6 year old stung 3 times in head ( Allergic ????? )

[djgriggs]

Kind of funny , not really , felt bad..

My 6 year old and I were working with the bees today.. bees were very calm at first. so after 30 minutes my son say I am going in.. Next thing I know he comes out 10 minutes later without his bee suit... He is barefoot shorts / no shirt. I tell him to stay back because the bees were upset. I have told him over and over that he needs to not come around the bees if he does not have his bee suit on. , well needless to say I argued with him to no avail. even saying Chase do not come any closer there are bees on the ground and you have now close on and you will step on the bees. ( hard headed little turd ) He does like the bees and is very curious about them good sign. . but still have to push him back and tell him again to go ( you are going to get stung without your suit on ) Well believe it or not he did not listen.. 10 minutes later he is screaming , there is a bee stinging him on the head. I get removed. oh look there is another. Get it off and no sooner than I get it off there is another stinging his head.. Well his head hurt, seen no swelling . it has been at least 3 hours still no signs. I do not believe he is allergic to the honey bees but let me ask all of you. " How soon after a honey bee sting would you know if your allergic " I would think that if he was allergic he would show signs within minutes.. Is that Not correct ? Can he still show signs ?

Thank you
DJ

[beepro]

You said it he's a "hard headed little turd."

Maybe his head is so hard that the venom cannot penetrate his skin. 
Seriously though, you should monitor him for the next 3 days.  If there is
any sign of swelling or serious allergic reaction then take the next step.

Exam his head to see if there is any sign of swelling there.

[eltalia]

Maaaate, I say maaate... the tyke just wants to "go commando"..!!.. no
woossy beesuit for that aspiring Rambo of the Apiary!!
Seriously.
At six, if he isn't writhing in spasms inside of a half hour or to a lesser
level (of reaction) broken out into hives all over, starting at the stomach
 then he is fine.
I'd recommend you instill in him the need to at least wear a veil and give
him his own knife (sting remover) as kids can always do the least
unexpected, and a wailing waving child loaded with pheromone...?.. bees
will love that target.
Also teach him to lie face down prone and preferably under or near the
closest bush/shrub/brush... even in a beesuit.

0h... an' always remember, resist working with children or animals, and
never with both! /chuckles/

Bill

[Acebird]

My concern with small children is that their immune system is developing.  He may have no reaction this time but the next could be quite different.

[BeeMaster2]

My concern is if he has no swelling from the stings then the next time could bee bad. He should have normal swelling/redness in the area of the stings. That is an indication that his immune system knows how to deal with the stings. It is the lack of reaction from the first sting that I worry about.
Jim

[moebees]

The concern is a systemic reaction versus a local reaction.  Many people do not understand the difference.  Swelling, redness, itching near the sting is a local reaction. Not a problem.  Even if your entire arm or leg swells up, that is still a local reaction.  A systemic reaction will cause difficulty breathing, blurred vision, widespread hives or anaphylaxis.  That is a serious problem and needs benadryl and immediate medical care.  Anaphylaxis may lead to death.   If you are stung and do not have a systemic reaction your chance of having a systemic reaction the next time is less than 1%.  If you have a systemic reaction your chance of another systemic reaction the next sting is over 60%.  Saying someone is allergic or not is rather nebulous because anyone can have a systemic reaction to bee stings even though they have been stung many times without such an outcome.  I think I am a perfect example of this phenomenon.  I had been stung many times over a 40 year period.  Last year I was stung 3 times installing packages and no problem.  The next time I was stung I had a systemic reaction and went to the emergency room.  Although it was definitely systemic it was not what would be considered anaphylaxis.  I subsequently got tested and the immunologist called me negative as to bee sting allergy.  But I now try extremely hard not to get stung and carry benadryl with me whenever I am near bees and take it whenever I get stung.  So far so good. 

It sounds like your son is doing fine.  But the next sting or stings he gets will probably be more telling as to how he may typically react to bee stings.   If it were me I would keep children's benadryl handy.

[djgriggs]

gave him about 5 / 6 ML of benadryl , he was fine this was just to help him a little and maybe help with the bee sting / headache. He woke up this morning with some soreness on the back of his head, other than that he is fine. Like everyone said that was little to no reaction so I am a a little concerned for the next time . ..

Funny thing ..I went out today to clean up around the hives. everything seemed find , I stepped back about 20 feet from the hive to take a photo and then whaam... Got stung on the nose..

2 things here..

1.. Odd thing is that I seen the bee coming in what appeared to be slow motion :) didn't even land just bombed me.
2. Immediately and I do mean the instant that it stung me. my nose started running and then I have a little swelling that is it.

I have not seen any delayed reactions in Chase at this time. I think all is well .

till next time

Thank you
dJ

[eltalia]

1.. Odd thing is that I seen the bee coming in what appeared to be slow motion :) didn't even land just bombed me

Funnily enough, back in the day our section had a rifleman instructor who
told us "yer gunna see the slug wots gunna kiltya so doan bother with
duckin', say Goodbye" :-))))

Bill

[djgriggs]

Just finished giving Chase , my six year old his shower. , sure enough he has a big knot on the back of his head from the stings. still a little concerned but as long as no pressure is applied to the area it does not hurt him.  My wife keeps threatening to kill all the bees.. ( don't see that happening )

[beepro]

For external use to get the itchy, pain and swelling away I use neosporine cream/gel.  Be sure to
use the one that stop the pain too.

[BeeMaster2]

When I stated out as a beekeeper, I was told by my pharmacist to use Benadryl and cortisone cream on the stings. She said that they work in different ways to reduce the reaction. I think they helped my body to not react to the stings.
Jim

[Bush_84]

When I stated out as a beekeeper, I was told by my pharmacist to use Benadryl and cortisone cream on the stings. She said that they work in different ways to reduce the reaction. I think they helped my body to not react to the stings.
Jim

That?s good advice. Works for many bites/stings.

I would also like to echo the local vs systemic reaction. Many people ignorantly claim to be allergic because they got stung and it got red and swollen.