I posted awhile back that something stung me on my ankle

[LuckyCharms]

Last edited Mon Jul 27, 2020, 03:14 AM - Edit history (1)

but I didn't know what it was. Turns out it was two yellow jacket stings.

I saw a hole in my driveway asphalt tonight about 5 feet from where I was stung twice before. There were a ton of yellow jackets flying out of an in-ground nest.

So after nightfall, I first hit it with foaming wasp spray, and then flooded it out with some Dawn and water from a hose.

I got stung 4 additional times tonight, because I am a dumbass, and I wasn't careful enough.

One in the corner of my eye, two on the top of my bird-flippin' finger through a glove, and once on my tricep through a shirt.

Total of 6 stings from those bastards.

Be wary of these ground nests. Those buggars are pretty aggressive.

[soothsayer]

1. Yikes!

[TexasTowelie]

2. It's been over 40 years since I was last stung by a yellowjacket.

Fortunately, my mom kept vinegar and baking soda around the house to make a poultice.

[dhill926]

3. I got blasted mowing the lawn about 20 years ago...

when we lived in the country. Stung countless times...I actually felt really sick. Drank a bottle of wine to kill the pain...then really felt like shit the next day... . Lesson learned, they are hyper aggressive...

[cayugafalls]

4. Wow, yellow jackets are really nasty, fast and aggressive.

We get them a lot here and they really suck hard.

Glad you are OK.

[Phoenix61]

5. Those little suckers can be deadly. Glad you're ok. nt

I almost hit a wasp nest with my brand new hedge trimmer yesterday.

[NurseJackie]

6. Yes I've dealt with those underground nests before.

I used a garden sprayer and mixed a gallon of Ortho bug-be-gone (with just a "splash" extra). I stood at a safe distance, and with my garden sprayer fully pressurized (and the nozzle on a long stream) I aimed it directly at the hole and sprayed-sprayed-sprayed until the entire gallon of insecticide was gone.

Next day, there were thousands of dead ones around the hole... and a few stragglers who must have been away, were returning to the nest. I put a large cinder block on the hole lock them inside and keep the other ones out. By the second day, everything was quiet again.

Sorry you got stung. It's not like a bee... those SOB's can sting multiple times.

[dawg day]

7. You might take an antihistamine-

6 stings could trip you over into an allergy. The antihistamine will also help reduce the inflammation.

[Laffy Kat]

9. What dawg day said. nt

[dawg day]

12. I got stung 4 times by a hidden nest of hornets when mowing the lawn once--

And my foot blew up like a balloon. The doctor told me I had to assume I was now allergic. So I find that taking an antihistamine can help when I get a bee sting too.

[Laffy Kat]

15. Yep! Same thing happened to be with a mere honeybee sting.

I stepped on a honeybee while walking barefoot through some clover years ago. I got sick and the bottom of my foot eventually turned purple and I can't put into words how much it itched. I eventually had to go to the doctor and remember getting a shot on the bottom of my foot, (steroids?). I remember him telling me that I had a severe local reaction and that I was allergic.

You better be darn careful, too!

[dawg day]

23. I gave up mowing the lawn! :)

I have a doctor's excuse now!

[Laffy Kat]

28. Hey, I'm on your side. No lawn-mowing for you.

[yellowdogintexas]

40. my dad stepped into an underground hive. These were some nasty critters

and I am not altogether certain it was not a hornet's nest. His foot was very swollent but fortunately he did not get sick.

[LuckyCharms]

55. +1. See post 54. Bad delayed reaction.

[Laffy Kat]

8. Oh no, LC.

I had a nest a few years ago near the sidewalk and they were stinging both people and doggos walking by. I taped-off the area until nightfall and then stuck a water hose down the hole and turned it on full blast for about 10 minutes. The problem was solved and they've never returned.

[5X]

10. Yellow jackets are nasty and agressive. I ran into a nest 3 stories up on scaffolding once.

Lucky I didn't fall.

