pills or cream. But 24 hours later I was smoothing in cream like it was suntan lotion.
Three days later, I was still exhausted, swollen, itchy and bruised.
I have been reading Beekeeping by Ron Brown over recent weeks. He has a whole section on the make-up of bee venom (pages 131-134) which I have learnt is made up of: several toxic substances, several agents that help the venom spread around the body, protein irritants, steroids and an alarm pheromone. Crikey!
Ron explains there are two types of people, those who produce more immunoglobulin G (IgG) and those who produce more immunoglobulin E (IgE). Asthma and hayfever sufferers tend to produce more IgE (that’s me!) and this group of people suffer progressively worse from stings. Those people who produce more IgG build up their resistance to stings.
He says that no beekeeper needs to give up because of an allergy because it is possible to have immunotherapy which results in becoming someone who produces more IgG. I will have to look into this!
I also need to reduce the amount of stings I get in the first place so the plan is to: buy a full bee suit and wear wellington boots. Get kitted-up and be prepared:
Buy beekeeper suits from £37 |
Read More
- Don’t let being stung, put you off, I was beekeeping the next day: Hiving A Swarm … Again
- I am now selling Darren’s honey. I have written about it here: Bristol Honey.
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I had asthma and hayfever badly as a child. Uh-oh!
Seem to remember that the immunotherapy involves getting injected once a week for a couple of years, so not exactly convenient!
I had some injections too as a child. They did not seem to make an difference. Not sure if they are still in fashion?
Just wait until you get one on the head, that’s when you will really find out how allergic you are. I normally don’t get much of a reaction at all, but one got me on the back of the head the other day, my lips got swollen, itchy rash all over and bad indigestion. I took Piriton and it started calming down within about half an hour, I carry it with me all the time now, just in case.
I got a bee in the bonnet of my suit the day before my wedding. It was rather on my mind about not getting stung.
Under the eyes is the worst, anywhere where the skin is delicate and particularly sensitive. I couldn’t see out of one eye the day after getting stung on my cheek, my skin just swelled up right over it.
Ouch! I reacted very badly to a sting recently so much sympathy. Luckily our bees don’t get stingy.
Ow, ow and ow again. That looks horrible. I got stung last year on my hand and it was very unpleasant indeed – lasted longer than I would have like too. That itch just lingers. I think you need to wear thicker socks 🙂
if you do get stung, smoke the site of the sting it masks the pheromones which attract other bees to sting
I’d read about doing that. Totally forgot at my time of need!
know what you mean, my first sting I took 5 attempts to scratch it out lol. Missed it entirely the first 3!!