# First bad stings, and got my EpiPen



## GunMonkeyIntl (May 13, 2013)

I'd collected a dozen or so stings over the summer, having not been stung since I was a kid in my grandpas' bee yards, the worst being 5 or 6 at once on my wrist. That swelled my hand up enough that it was difficult to type or do any gun work for a couple days, but nothing unmanageable. 

This time they caught me in a mistake, and got me 4 or 5 times in the face. Totally different ballgame than on the hand. 

Early last week, I got home after a month and a half overseas and did a detailed inspection. I didn't find a queen in two of my colonies so I was a little concerned. In one of those, I did see day old eggs, but I also broke apart a nearly complete queen in a cell built between the bottom of one frame and the top of the one below it, when I removed the top frame from the box. In the other one, I didn't see anything but already capped brood- no eggs at all. 

So, this Sunday, I went back into those two to confirm before I went and bought queens for both of them. I asked the wife to come with me for a second set of eyes in case I missed anything, since I was tired, hot, and jet lagged during the last inspection. 

In the first, I found plenty more day or two old eggs, but decided to check one more frame and found the queen. Buttoned it back up and moved to the next. I felt pretty good about the stores I saw in both, so, for the second one, I went straight to the bottom box, intending to move upward through the colony. On the third frame in, I found plenty of fresh eggs, and a queen happily backing butt-first into an open cell. 

I closed it back up, and the wife and I stepped back, dropped our hoods, cracked a beer and celebrated that all of our colonies now appeared to be doing fine. After just one sip, I realized I had forgot to put the stone back on the last hive, and stepped back in to replace it. 

There were only a couple bees still in the air around the back of the hive, so I figured everything had calmed down, but those couple had apparently not forgotten my intrusion so quickly. In just a couple second's time, they stung me twice on my cheek, next to my left eye, once in my eyebrow, above my right eye, and at least once on my forehead. 

We got back to house and found a stinger I had missed, I chugged some children's Benadryl, and waited. About four hours later, by left eye was swelling up and I decided to go to the doctor. I remembered the multiple stings to the wrist took about 24 hrs to finish swelling up fully, and I didn't want to see how bad this one would get. 

The doctor ended up giving me a shot of cortisone, and a three day prescription of pregnizone. The doctor had also been a bee keeper at one point and told me I should consider keeping an EpiPen around. I obviously wasn't having an anaphylactic reaction, but he always kept them around for the grandkids and other visitors. He wrote me an additional prescription for that, told me to think about it, and if I ever needed to refill it after it expired, I could stop back in and he'd write me a new one without charging me for the visit. 

When I got to the pharmacy, I asked him to check the price (having read here and other forums how expensive they can be), and, with my prescription coverage, a box of two was only $35, so I got them. And, now, about 36 hours later, I can see through both eyes without holding them open. 

Moral of the story: don't disturb a brood box, and then expect your bees to welcome you back without a veil on.


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

Best advice we give student bee keepers is to get a Epi Pen. More than one *old *bee keeper finally had enough stings over time they went into shock.

Program for zero copay.
https://www.epipen.com/en/hcp/about-epipen/help-your-patients-save

_"For questions regarding setup, claim transmission, patient eligibility or other issues, call the LoyaltyScriptÂ® for EpiPenÂ® program at 800-657-7613 (8:00 AM-8:00 PM EST, Monday-Friday)."

_If you are under the care of an allergist, your allergist/immunologist receives and keeps a stock of these cards on hand to give out, or just ask. if you are not under the care of an allergist, and have a prescription written by your physician, your pharmacy will also have a supply of these cards on hand, just ask for one, they also give them out.


 Al


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## Terri (May 10, 2002)

Ibuprofin as well as benedryl helps you heal faster: it is an anti inflammatory.

I, too, did something similar. Once. The little darlins' have a WAY of pointing out our errors!


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## light rain (Jan 14, 2013)

Make sure you keep your epi kit within the temp. range stated in the packet. It is so easy to leave in a hot/freezing car.

I wonder if chewed up plantain leaves would have helped topically... They work great on removing the pain from a nettle sting.


