Bee Sting Symptons, Whats normal?
Image by marcibeauku
The insect caught at the corner of her mouth
and tasted like a bitter almond
for the second it took for her to comprehend
it was alive
and not a crumb.
Why it had landed on her mouth at all
was startling
since she was not eating and
she was not sitting
anywhere an insect should be
but rather
on a bench in her daughter’s ballet studio’s dressing room.
She smacked it to the floor
seeing that it was not a common fly
or even a bee
but something
oddly hairy
and brown.
In her alarm, she raised a sandaled foot
to squash it.
The woman was extremely ill.
An aggressive cold had shut one of her eyes and
huge drops were falling from the other
onto her hand as she tried to hold
the paperback of short stories.
She had opened the book to the middle of a story
that she had put down
more than two weeks ago.
It was just becoming familiar again
after a couple of paragraphs
in which an elderly man
was trying to phone
an old flame’s daughter
when a ladybug fell from her head and
started to wander up and down
the page of her open book.
She stared at it,
wondering where it could have come from
marveling over its lack of spots.
On closer inspection
she saw that it did have
just the most perceptible tiny black spots
beneath its transluscent outer shell
arranged symmetrically all around the outer edge
— first 6, then 8 she counted —
no, 10!
The ladybug scuttled over
and around the page
to its backside,
stopping to lift its hind leg
to scratch at its shell;
to lift a front one
to bathe its antennae.
She turned the book over.
The ladybug came up and around
from the outurned page
and settled in the crease of the spine
alongside the blue library tag
where the word
SING
was typed.
Strangely,
the markings on its head
resembled an open book.
It rested there
until the woman grew bored,
turned the book over,
returned to her story.
The man (in the story)
had just placed the call (on Yom Kippur)
and been half crazed to hear his dead lover’s voice pick up.
"Where are you?" he’d asked and the voice had replied,
"You know where."
"I made a strong effort and threw down the receiver. My heart was beating like a hammer," the narrator confided.
At this the woman broke off reading.
Through her own haze of cold suffering,
she recalled the call she had made
where the man had thrown down the receiver,
not once,
but three times,
for in her terror, she had persisted.
In this moment, a splat hit the page,
reviving the woman and redirecting her attention
to the story.
Another ladybug — this one orange and full —
absolutely FULL — of big black spots
was scuttling over the page
next to the first.
What was happening?
Was there a plague of ladybugs
right here in the dressing room?
It too had descended from her head
— she felt it in the moment it jumped off
just before she heard
the splat.
The ladybugs were racing to opposite corners of the page
and back again —
totally opposite in characteristics
— one being red and virtually spotless
and one — orange and hugely spotted.
She tried to think if ladybugs could be men
because she was sure this spotted one
was a man!
It horrified her, though she tried to remind herself
that ladybugs
are good luck.
— Marcy Jarvis
Author notes:
Ladybugs are called "Marienkäfer" here in Germany because they are symbolic of Maria (the Virgin Mary).
Question by confuseddd: Bee Sting Symptons, Whats normal?
ok so i got stung by a bee and its raised around the sting. its circular. red, itchy, warm, throbbing. This Normal? What will make it ok? Home remedies?
Add your own answer in the comments!
26 Responses to Bee Sting Symptons, Whats normal?
Leave a Reply
Ice it down
MR. KRATOS
August 12, 2012 at 5:40 pm
make sure you remove the stinger, otherwise yes some swelling, pain and ichiness is normal. Be sure to ice it in the meantime to bring down the swelling.
If you experience a large amount of swelling go to a doctor.
josephm392000
August 12, 2012 at 5:53 pm
sounds normal to me.
Reagan
August 12, 2012 at 6:15 pm
go one google and look up normal symptoms of bee stings
Fred B
August 12, 2012 at 6:33 pm
Yes it is normal…you’ll be fine, walk it off.
The White Devil
August 12, 2012 at 6:33 pm
Yes that’s normal.
Remove the stinger, wash it off, take some benedryl, put calamine lotion or neosporin on it, and put some ice on it.
Fallen
August 12, 2012 at 6:52 pm
I think you should put ice on it and try not to touch it but it sounds normal to me
whereisstacey
August 12, 2012 at 7:49 pm
put mudd on it. its like the best thing. i think anyways =]
B-Dubb
August 12, 2012 at 8:18 pm
Depends on where the bee stung you. Some places not much, others OUCH!
bigjohn B
August 12, 2012 at 8:31 pm
perfectly normal put ice on it the swelling will go down and most of all stay away from bees ^_^
Colton O
August 12, 2012 at 8:41 pm
yes its normal
i put vicks or Mentholatum on it yo cant fell it for 3 hrs after you do..
Emilie<3
August 12, 2012 at 8:54 pm
Put ice on. If you start to swell up all over, or have trouble breathing, call 911! Be very careful of future bee stings!