[TreasonousBastard]

19. Damn! You are lucky!

[I_UndergroundPanther]

11. My mom got a yellow jacket nest

Out at her trailer summer home a long while back
I lit up some green wood to smoke them,than I dumped kerosene down a funnel I put in the hole took it out, put a torch to it and caught it on fire.

I was 15. I had seen people take out other yellow jacket nests that way.

It works.

[dawg day]

22. Did it take out the whole house too? :)

You are brave!

[I_UndergroundPanther]

25. No the house was fine

My cousin told me to dump gasoline down the hole and I said nope.

The yard was fine the funnel kept the kerosene in and down the hole only.

The smoke dazed the yellow jackets and confused them,made them groggy.they were too messed up to attack me.

Always use smoke to fumigate the air around the nest and exits before you try to remove wasp,yellow jacket or other nests of bees and wasps etc.

[JudyM]

34. Easier to approach it at night, dump some liquid dish detergent in the hole, followed by a hose.

Completely destroys without chemicals.

[csziggy]

37. And cover the hole with screen before you start

That way none of them get out, and you don't get stung.

Here is a demonstration:

[JudyM]

46. Right, that was the scariest part when I did it, so glad none of them came out.

So allergic!

[csziggy]

47. Yeah, I've had pretty serious swelling from wasp and bee stings

So I make my husband check for me. They tend to build nests in our pipe gates and come boiling out when you open the gate. Last time I got stung was on my face and I couldn't breath out of my nose until we went to a walk-in clinic and I got treated for the reaction.

We have lots of Carolina wrens and they love the wasp larva - they swarm every where there is a nest and try to clear them out for us. While the little cuties are a nuisance building nests everywhere, they do help control the wasps nicely.

[JudyM]

48. Wish we had some of those!

I was stung last week, had an anaphylactic reaction that lasted hours after immediate use of an epipen and prescription antihistamine. Scary, actually. I’m not leaving the house without both from now on!

[csziggy]

49. Sounds like you need some wasp eating birds!

I've been lucky, no anaphylactic reaction, just lots of swelling to the point I thought my skin would split. I was issued an epi-pen, but by the next time I needed it, the expiration date was ten years past. For some reason I decided that could be more dangerous than the stings.

[JudyM]

50. Thinking it likely saved my life this last time.

Within minutes of the sting I was shaking so uncontrollably (not in fear), that I had trouble opening the epipen. Then massive itching/hives started spreading through my body. Quite the experience! I’d been hiking in the woods every morning with a friend and man, am I lucky I didn’t get stung then before I smartened up and starting “carrying.”

[csziggy]

51. You were very lucky - that sounds serious

Be sure to keep one close, you need to have it right with you when you need it.

[central scrutinizer]

13. They're drawn to meat so watch out if you BBQ

They get more aggressive as autumn nears.

[2naSalit]

14. What are you doing with the sting wounds?

I am an advocate for baking soda paste but I discovered last year, after being stung on the neck by a mud wasp down on the hemp farm, is that hemp juice worked to kill the pain and heal the wound in a day or so. Since you have some green stuff available, I would pulverize a pinch of that, add a tiny bit or water to make a paste of that and put in on the wounds, cover with a bandaid or the like to keep the stuff on the wound.

Also, wait until after dark to hose wasps with killer spray, they'll be asleep and they will mostly all be home. Gets them all at once and you are less likely to be counter attacked.

Thanks for the update, mystery solved!

[Laffy Kat]

30. That's what I did when I flooded mine out and it worked.

I waited until it was dark and cooler.

[2naSalit]

33. I never really had to deal with them until

the last two summers as I was hanging out on a farm and we had them in several locations. The farmer told me about it and we had a couple evening raids that were very successful. We just used the stuff from a can that we bought up at the general store. All were easily accessible so range wasn't the issue, ability to quickly depart was, though we never had any problems.

I just evicted a queen building a hive earlier this month, she had it in the pipe that serves as the cross bar on the clothesline post. I waited until after I got a good look at the stars and then did the deed. I had to evict one from the eaves near my door last week. There were only a few bodies lying around so I think they were just getting established. I don't like that it takes petroleum to kill them with and I am trying to find something that is less egregious.

