Which of us is "Normal"?

[Wandering Man]

I need your help.

3Reds was stung by a bee for the first time yesterday.

Today, there is no swelling, no itching, nothing.  Granted, we put Bakers Venom Cleanser on the spot, so it may just be a super cure for bee stings. 

Anyway, 3Reds and I are trying to decide which one of us has the normal reaction to bee stings.

Me, who swells up the second day, with the swelling and itching slowly diminishing over the next 5 to 7 days,

or

3Reds, who doesn't swell, doesn't itch, just feels a little soreness.

Or, is there anyone out there who can vouch for Bakers really being a miracle cure for bee stings?

[LazyBkpr]

   When I first started working with bees back in 1977 I swelled up at the spot of the sting. Two stings on the hand and you could not see my knuckles anymore. swelling lasted a couple days, and then it ITCHED like mad for a couple of days as the swelling went away...

   Nowdays, I do not take much notice of stings. i know when it happens,and try to get the stinger out.. if I cant, I ignore it, and I do not swell or itch anymore.   It is a matter of the bodies immunity. I would like to say that with time you too will no longer swell or itch, but we are all different in how we react and build up those immunities.

[Perry]

I would say that you both are having normal reactions for you. Some stings react differently depending on where you get nailed.
I'm exactly like LazyBkpr, don't pay much mind to them anymore. Yes they hurt (always will) but within seconds I've moved on. I can still swell up pretty good if I get hit near the eyes, and the most painful spot for me is the top of my head, but other than that....

[LazyBkpr]

and the most painful spot for me is the top of my head

   hmmm... apparently you have not checked many hives while wearing shorts?   

[kingd]

and the most painful spot for me is the top of my head

   hmmm... apparently you have not checked many hives while wearing shorts?   

  Been there......Done that....

[rcannon]

I wear shorts a lot and thankfully, I've never had a bee " ring the bell."  Yet anyway. Most stings don't bother me but I had one sting me right between the nostrils once. That one shut me down for a rew minutes. I couldn't see or breathe and the snot and tears were pouring. Sure tickled my wife, though.

[Bakersdozen]

Everyone is different.  Riverbee suddenly became severely allergic to bee stings one day.  Over time, some beekeepers seem to become immune.  Sting reaction seems to vary on where the sting occurs, time of year, how well the bee got you, and so forth.
Our bee club had a nurse (also a beekeeper) speak on bee stings.  She said that redness and swelling in the area of the sting, followed by itching and more redness was normal.  That is the reaction I get and if untreated, the reaction can last up to 3-4 days.  Using Baker's Venom Cleanser promptly is the only thing I found that reduces the reaction to stings. 
I have heard that the most vulnerable to bee stings are the beekeeper's family members.  If they never work the bees, but are suddenly stung, they can have a severe reaction.  I don't know enough about this to explain the phenomenon.  Maybe someone else does.

[sc-bee]

We had a guy in our club that had been keeping for decades... 100's of stings. Left an entrance in his veil one day and woke up in the hospital. So yes one sting can take you in the opposite direction after years of stings...

[riverbee]

"3Reds and I are trying to decide which one of us has the normal reaction to bee stings.
Me, who swells up the second day, with the swelling and itching slowly diminishing over the next 5 to 7 days,
or
3Reds, who doesn't swell, doesn't itch, just feels a little soreness."

maybe it's her red hair............

i won't get all scientific, but have learned a great deal about sting reactions, and the dynamics of our immune systems when it comes to stings. i am allergic to all stinging insects and continue with immunotherapy. your reactions seem to be in the normal spectrum, everyone is different.

i have attached a pdf file that describes allergies to insect stings, what is normal what is not. some good info.
also, my first post on how i became allergic:

Riverbee's Journey

and this post:

Riverbee's Journey Allergy to Insect Stings-Reactions
basically contains the info in the attached pdf file.

i wear full gear. last summer i foolishy removed my veil very near my hives and a hot hive. as i walked away, i was nailed in the ear and the top of the head~described here:

Riverbee's Journey Two Stings
although no  anaphylactic reaction, my upper arms, palms of my hands, and bottoms of my feet started itching (not experienced this before) and i did develop a very small patch of hives about a quarter size on my left upper arm.  this later dissipated. the swelling and itching really did not last as long as i thought it would, and also not as intense, so the injections have given me immunity.

chip has also been through the injections, and if i remember correctly, one of ef's sons. the injections were able to get them back into the bees.
i work my bees in full gear as i said, and a lesson learned for me.  i may never be able to go without the gear, but for now it works for me.

we all need to be educated about stings and reactions and what to look for, what's normal, what's not.
some of my neighbors think they are allergic just because they swell and suffer, but it's within the realm of normal. and swatting/flailing doesn't help......