C.S.Scotkin
August 12, 2012 at 9:30 pm
Yup, you described exactly what I was going to type. All perfectly normal. It will feel much much better (except itchy) in a couple of hours. You can try a paste made of baking soda or a paste made from and aspirin with water. They both work pretty good unless you are allergic to aspirin. Also you should take one aspirin and a benedryl tablet if you have one. If you don’t have benedryl, any anti histamine over the counter will work, but benedryl is the best.
Cribber
August 12, 2012 at 10:13 pm
yes this is normal and expect it to hurt for a couple days just put ice on it and ointment
Sally
August 12, 2012 at 10:53 pm
Instructions
Difficulty: Easy
Things You’ll Need:
* Antibacterial Soaps
* Tweezers
* Baking Soda
* Rubbing Alcohol
* Calamine Lotions
* Cold Compresses
* Insect Repellents
Step1
Remove the stinger as soon as possible. Use your fingers, tweezers – whatever works best.
Step2
Wash the site with soap and water, or clean it with alcohol.
Step3
Put ice or a cool, wet compress on the inflamed area.
Step4
Soothe the inflammation with a paste made from baking soda and water. Apply calamine lotion to help relieve itching and pain.
http://www.ehow.com/how_2048_treat-bee-sting.html?ref=fuel&utm_source=yahoo&utm_medium=ssp&utm_campaign=yssp_art
baby7k
August 12, 2012 at 11:47 pm
take some benadryl for the swelling/itching. Those symptoms are okay. Use ice to help with the swelling. If the swelling spreads significantly, or you have trouble breathing…go to the ER. But for the love of God, please take Benadryl first.
Don’t take any antihistimine, they will not necessarily work…get benadryl.
smiles11
August 13, 2012 at 12:05 am
ice to bring down the swelling there are remadies you can buy from chemists and of course you can use anti septic cream for it. MAKE SURE THE STING HAS NOT BEEN LEFT.
Remove rings just incase, and if it swells to much go to A and E.
amethyst2
August 13, 2012 at 12:09 am
All of those are normal. #1 baking soda, #2 tobacco will take the sting out. You can also use liquid soap or mud if you dont have those.
MoMa
August 13, 2012 at 1:00 am
Yes its normal, when I was about 15 I was stung about 10-15 times an old man opened his cigarette and licked and put the tobacco on each one so the stingers would fall out. My hands swell but my aunt gave me benedryl for the swelling and ice was used.
Lachelle C
August 13, 2012 at 1:30 am
Yes, all those r normal reactions.
you can use hydrocortizone oitment, and caladryl, or calamine lotion
You can also use ice to relieve the swelling
♥♥Gemini♥♥
August 13, 2012 at 2:22 am
Here are a few websites that have home remedies for bee stings. I hope that you feel better and good luck! I know that must hurt.
StephanieIsSuper
August 13, 2012 at 2:54 am
thats what it looked like when i got stung.
one time i got stung 3 times at once. it was horrible.
sk8ers_r0ck
August 13, 2012 at 3:06 am
Ouch, I hate bee stings myself. They hurt. Some of the symptoms will be, pain, redness, swelling, and itching. There also may be a bump. But you also got to know what to do to make sure its ok. First take the bee stinger out if it is in there. Because if you don’t that can cause infection. Put ice on it to get the swelling down, hold the ice on for like 15 minutes. Take some Benadryl and that should stop some of the itchiness. If you have increased of anything swelling, redness, pain you need to call your doctor. If you have a fever you may want to contact them to make sure your ok. If you think you are having an allergic reaction, go to the ER or hospital, because that can be serious. Just make sure it doesn’t get infected either. But right now it sounds like your fine, just watch out for worse or any new symptoms. I hope i helped.
Carebear
August 13, 2012 at 3:59 am
if you haven’t gotten the stinger out yet…do not use tweezers!!! it will squeeze more of the bee’s poison into you and make it worse! use a credit card or something similar. it will remove it easier without putting any unnecessary toxins in your flesh…
weirdrach2004
August 13, 2012 at 4:15 am
First remove the stinger
Then mix baking powder and a little bit of water together
Then put it on the sting, it should calm down in a matter of minutes
smile like you mean it :D
August 13, 2012 at 5:03 am
You can scrap off the stinger within anything that is straight edged such as a straight razor, plastic credit card, or knife, but DO NOT pull out the stinger it might still have some venom(bee’s poison) to eject. Wash the area with soap and water.
To reduce the swelling from a sting, apply an ice pack immediately.
For the relief of itching from stings, you will need some over the counter medication. Benadryl taken six times a day should do the job. Other antihistamines like Tylenol Severe Allergy or chlorpheniramine maleate will work as well.
If the skin is irritated, with a rash and or dermatitis caused by the breaking down of skins cells, a topical hydrocortisone cream such as calamine lotion or a baking soda solution can be used until the symptoms go away.
If you experience any of the following: hives, dizziness, fainting, trouble breathing, open gaping sores (spider bites), muscle and joint pain, shaking, chills, vomiting, cramps, confusion, rapid heartbeat, coma, see a doctor immediately and if you have the 911 service in your area call it immediately as well.
- Midas -
August 13, 2012 at 5:29 am