Wasps on the mind

March 10, 2009 8:01 PM

Wasp problem: They're in my room, I have a phobia. What to do?

It seems my dorm has developed a wasp problem. About a week and a half ago, I discovered one in my windowsill. It was moving around very slowly, as if it was debilitated. To deal with this situation, I first stumbled backwards, falling over and knocking over a fan. Then, I slammed the window shut as hard as I could and then sat around trying to cool down. My window was open in winter because the heat in this building is way too high, to the point where it's unbearably hot without an open window.

I was surprised to find a wasp because at the time it was a cold February in the midwest. I live in a small single room (all of eight feet wide, approximately). I was freaked out for a while, but I got over it. Until tonight, when I saw one flying around my room. I ran out, slammed the door, and I'm now in an, uh, undisclosed location.

This presents a problem. I'm absolutely terrified of returning to my room. It's completely debilitated me. The thought of going back is laughable. Every little movement I see from the corner of my eye gives me a jolt and the sweats -- it could be a wasp! Every little tingle or brush I feel on my skin, like when my arm brushes against my shirt, has the same effect -- it's gotta be the wasp! Even if I did manage to make it inside my room, it's still there. If I see it again, I'll flee again. If I don't that's almost worse: is it in my blankets? My coat? My shoes? Everything I touch or move is suspect.

Worse yet, I've never been stung and I have no idea if I'm allergic or not. This only serves to amplify my fears.

I have no idea what to do right now -- I feel lost and helpless. It's hard to get across in words just how completely debilitating this wasp situation is. What is the best way for me to get rid of it, especially if I can't see it? How can I convince the school to take action on this? They've said they will be getting it looked at, but more immediate action of... some sort, I don't know what, would be appreciated. Finally, how do I keep myself from dying if I do end up getting stung by this unwanted guest?

posted by punishinglemur to health & fitness (26 comments total)

I would go kill it. Get something swift and hard to whack it with, gird your loins and your heart, open the door, and whack it. I would then shout something embarrassing, like YEAH FUCKER YOU LIKE THAT! Then I would strut a bit.

But I don't have a phobia (although I have a healthy respect for their stinging ends). If I had a phobia, I would like to think that I would suck it up and do the above anyway, and when complete, feel liberated.

However, I assume that what I would actually do is find some friend in the dorm who does not have this phobia, explain the situation, and have him or her whack it with something and then report back to me on the situation.
posted by Flunkie at 8:09 PM on March 10, 2009

You could make a homemade wasp trap. Maybe that would help to give you a little more sense of control over the situation.
posted by amyms at 8:13 PM on March 10, 2009 [1 favorite]

Do you have a really good friend who owes you a favor? Ask to stay in their room for the night, and see if they're willing to help you get rid of the wasp.

If you do get stung-if the dorms are anything like the ones I've been in, the walls are paper thin. If you think you're in trouble, make a lot of noise or run to get someone. Chances are, someone will notice (especially if you've told your neighbors that you're worried about the wasp).

As for campus dealing with it? Honestly, they'll probably take their time. Your best chance is to call them about it frequently and be polite about it. Ask your neighbors if they've had to deal with wasps, and if they have, ask them to call the school about it.
posted by dinty_moore at 8:15 PM on March 10, 2009

I have been in this boat -- never been stung -- and undesirous of changing that status -- while doing battle with a wasp of epic proportions (or so it seemed).

I actually managed to decrease my discomfort with wasps by working at a summer camp that was plagued by them. That and investing in large cans of Raid (there's a special formulation for flying vermin that shoots out in a poisonous torrent).

Honestly, though, the wasp probably just wants to get out of your room. Or will if given the opportunity. Open your door, can of Raid in hand, and hang out in the hallway with the door open, waiting for him to fly out. If he doesn't fly out soon -- dash in and do a quick search, moving enough things around that he'd appear. Sure, this will freak you out, but then you can watch him zip out of your too-hot room into the just-right hallway.

Good luck!
posted by nayrb5 at 8:15 PM on March 10, 2009

Call your RA and see if they have any ideas. Or buy a can of wasp killer. Or go straight to the source---call the building super or management people before you go back into your room, if you can't bear the idea of going in there alone with the can o' wasp death in your hands.

Wasps, yellow jackets, anything that buzzes and stings, they all give me the willies.

I was once forced to duck out in the middle of the night past a yellow jacket in my hallway to go buy wasp killer. The wasp didn't die at first; I had gotten so panicked when I unleashed the stream of insecticide that I had forgotten to shake the can first. Then I shook the car within an inch of its life and doused the wasp again. I sprayed so much of that directional wasp-icide that my entryway smelled the way I imagined a deadly chemical spill would smell. And it smelled like that for weeks.

