Normally I would just HTFU, but yesterday I was stung by a bee while running on the top of my left ankle.
I’m doing Timberman tomorrow, and I just tried on my bike shoe—and it doesn’t fit! My ankles look like a before/after of Star Jones!
Any tricks to getting the swelling down while doing all the ‘day before’ stuff like registering, swimming, running, and checking my bike in? Thanks a lot.
mike
I am no doctor, but taking an antihistamine such as Benadryl or such will help. I always have some in my bag or boat for this reason.
Freeze that thing and compress it. Wrap it up pretty tight and get it cold real ice not ice pack. Acutually working out will make the swelling go down I got stung by a bee at Florida 70.3 after the swim and the swelling was gone by the middle of the run.
Here are some other remedies
Apply a solution of one part meat tenderizer to 4 parts water. Papain, the enzyme in meat tenderizer, breaks down the protein in bee venom responsible for the pain and itching. Don’t leave this on for more than 30 minutes, or it can irritate the skin. If this isn’t available, you might try an antiperspirant. Aluminum chlorohydrate reduces the effect of bee venom, but to a lesser extent. Apply cold. Use ice or cool water for 10 to 30 minutes after the sting. This blunts the body’s allergic response. An antihistamine such as Benadryl, taken by mouth, can give some added relief, and help prevent the reaction from spreading. A shake lotion such as calamine can be helpful. A paste made of baking soda and water can have a similar effect. Topical hydrocortisone can also provide some symptomatic relief. Give acetaminophen or ibuprofen for systemic pain relief.
Good luck
Normally I would just HTFU, but yesterday I was stung by a bee while running on the top of my left ankle.
I’m doing Timberman tomorrow, and I just tried on my bike shoe—and it doesn’t fit! My ankles look like a before/after of Star Jones!
Any tricks to getting the swelling down while doing all the ‘day before’ stuff like registering, swimming, running, and checking my bike in? Thanks a lot.
mike
Mike,
Bummer dude! But if anyone can emphathize with you, it’s me! I have had little to no luck with benadryl, as it didn’t bring down any of my swelling. The ice ideas sound best, especially if you do it a lot! I would suggest 20 mins, every hour, on the hour, with tight compression.
Not sure if you have this available, but maybe you should go to an urgent care center, and let them give you a shot of adrenaline, (epi-pen). They may also hit you with some other goodies, and I’m not sure how it will effect your race, but if you can’t toe the line, (literally and figuratively here), you should consider it.
Best of luck. Say hello to my boy Mac Brown.
yeah, as if going against Mac isn’t hard enough, i’ve gotta toe the line with elephantitis of the left foot! Though, the swim is looking very ‘coeur d’alene-esque’ so he’s probably in his hotel room shaking with fear!
I remember you got stung on the bike out there. My only worry is range of motion and not needing a crowbar to get my bike/run shoes on. But I appreciate the kind words, and if I see Mac i’ll say hello.
are you still whining about the bee sting? …poor baby.
The only time I have swelled up is when the stinger was left in and I didn’t dig it out. Might want to check that.
Turns out I left the stinger in there. woops.
And Jaime, the problem isn’t the sting, it’s the swelling. I can’t tell if it’s an ankle, a pack of hot dogs, or your mom’s neck…
:^P
Take a Benadryl TODAY … not tomorrow.
Also, there’s a Benadryl cream/ointment that you can rub directly on the sting. It’s awesome stuff. Really takes the fire out of it and helps the swelling, too.
Bees really like me. I get stung a lot. I got stung 11 times last year … mostly through vent holes in my helmet! (Note to self … no more yellow helmets).
Good luck tomorrow!
.
I react similarly, and got stung between the eyes at the start of a race once. My whole face swelled shut.
Benadryl does nothing for me, but claritin is magic. If not, prednisone from the Dr - but then you really are on 'roids…
Hope you can run by tomorrow, and have a great race!
RR
Baking soda also makes a difference. It gets toxins out. Make a paster with baking soda and water and leave it on till it dries. The strongest things for the swelling are asprin and benadryl. Get as much blood flowing as you can to move the venom out.
Three weeks ago I was just riding along and a bee, yellow jacket, wasp, whatever hit my cheek, flew up behind my m-fames and stung me right on my eye bone at the botton of my eye-lid. My face swelled up and I couldn’t open my eye for two days. Last weekend at the 5430 HIM, I was stung again on the chest during the first part of the bike when something flew down my jersey. It hurt to breathe for the rest of the day. I feel your pain.
There is supposed to be a bee shortage.
Cell phone towers/signals confuse the bees and their directions to one another so they are getting lost more often. But I heard here in Colorado we are sending bees to other states.
I could never be a bee keeper
F’ing sandbagger… 
Paulo, you son of a motherless goat ;^)
No sandbaggin’ here, it’s gone from Star Jones ‘pre-op’ to Al Roker ‘post-op.’ My ankle has chins!
If I was sandbaggin’ i’d write to recovox and talk about how I haven’t been able to train at all since Wildflower and then roll out a 2:06 tomorrow :^P
Dude, what you’ve got is called a “cankle”.
Get a TNT jersey and ride a mountain bike. You’ll fit
right in.
…or just suck it up, princess.
pee on it.
or was that was for something else…