Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with beesting

What's normal for a bee sting?

bookish — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 18:24:29 -0800

How much swelling is normal after a bee sting? And is a lot of swelling indicative of anything troublesome? I was stung by a bee on the top of my foot yesterday, near my big toe. It's been gradually swelling and now the whole front half of my foot is swollen, painful and itchy, and it hurts to stand or walk. I had periodic chills after getting stung but they disappeared by yesterday evening.

Is this within the range of "normal" reactions to a bee sting? Some googling turns up advice to see a doctor if the swelling is bigger than several inches, but then elsewhere folks say it's not a big deal, if you don't have hives, a fever, or trouble breathing.

The pain is a bitch but I can deal. What concerns me is that my mother had a deathly bee allergy and once almost died while she was mowing the lawn, and I wander if this is a harbinger of more serious allergic responses in the future. Or am I just being paranoid?

I really would like to avoid the doctor, as I have no insurance and no money. Like, I would have to borrow money to go to the local clinic before my next pay check, or else show up at the ER. And I'm not going to do that if all the doc is going to say is, "Yep, that's a bee sting, take some Benedryl."

Bee Sting Allergy or Coincidental Flu?

Alabaster — Sat, 14 Jul 2007 21:57:23 -0800

I need inside information from the "hive" mind. Did a bee sting give me flu-like symptoms, or did I just get an unrelated virus on the same day as the sting? More inside: I got stung by a bee on the bottom of my foot around noon a few days ago. Didn't have much of a reaction at first, not much swelling, and only minor pain.

That night I woke up around 3am with the chills. The whole next day I felt horrible, like I had the flu or something -- bad headache, fever, chills, aches and pains all over the body. Took a nap when I got home from work, and woke up around 9pm in a cold sweat -- my fever had broken and most of my aches were gone.

Next day, most of my flu-like symptoms are gone. But my middle toe is red and very swollen around the area of the sting. It's not especially painful, but it's itchy and uncomfortable -- it feels like it's going to pop when I step on it (you know that feeling when you wrap a rubber band around your thumb?).

If any of this persists I'll be sure to see a doctor, but I thought I'd check on everyone's experience (don't want to say 'hive mind,' it brings back bad memories):

1.) Can a bee sting allergy cause these flu-like symptoms? Or is it just a coincidence that I happened to get some 24-hour virus the day after a bee sting? (I'm not aware of being in contact with anyone sick recently, but of course there's no way to be 100% sure).

2.) Regarding the foot, is it normal for the swelling/redness to not manifest until 24+ hours after the sting? How long can I expect the swelling to last, and at what point should I seek medical attention?

I don't have any history of allergies, but there's not much to go on--I have only been stung once before, by a hornet, over 20 years ago when I was a young child. My father has a severe bee sting allergy but I don't recall anything flu-like about it.

What bit me?

otherwordlyglow — Wed, 30 May 2007 11:32:31 -0800

What is this insect that bit me? I was driving near Mono Lake, just east of Yosemite last Friday and this insect (bee? fly? bee fly?) flew in the window of our truck and bit/stung me on the knee. After it stung me (through a pair of tights), it rolled down into the cab of the truck and didn't seem to be able to fly. After my freak-out, we pulled over and dumped it out on the road, still hobbling around in the folds of my jacket. It still couldn't fly and seemed dazed.

The sting/bite hurt a lot for a brief period of time and resulted in a small (maybe a half inch total) raised inflamed area that persisted for about 45 minutes. There didn't seem to be any sort of stinger left in my skin and after the 45 minutes or so, it disappeared. We got bored watching it and left it on the side of the road. Any ideas what it is? I've never been stung by a bee or a wasp so I don't know what that feels like though this doesn't really look like a typical bee.

Beesting allergy/epi-pen protocol

hermitosis — Wed, 09 May 2007 08:21:41 -0800

How can I get a doctor to prescribe me an EpiPen for beestings, when the same doctor refuses to test me for beesting allergies for fear of triggering anaphylactic shock? Posting for a friend:

I was diagnosed with an allergy to beestings at an early age when I reacted strangely to a sting. I was given EpiPen to carry with me all through school. Since then whenever I have tried to get a prescription for EpiPen, doctors refuse to prescribe me one because I haven't had an updated allergy test-- but the same doctors also won't perform a beesting allergy test, saying it's an unnecessary risk because exposing me to the allergen may cause my next exposure to result in a much more extreme reaction. I have been refused several times now for this reason.

A friend of my father's was able to send me two EpiPens a couple of years ago, but those are expired and I don't know what else to try. Should I really never undergo an allergy test? Should I just wait until my friends graduate from medical school and can hook me up?

I live in New York City and have health insurance.