Good luck!
posted by Issithe at 8:16 PM on March 10, 2009

Wasps often make their nests under the eaves and gutters. How close are you to the top floor?

I'm sorry to hear you are so scared of them. I've have them get in my house and they generally stay away from people... they mostly fly around the perimeter of a room, bouncing off the ceiling and walls as they look for the nearest exit (which is why you found one on the window). If you find one any lower, they'll be dead or near death. Unless you deliberately mess with them, they tend to mind their own business and won't get in your things.

Now bats, on the other hand, are pretty scary!

If you are that concerned, you could always buy wasp spray. When you spray it, it comes out in a concentrated stream (kind of like a Super Soaker), so you can kill them from across the room. Warning: that stuff is pretty nasty, so you'd probably want to air out the room and wash anything the spray touches.
posted by MegoSteve at 8:19 PM on March 10, 2009

If you don't have wasp spray handy, go armed with aerosol hairspray. Yes, really. If you see the wasp, spray continuously until he stops moving (about 2 seconds). If he is flying toward you, he'll even fall to the ground because he's so sticky he can't fly.

Yes, I've done this and it works. :)
posted by Houstonian at 8:25 PM on March 10, 2009 [2 favorites]

I think that you get one free sting. It's the second sting that you need to worry about.

From http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/2000/2076.html:

"The excess antibody production usually follows the initial sting to which there is no reaction. However, when the person is stung again, the insect venom entering the body combines with the antibody, produced by the first sting, which triggers a series of internal reactions, resulting in severe allergic symptoms."

So don't fret about that first sting so much.
posted by Addlepated at 8:27 PM on March 10, 2009

Honestly, call a professional pest control guy tonight, pay for it out of pocket, and ask the school to reimburse you later.

Or, go in there like an action hero and get rid of the nest(s). protip: metallica's Kill em All blaring in the background.
posted by metastability at 8:30 PM on March 10, 2009

They are coming in somewhere to escape from the conditions. Find that place and duct tape it.

Once I lived in an apartment with this problem. I remember waking up in the night to see a wasp on my chest, right on top of the blanket, like a cat who wants breakfast. I simply meditated on this in a completely detached fashion, reacting not at all, and the wasp never stung me.
posted by Countess Elena at 8:33 PM on March 10, 2009

Whoa, do not call a professional pest control person and ask the school to reimburse you. 1) You don't need a professional for one wasp. 2) The school will almost certainly not reimburse you. 3) A pest control person coming at night would be quite expensive.

I have a deathly fear of wasps, too (I was stung on the eyelid when I was little). My suggestions as someone who can totally empathize are:
1) Get a friend to kill it.
or if that is not an option
2) Buy a can of bug spray and spray the shit out of it. The only problem with this is that it's chemicals being sprayed in a small, enclosed area where you don't want to open the window in case more wasps come in.
3) Try the hairspray thing. That might work.

If you do 2 or 3, cover your face with something to prevent the spray getting in your face/keep the wasp from getting in your face.
posted by fructose at 8:43 PM on March 10, 2009

If it makes you feel any better, I stuck my hand in a red wasp's nest and got something like 36 stings on one hand. I have never run so hard and so fast before, I think I was 9 years old, and we were in a blueberry patch. I'd stuck my hand in a bush except -- well, obviously not. I'm typing this now so I didn't die, but I remember it hurting like hell and my hand swelling hugely and generally being freaked the fuck out because my hand felt like fire. I had to ride home with my hand stuck in an ice chest full of sodas but two days later, I was fine.

Houstonian is right: Hair spray works. Do you have a ceiling fan? I trapped one in a ceiling fan for several days until it died last summer... note: they don't want to sting you. They could give a shit about you until you start provoking them. I've had several crawling on me since The Hand and been okay. Swatting them = provocation.

What to do if you get stung, and how to remove a nest. So you aren't going to die unless you have swelling or hives a full foot away from the sting site. That said, if it stings you once and you don't kill it, it's gonna sting you again... period. I know from personal experience, so haul ass or be killing it when and if it stings you. Note: it looks like leaving food in your dorm room with the window open could be attracting them? Don't do that; eat with windows closed and don't leave things like apple cores in your trash, etc.

Here is an Ehow on making a homemade wasp trap. Make one, leave in dorm room, close all windows, presto-bango, come back from class with a bottle of dead wasps. Hope this helps!
posted by Unicorn on the cob at 8:55 PM on March 10, 2009

Keep some vinegar and cotton balls handy. Just yesterday, I trod on a sleepy wasp in my kitchen with my bare foot, and it stung the bejeezus out of me.

Soaking a cotton ball in vinegar and applying it immediately directly to the sting, in ten minutes the pain was pretty much gone. Today, there's no swelling, and no real pain.

