I have unfortunate news...
While I was walking around my property this morning I suddenly felt a VERY sharp, burning pain on my thigh and when I reached down I swatted away a flying, stinging insect.
It was either one of these -a mud dauber:
Or one of these - a European hornet:
The latter is very nasty and aggressive without provocation. What did I do to them to deserve such rage?
Because stinging and biting insects are part and parcel of living on a homestead/farm it's very important to know how to treat stings and bites to avoid unnecessary pain and discomfort - especially for children.
How to Treat a Sting:
- Remove the stinger if it's still in the skin.
- Clean the area with soap and water.
- Add enough water to a small amount of baking soda to create a paste, and apply to the sting. Leave it for around 30 minutes or so then wash it off. This helps with pain and redness.
- Hold an ice pack to the area to reduce swelling.
- Allow 2-5 days for the sting to heal.
- Apply tea tree oil to the sting (never apply tea tree oil to broken skin) to prevent scarring and speed up the healing process.
Source
I hope you never have to experience the sting of a hornet because it's extremely painful, but this guide will help you find comfort if it does happen.
Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think. I'm gonna go back to icing my wound. ;_;
Cheers!
Yikes! I wish you a speedy recovery from being stung! Thanks for the info on how to treat a string. I hope to never have to use it! Lol
I hope so too! I guess the only way to truly avoid stings is to stay indoors 100% of the time, where's the fun in that? Curse those fun-ruiners... LOL
Thank you for the well-wishes!
::begins crafting human size wasp proof bubble::
Somehow I manage to get yellow jacket stings every year. Last year I got a few on my arm, and treated them with baking soda. My whole arm was swollen but we had given a day at the famous New Hampshire Motor Speedway to my grandson for a Christmas present so we had to go.
It was unbearably hot and my arm was itching terribly.
My son came out of the bathroom still drying his hands on a paper towel so I took it and wrapped my arm.
Instant relief!
I got some more towels and wet them and made a cool fashion statement at the races.
Wow, that's a feat to go to a race suffering from ANY ailment let alone multiple stings! I guess the towels acted sort of like a temporary ice pack. Congratulations on being super resourceful and making it through! Thank you for sharing your story~
Hornets are born pissed off. All you gotta do is look at them the wrong way and they'll come after you.