[yellowdogintexas]

41. chewed tobacco also does the trick, quite quickly.

That was the standard first aid in our house. My dad would rip the paper off a cigarette, chew it up and plaster it on the sting. Instant relief and reduced swelling.

I presume snuff or actual chewing tobacco would also work.

[MLAA]

16. I am a Georgia Tech Yellow Jacket but I only sting repuglicans 😬 🐝🐝🐝🐝

Take care, Luck Charms you are a DU treasure!

[Marie Marie]

17. Do us all a favor... When your bird-flippin' finger is swollen to twice it's original size,

please go visit Trump and let raise that sucker in the appropriate salute - for all of us. Oh and, sorry this happened to you, those stings must hurt like hell.

[NoRoadUntravelled]

18. Those are painful stings.

Glad you're OK!

[mzmolly]

20. We had a nest in our eaves a few years back.

They used to dive bomb our bay window (located just under the eaves) when we'd stand at the window to gaze outside. It was eerie. We'd here the buzz and 'thud, thud, thud' as they charged our window to assault us.



I was reluctant to pump pesticide into the house, so I was torn as to how to handle the problem. Ultimately, we got a bug zapper and the bastards were all dead in a few days. They ate the remains of their dead. They're disgusting.

We ended up sealing the hole the entered through after they were gone and haven't seen them sense.

Good luck and I'm sorry you were stung!

[TreasonousBastard]

21. Years ago my brothar and I were clearing some brush and felt some stings. Bad stings...

and we ran like hell into the house a hundred or so feet away. I could've sworn I saw some bug following us, but we made it to the house without further attacks.

Never did find out what it was, but the bites blew up to the size of a baseball.

Finished the beer that afternoon, talking about invisible killer bees.

[vapor2]

24. We live in Vegas with scorpions and I got stung a few years ago

by a yellow jacket a few years ago and YES, they are aggressive. Dr said to use dry meat tenderizer and mix with a little water and put on the sting which will draw out the poison.

[CousinIT]

26. Assholes with wings

I’ve been stung by them in my yard. Used the RAID stuff in their nests at dusk and covered them so the bastards could not get out. Used a glass jar over the opening. The glass jar alone works - but it takes a few days. The assholes with wings try to get out in daylight to bring back food for the Queen asshole. If they can’t get out, they die and the queen dies. Give it a week or so then CAREFULLY remove the jar. They’re usually all dead by that time. Fun part is you get to watch them die and panic inside the jar for days until they’re all dead. I usually spray RAID before and after that to be sure all the awws are dead — but even a glass jar completely covering the opening of the nest works by itself. Just takes longer. Just before dark most or all of them will be back in their nests, that’s the time to poison and/or cover them.

When they attacked from my garden, they stung me about 4 times and even followed me into my house when I ran in there! It’s why people call them assholes with wings. Mean, nasty things. I swear they’re all Republicans.

Their stings feel like being stabbed with knives or ice picks. OUCH.

[Cracklin Charlie]

27. Ground bees.

We had those one year. We had to call an exterminator. It worked, and I didn’t get stung.

I think we have a wasp nest in a bush near the front door. I am afraid our mail lady is gonna get stung. We sprayed the offensive bush at dusk tonight. Fingers crossed.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

31. Ground bees - actual bees - rarely sting. Yellowjackets, however,

are wasps and are often mistaken for bees, but they sting like hell. Ground bees are solitary and aren't likely to sting unless you actually step on them. They are important pollinators and should be left alone. https://homeguides.sfgate.com/can-stung-ground-bees-95313.html

[Cracklin Charlie]

32. Ours were stingers.

They stung my son several times.

The man who came to get them called them “ground bees”. They didn’t even look like bees, so I don’t know why he called them that. He said they had been bad that year.

They were some angry creatures.

[Cirque du So-What]

29. I ran over a nest with a lawn mower

Got stung ~15 times. Bastids!