I am now much less afraid of wasps than I was yesterday. As long as I have the handy home remedy around.
posted by LucretiusJones at 9:13 PM on March 10, 2009

Dude...this is how to get the problem solved within an hour:

1. Call front desk at dorm/RA/residential administration (as high up as possible).
2. Tell them about your allergy to bee stings.
3. Tell them you have wasps in your room.
4. Throw around the phrase "anaphylactic shock"

That should do it. You live in a freaking dorm...you don't need to worry about maintenance, and making nets, and vinegar, etc. Those bastards are charging you up the wazoo for your cinder block tenement. MAKE THEM EARN YOUR MONEY!
posted by hal_c_on at 9:29 PM on March 10, 2009 [1 favorite]

Thrilling update: I acquired a can of wasp and hornet killer that is quite old. Luckily it works quite well, because I have successfully eliminated the wasp. My hall director says that exterminators and building management have been called. Hopefully we can all put this terrifying episode beyond us and get on with our lives.
posted by punishinglemur at 9:31 PM on March 10, 2009

*Wasps don't build nests this time of the year. These are likely single specimens that have found some place to pass the winter and either start finding it uncomfortable and look for another, or woke up because it got temporarily warmer and are grumpy because it's still cold.
*The likelihood that there will be a lot seems low to me. A few, if their first chosen spot was cozy, perhaps...In view of your phobia, if this problem ever recurs, I would ask a friend to help. People do have phobias, it is okay. Most likely these wasps are slow and easy to deal with, quite unlike what they would be in the summer.
*You could let yourself be checked for allergies in order to get that part of your fears out of the way.
*Talk with someone who knows about phobias about appropriate strategies in general - that might make life easier.
posted by Namlit at 12:34 AM on March 11, 2009

We used to have wasps in our old place. Wasps in the attic, under the eaves and sills, wasps at the front door and at the back kitchen window. Wasps, everywhere. I was certain it was just a matter of time before I got stung, but I never did. What would happen is that as winter approached, their numbers would get smaller and smaller until there was maybe one or two stragglers. These guys would sit on the window sill or on the top of the window frame, staring out the window waiting for it to get warm enough to venture outside again.

One of these wasps actually lived for a long time, just sitting on the window sill above our kitchen sink. Occasionally he'd head to the top of the window, other times he'd hang out near the sink. He never flew at us or threatened us in any way, and because my SO is such a softie we ended up feeding him through the winter (leaving little mothballs saturated in honey to keep it alive). When we moved that summer, we brought our wasp friend with us; sadly he didn't live too long in the new place.

Ever since then, I've begrudgingly found a certain amount of respect for the lives of our stingy, flying friends. To be clear, I'm not going to go out of my way to look for a giant nest to cuddle up with. But the experience has helped allay any fears I used to have.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 12:43 AM on March 11, 2009 [1 favorite]

Just in case you encounter any more of the beasties: don't try to hit them with a magazine or a flyswatter, you'll just make them angry. The best solution I've found is to get a hand-held vacuum cleaner (if possible with one of those long and narrow crevice attachments). Turn it on, bring it close to the wasp, watch it get sucked up. Most vacuums have an internal flap, so it can't crawl out again.

Then have someone who's not allergic empty the vacuum outside - if they switch it on for a couple of seconds beforehand the wasp will be to dizzy to do anything but drop to the ground.

The advantage of this approach is that "near misses" with the nozzle will not make the insect angry; on the contrary, it will try to cling faster to whatever it's sitting on, so there's very low danger of it flying toward you.
posted by PontifexPrimus at 1:27 AM on March 11, 2009

punishinglemur...

I don't like wasps either, but only when surprised by them. I particularly don't like to be in a car with them flying about.

Desensitizing your emotional reaction might be helped by studying them. They are fascinating creatures, and just part of the natural world. They're not all bad. Stinging insects give you honey, and fertilize your almonds and oranges.

While death to an offending creature is always an alternative, it's sadly the way we react to many unpleasant parts of our world... we kill it, mash it, burn it, destroy it. That eliminates the 'problem' we might be facing at the moment, but has the secondary effect of reinforcing death as a solution to discomfort. It trains us that cruelty is OK if if benefits us.

You're going to confront other stinging entities in life. (You are in a dorm, so I am presuming you are kind of young.) How will you react to those? Death in a can isn't available for all offensive creatures and situations, you know?

The truth of the matter is that you are probably NOT going to get stung. Wasp doesn't "want" to be there...he's just stuck. It is a spiritual grace to help the poor creature out, and a character building exercise to confront your fears, even in the face of minor danger. It makes you a better adult and better person.