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## GunMonkeyIntl (May 13, 2013)

alley, the link you posted doesn't work for me. I'm fine with paying $35 per year to keep a pen around, but figured I'd see what the link was about, since my prescription is onfile with the pharmacy for a year, and I may go get a refill right before that expires, so I can extend the effective expiration dates of the ones I have.


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

The ones we get are good for two years.

If the link doesn't work call the 800 number.

For some the $35.00 is a major expense in these days and times.

 Al


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## Maxpowers (Apr 4, 2012)

Don't you need a prescription for one? How do I get one? It seems no one in my house is allergic but I thought it'd be nice to have one because of my kids friends coming over.


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## TxGypsy (Nov 23, 2006)

Bee stings are going to swell up. None of the stuff the Doctor gave you is going to be terribly good at shortening your bodies response to the stings. Prednizone is nasty stuff. Take a benadryl and use an ice pack.


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

Yes you need a script to get an Epi pen. Any doctor that knows you keep bees and won't give you a script is some one I would avoid.

Like I have said there are many a old long time bee keeper that had that one sting after several thousands that nearly took their life.

 Al


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## 258Pots (Apr 23, 2015)

Terri said:


> Ibuprofin as well as benedryl helps you heal faster: it is an anti inflammatory.


anti-inflammatories do NOT help you heal faster, they provide pain relief by knocking down the inflammation, the inflammation is the healing process...

People have no idea of what you are taking when you have an advil, NSAIDS are some of the most dangerous drugs in america...

http://www.npr.org/sections/health-...heart-attack-warning-on-nsaids-sows-confusion

http://www.npr.org/sections/health-...t-popular-painkiller-raises-heart-attack-risk


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## GunMonkeyIntl (May 13, 2013)

TxMex said:


> Bee stings are going to swell up. None of the stuff the Doctor gave you is going to be terribly good at shortening your bodies response to the stings. Prednizone is nasty stuff. Take a benadryl and use an ice pack.


Huh? That's exactly what the cortisone and prednisone did. It made the swelling, my body's response to the stings and the source of the pain, build less and go down much faster than Benadryl could have. Once the swelling abated a little, I could see and sleep.


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## TxGypsy (Nov 23, 2006)

How long after you were stung did the swelling begin to go down?


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## GunMonkeyIntl (May 13, 2013)

I got to the doctor (and cortisone) about 6 hrs after the stings. The swelling stopped increasing after about 12 hrs, began diminishing, slowly, and was almost entirely gone in about 36 hours. 

With as bad as the swelling was building, there's no way I would have been back to normal in 2 days with ice and Benadryl alone.


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## TxGypsy (Nov 23, 2006)

I'm not trying to argue with you, but that sounds about right. I react pretty badly to stings and I'd expect the swelling to be gone by then. I'll just say this....I don't believe it shortened the length of time of swelling enough to justify doing the damage to the body that those medicines do. If it shortened the time of swelling it wasn't by much.


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## GunMonkeyIntl (May 13, 2013)

From my experience with multiple stings, it did shorten it considerably, but I think the biggest thing it did was limit the amount that I swelled. 

When I get a single sting, or widely separated ones, they don't treat me much worse than a mosquito bite. I get a small lump, it itches a little, and is gone in a day or two.

When I get multiple stings in close proximity is where I get real discomfort. I had 6 stings on one wrist earlier this summer, and my hand swelled up like an inflated latex glove, and the itching was intolerable. The swelling took about 36-48 hours to peak, and didn't fully go down until 4 or 5 days after the stings. In this case, I had multiple stings in close proximity to my eyes that, even with the steroids, swelled my eyes shut for about 12 hours (fortunately, 6 or 8 of that was spent trying to sleep anyway).

I get that steroids are rough on your system, but I think the occasional application against allergic swelling is exactly why we have them.

Not trying to argue, either, as it is a moot point. Anyone who finds themselves in a similar situation is most likely going to take the advice and direction of their doctor over anything two random beekeepers had to say on the interwebs.


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## Jenn (Nov 9, 2004)

I have an epipen also by rx from my provider. For family and visitors since I now have hives. I expect not to need it but will keep it up to date on hand while I have bees.


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