[brooksbeefarm]

Scout bees are looking for a home for when they swarm, so if you have a hole in the top of your head and don't wear a veil? I would at least wear a hat to keep that future constant buzzing noise between the ears. Just Saying. :laugh  : Of course this could be to late for some people   Jack

[Perry]

Scout bees are looking for a home for when they swarm, so if you have a hole in the top of your head and don't wear a veil? I would at least wear a hat to keep that future constant buzzing noise between the ears. Just Saying. :laugh  : Of course this could be to late for some people   Jack

I'm gonna assume you're talking about riverbee cause I just know you wouldn't be thinkin about me with that kinda talk!

[riverbee]

"I'm gonna assume you're talking about riverbee cause I just know you wouldn't be thinkin about me with that kinda talk! "

............

jack you pickin' on me?..............

[brooksbeefarm]

Squirt doesn't wear a hat. Jack

[riverbee]

you are right jack i don't wear a hat under my veil!............

the veil already messes my doo up, so the hat would mess it up even more............

[vvand111]

Serious conversation..  I have found a couple of stings a week really help my Knee and finger arthritis.  I missed it during the winter.

I did get about 25 stings last summer in 1 afternoon.  It scared me bad.( thought I might die) I took the Benadryl but was still sick for several hours.

Because we do not know as individuals what a reaction could do, be prepared.

Normal,  Hard to tell if at all. Everyone will react differently at different times. Love a sting or 2 for the arthritis.  It is the best.

[riverbee]

vandy, stings are good for us to maintain some 'immunity'.
i have taken plenty of stings over the years and one day i found myself in the er, and other days thereafter, because i ignored my symptoms.
we are all different as each of us has said. 

if you took 25 stings in one afternoon and was sick for several hours, and as you said 'It scared me bad....thought i might die', you must have been suffering greatly.  this is not normal......this is a 'systemic' reaction, and personally my butt would have been in the er.  nothing to fool with. that's just me.

read my post #9 if you haven't and download the pdf file describing what is normal and what is not.

some folks can take 25 stings or more in an afternoon. some cannot.  it is your immune system that dictates whether you can tolerate these stings.
you start experiencing or feeling anything outside of what is considered 'normal', get yourself to the emergency room.

one sting sent me to the er.  at the time i did not have an eppy. one never knows.  so as you say, be prepared and don't ignore symptoms.

[vvand111]

I totally agree. I was ignorant but I did call my neighbor to come down and sit with me for over an hour as the additional doses of Benadryl kicked in.  It all turned out well but it could have been different.

Be on the safe side.

[riverbee]

it could have been different..........and benadryl isn't the 'fixer'.

good on you for asking your neighbor to sit with you, although if i was your neighbor i probably would have dialed '911'.
yep, that's just me.

curious vandy, what did you experience?
asking just to help others out, and thanks for saying so!

[vvand111]

Mine was just a basic sick feeling with a few chills and a fair amount of confusion Had to lay down.   

[LazyBkpr]

The worst stinging event I had was over 50 stings, and that was only the stingers that got pulled out and counted, I was still finding them the next day...
   However, I didn't feel bad at all. I felt fine, other than my head feeling like it was on fire for a couple of hours...   However, I woke up at 3AM feeling REALLY Nausious...  managed to make it to the toilet...   sat there hugging it while I sweated for a few minutes... then I threw up..   felt good after barfing, went back to bed and woke up the next day feeling like I had been given cortisone shots in every joint in my body..  However, the pain was not worth the two or three days I felt that good so I attempt to curb my own stupidity as much as possible now.

    There was the time when I was a younger teen helping tear down an old house, and we found bees in the interior wall...
   Then there was the time my mentor asked me to yank a board off the side of a shed to see if there were bees in there....
   Then there was the time my mentor had me climb a tee to shake a swarm out of a branch..  swarm fell, branch broke, I landed on top of them...
   Then there was the time I had a rope around a bee tree/log I had just cut free...  excavator swung the log away from the tree, the rope broke...
   I'll stop there because it goes to show that my own stupidity is difficult to curb...   Perhaps...  the good lord does watch over drunks and fools?