[Kali]

35. pppffftttt

[intrepidity]

43. After finding one of those on my floor a few months back

I now only get out of bed at night with a UV light in my hand.

And I also now have a pet scorpion.

[Kali]

44. check your bed before you get in it too

that where I usually get stung

[intrepidity]

45. I've read that

So far so good, but that's terrifying.

I kept the one I found in hopes to diminish my fear of them. I think it helps.

Plus, someone to feed my other insect trespassers to.

[LuckyCharms]

56. This is NOT helping my constipation.

[CommonHumanity]

36. 50 or so bites last summer

Last summer I was walking through along a wooded path to where my goats were grazing and was carrying a bucket of goat feed. Spilled some feed and then tried to kick it to the side of the path to discourage flies in the path. Shit....had I know I would have opted for the flies. First I feel one sting, then many at once as I realize what is upon me. Those fuckers clung to my clothes and shoes as I ran away. It was kind of funny: the road I ran down to escape them was the main road to a ritzy "active 55 plus" community. As I ran down the road I shed my hat, my glasses, my shirt, and my socks and shoes (they were clinging to the edge of my hiking shoes and biting repeatedly through my socks). I must have run about 100 yards down that road screaming, cursing, and shedding clothing. I finally lost them after getting to the end of the road and running across another 4 lane road. I kid you not. Once it was over and the beastly little buzzers left me alone I had to go back down the street and collect my clothes, shoes, etc. from the lawn, curb, and road. Funny indeed, but it did hurt. The bites kept me awake for 2 nights. BTW, I've found the very best thing to use on bites is tobacco. Best if you can do it almost immediately. Wet it a bit and then put it on and hold it in place with a band-aid or duct tape. I now try to keep a little tobacco in my first aid kit just in case.

[yellowdogintexas]

42. the old Kentucky remedy. It works well, doesn't it?

Supposedly it is better if you chew it ..something about the saliva

It is amazing how it draws the redness and swelling up into the sting spot. You can almost watch the swelling go down.

[Arazi]

38. Dump some gas in the hole and throw in a lit match

Best to do at dawn when they're sluggish and cold

[RandiFan1290]

53. Works great!!

[lastlib]

59. Kerosene (coal oil) works better and is WAY safer....

Gasoline is too explosive.

[sinkingfeeling]

52. Yeah. I mowed over a nest a couple of years ago and had multiple stings.

[LuckyCharms]

54. UPDATE: Turns out it was around 10 stings, not 4.

The swelling did not start until about 10 hours later. Eye swollen shut. Can't close hand. I can see the sting holes now...they just stung me repetitively.

Wrote to primary care yesterday mid-day.. She told me to watch for cellulitis, which I think it has turned into on my hand. The tissue is very hard.

She doesn't do virtual visits and told me yesterday to come in if it gets worse after taking antihistamines and putting on cortisone cream. I'm not going in. Going to try a virtual visit today with another provider.

I'd post pics, but I'd get juried for graphic content. I have only one deleted post, and that was for graphic content with words only...don't want to risk pictures.

This sucks really bad. Thanks for all of the advice and well wishes in this thread. I've tried several different types of compresses...tea bags, baking powder, cold compress, nothing works. Borrowed neighbors Benadryl, don't have any cortisone cream. Itching is incredible...trying to just rub itching gently without digging. This shit is nuts. As one DUer suggested above, I think I've developed an allergy from the amount of stings I received.

[Kali]

57. you do NOT want cellulitis

go in and get some antibiotics (and better pain meds - always take the meds!)

[LuckyCharms]

58. I know, I've had it before...

Had a virtual appointment with a PA at a walk in about an hour ago. She said it most likely is a bad allergic reaction and to continue with the Benadryl.

Really suffering here, Kali. Stings on the top of my knuckle are causing huge bumps to pop on the palm side ( the other side) of my hand. She initially wanted to give me prednisone, but then reconsidered due to kidney disease.

Tylenol isn't helping, I gave up on opiates because they get me sick.

Just have to wait it out.