Wasp Stings

jellyBEAN · ‎04-03-2010

The other day I was outside watering my plants. All of a sudden I felt a tremendous stinging irritation on my leg and then it seemed to keep stinging and spreading up my leg. I thought, what the heck? I got inside, took my pants off and sure enough there was a wasp clinging inside my pants. He stung me in about a half dozen places.

So I immediately put a cold compress of herbs on it and this seemed to soothe the area. I checked and I have what appear to be about 6 stings, one of them, the initial sting is the major sting. Now two days after the sting boy do I itch. I am resisting the urge to itch but its awful. Almost as bad as chigger bites all over.

I don't have cortisone cream, and from what I gather on the internet info, the stings do get worse 2-3 days after the initial sting, so hopefully tomorrow I'll get some relief.

Never had a bee fly up my pant leg before, and I guess shorts would have been a better option. Anyone ever had this happen?

Flowers are nature's way of laughing

Foxxee · ‎10-03-2014

@jellyBEAN

If you're willing to try it, I have a solution for your itching.

Learned about it from a very helpful gentleman on the internet who gave explicit instructions.

Using a hairdryer on high heat, position it over the sting as close as possible, but not directly on the skin.

It will begin to itch like crazy. At the first sign of pain, remove the dryer. It should only take a minute or less until you feel the pain.

I have used this method numerous times. My skin turns red in the area, but it goes away in about 10 minutes. There was no damage to my skin.

It works so well, I only had to do this two times a day when the sting began itching again, then once daily, until it stops itching altogether when the sting appears to go away.

If at first, you still have itching, try it again in a few minutes. That should work.

JeanLouiseFinch · ‎10-03-2011

@jellyBEAN When one of our kids was a teenager they were playing in the front yard and disturbed a nest - ended up with 35+ bites, started to swell up, and had to go to the ER. At home, you can take Benadryl to reduce the itching.

We live in the Midwest and wasps have been absolutely AWFUL this year. My husband has been stung several times and has found a few nests. Mosquitoes are getting bad too.

Lilysmom1 · ‎11-08-2020

@JeanLouiseFinch , my DH got sting last year. He was working on the garden. We had a bird house on a post. The wasps made a nest. All I heard was 'Run'. I am allergic to wasp and bee stings. He was bitten several times. We managed to eliminate the nest but I closed off the birdhouses as we have several and I was not looking for a repeat.

After a mild winter, we have a lot of bugs.

@jellyBEAN , hope you are doing ok. LM

Another new name Sue · ‎03-11-2010

That's bad! Cortisone cream and Benedryl will help. So sorry and hope you get through this quickly.

Krimpette · ‎03-09-2010

I use white vinegar to take away the itching of insect bites.

Sweetbay magnolia · ‎04-14-2013

Horrible. I am generally an advocate for wasps (good garden predators) but when they misbehave, it is war!

I once had a bald faced hornet thwack me on the side of the skull and I'll tell you, I would have crushed them if I could!

That same day, I was in a Jazzercise class. Sat on an exercise ball, and guess what? A wasp under my butt! Stung again! I believe pheromones play a part in attracting them. We're all just looking for a meal.

Cogito ergo sum

eadu4 · ‎06-14-2011

@jellyBEAN I feel your pain. I have been there numerous times. I hope you feel some relief soon. Not too long ago I was walking in the yard with flip flops...well I guess a bee got caught up in the flip flop and when it came back up I got stung! Had a pair of jeans I had hung dry on the line where I was living years ago, brought them in and put them on, and yup got stung!. I also got stung doing flips down a mat in gymnastics years ago. Did my back sommersault and landed right on one! Needless to say I did not stick the landing lol. To go back even further, when I was 7 I was with friends in the words playing and lifted a log...well there was a yellow jacket nest underneath. Needless to say I got COVERED in them. I had long hair, they were tangled in it. My eyes were stung shut the next day. My parents were dressed to go out to dinner, and ready to leave (good thing they hadn't left yet). My dad grabbed me, stripped me down to my underwear, my mom put me in a tub of baking soda, and my sister ran down the street to the pediatrician that lived there and he came to the house (ah the good old days of house visits). He counted only from my waist down over 75 stings he gave up counting above my waist. He said had I been allergic I would have died. I remember opening my eyes only once, while walking out of the woods and saw they were all over me literally my sweater, shirt, pants, they were in my socks...oh yeah...I got nailed. I would wake up for a while afterwards crying and afraid.

jellyBEAN · ‎04-03-2010

I know that as a kid growing up I got stung by yellow jackets and maybe a bumble bee or two, but never a wasp.

I can't imagine being stung all over - my gosh - talk about being in misery. I'm still in itch mode but its gone down a degree and the swelling looks less intense. I've done my best to just not scratch and cause bleeding and scabs. Looks to be about 8 stings on my shin and inner knee area. He just flew right up my pant leg, panicked cause he didn't see a way out, and got me good.

Thanks for all the suggestions. I'm usually on the lookout for snakes when I'm outside, now I will keep an eye out for wasps as well. They really pack a wallop with their stingers.

Flowers are nature's way of laughing