Originally Posted by
caloso
To follow on Crayon's post, that sounds like my experience. I'd been stung many times over the years (sports, gardening, etc.) but it wasn't until I was stung on a ride that I had a full anaphlactic response. The bee got under my jersey and stung me right above the nipple. Within 5 minutes I was covered in hives and there was a ringing in my ears. Within 20 minutes I was vomiting and my breathing got raspy. Within 30 minutes I was at the ER.
The doc explained that with toxin allergies you can reach a tipping point instead of a tolerance. Apparently I'd tipped over the previous time I'd been stung on the foot (stupid clover in the front lawn!). Now I carry an epi-pen and benadryl on my bike every time.
Caloso,
From a beekeeping angle I'm curious about
:
1) When you were stung in the past, did you have little to no reaction to the sting? There seems to be some correlation between not reacting to the event to severe over reaction.
2) Did you take acetaminophen or ibuprofen within 24-48 hours of the anaphylactic reaction? There is some anecdotal evidence linking them to anaphylaxis due to bee venom.
3) Are you considering allergy testing and treatment to prevent future reactions?
Thanks,
Erik