My late wife ALWAYS gave them a ride outside on her finger. I use a pencil or chopstick or butter knife, but usually, a glass and a piece of paper work to trap them.

One wasp does not a nest make. Your room isn't polluted. You SHOULD inspect/have it inspected to assure that there isn't a hidden nest, and you might want to consider that you may have carried it in on your clothes! If a nest is close by, I usually do destroy it, but only in service to the uninformed. (If I know where it is, I just avoid it, but I would never let the mail man deal with a nest in an accessible place. )

I hope you can develop a means of dealing with your fears. Prickly stuff is everywhere. It takes a while to develop calm means of dealing with distress, but when you do, you'll have made a definite transition to adulthood. Good luck.
posted by FauxScot at 4:38 AM on March 11, 2009 [2 favorites]

I had a pretty morbid fear of wasps for a long time - I wouldn't go outside during the summer unless I had to.

I don't recommend this, but what helped me the most was getting stung (twice) on a campout. It wasn't THAT bad, I found out I wasn't allergic, and now it's not that big of a worry.

I still hate the little buggers though.

Note: this time of year any wasp you see has a good chance of being a queen. I highly recommend you get some traps set up outside your window. If you trap the queens when they show up, no nests are built nearby and you have very few wasps when summer comes.
posted by mmoncur at 5:39 AM on March 11, 2009

Hairspray. Seconding hairspray.

The thing that is scary about wasps and hymenoptera in general is not that they can sting.

It's that they can fly and sting.

Wasp and hornet killer is terrific if you have a nest to deal with, but if you're talking mano a waspo, I'm all for hairspray. It's non-toxic and it turns a flying stinging insect into a surprised walking insect which can be easily dispatched with a shoe or a rolled up newspaper. It's also fairly easy to clean up.

I had an experience as a youth of getting a couple dozen stings in one go. It has definitely shaped my attitude towards hymenoptera, but mind over matter - today if I get stung, I usually curse and plan Retribution With Extreme Prejudice.
posted by plinth at 6:13 AM on March 11, 2009

Unless you deliberately mess with them, they tend to mind their own business and won't get in your things.

Wasps are unpredictable and may feel messed with even though you aren't doing anything to them; I've seen bumblebees - which are much more docile than wasps - suddenly decide to sting, even though nobody messed with them or their nest. Do not ignore bees/wasps/bumblebees or their nests.

I don't know about hairspray, but I got immense satisfaction from using canned wasp killer. It's very effective, and can be used like a shotgun to shoot them out of the air (if you so desire). Using it indoors may make your living area stink, though.
posted by Simon Barclay at 6:43 AM on March 11, 2009

Hairspray. Seconding hairspray.

If you're ever in a situation where you have no other options than to deal with a gigantic wasp nest by yourself, I used a can of high pressure marking paint and a blow torch. I was alone, hours from any store and the only other thing I had was a shovel. Retrospectively, the prospect of being stung hundreds of time pales in comparison to the full body third degree burns. This is totally inadvisable, stupid dangerous way to do things. But god, did it work.
posted by JimmyJames at 7:41 AM on March 11, 2009 [1 favorite]

Totally anecdotal evidence here: Do you have fluorescent lights that get left on during the day? One room of my house kept getting a wasp or two, but then I turned out the fluorescent light that I had been keeping on there during the day time and the wasps stopped coming in. I have no supporting evidence and googling isn't showing anything, either.
posted by frecklefaerie at 7:49 AM on March 11, 2009

Unless you really want to piss off a wasp's friends, DO NOT SMASH IT! When you smash wasps, bees, etc (hymenopterans), they release an alarm pheromone that signals the recently deceased's friends to attack.

If you do get stung, take a Benadryl and pay attention to how you feel. If you are going to have an anaphylactic reaction, you will know shortly after being stung.

This isn't meant to be snarky, but the probable reason why you have this debilitating phobia is because you fear what you don't understand. I deal with it a lot in my academic department-I'm an entomologist. Entomophobia is the unfounded fear of insects. One way you can deal with this is to learn more about them. Take a class if your school offers it. I teach general entomology and there are always a number of students that are afraid of insects. Many have told me that after they take the class that they have a new understanding of insects and aren't as fearful.

That being said, the wasps are not out to get you. They want to be out of the cold. Talk to the RA about having the grounds people take care of any nests they can find. A lot depends on the type of wasp you have. If you are brave enough to put it in a jar and mail it to me, I can try to suggest something specific.
posted by bolognius maximus at 10:17 AM on March 11, 2009

I've been wanting one of these. Not because I want to release them, but because it has a long nozzle to keep me away from the nasty flying, stinging thing, and doesn't spread toxic waste all over my living space.
posted by theora55 at 2:40 PM on March 11, 2009