I was checking my hive Sunday and since the girls had been agressive lately, I put my hat and veil on for the first time and decided to use extra smoke. After putting the hive back together and refilling my feeder, i got stung on the my hand. A few minutes later, I was too weak to stand up, told my wife to call 911. Being way out in the woods at my camp, it took a while for the paramedics to show. They could not find a pulse and my pressue was very very low. After oxygen and a drip, I recovered in a very short time. Went to hospital for some heart tests and they did could not determine what happened.
Anybody had a similar experince? I believe it was smoke inhalation and not the bee sting because my throat did not close up and I was not given anything for an allergy.
BYW. It had started to rain and the ambulance got stuck and it was 1 1/2 hours getting to the emergency room which I really didnt need by now.
are you sure that in your iv they did not give you benadryl, or some kind of steroid treatment? of course, by the time you got there, you were probably past the worst of it.
it was not from the smoke.
you either had a shock reaction from the idea of being stung, or you had a systemic reaction from the sting. get epi-pens and carry them. teach those who go to the bees with you how and when to use them. get benadryl in both childrens liquid and tablet. if you get stung again, don't wait to see what happens. take a swig of the liquid and then take a tablet or two of the 25mg.
it may have been a one time thing, but so is death.
If as you say " Medic's could not find a pulse "
I'd forget the pen and find a new hobby !!
Lordy how much extra smoke did you use ?
And how long did you wait after wards before opening hive ??
If, you really think it was smoke inalation, I believe I would avoid Barbecues, Campfires, { wind always seems to blow smoke in your face } also definitely, all night poker games !
Perhaps at your next Bee Club meeting, ask for a hive smoking demo.
Bee-Bop
OK, so I'm going to be the devil's advocate here. I don't think it was the sting or smoke directly. I think it was FEAR...
I have seen people pass out and quit breathing just from seeing someone bleeding. I have seen animals stiffen and die, just from being held.
The fear of being stung that far away from help caused your mind and body to go into shock.
Just my .02........
that's what i meant by "shock reaction". real fear causes an adrenaline rush. some peoples systems deal with an event by going into shock. it's like when people pass out from bad news. there is no adrenaline rush. instead, they experience a sort of system shut down.
I have been stung before by bees with no problems. In fact a few weeks ago I was stung by a number purple wasps in the head with no problems except pain. It was definetly not fear. After Hurricane Katrina, I was clearing trees by myself on my property and broke my tibia. My leg was straight and my foot was pointing sideways. I had to make sure the volunteer first responders didnt pass out. :)
The emergency room doctor says it may have been a part smoke, part bee sting, and part fatigue from planting deer plots earlier in the morning.
Just a random thought but,why would you think it was smoke did you spray it directly at your face? and is it possible what ever you were using for fuel had been sprayed with some thing or otherwise some how contaminated?
I had one time used some wood that a dog had " freshly marked" unknowingly and the smoke was so rancid smelling it would bring tears to your eyes just by being near it.
maybe your fuel got hit with some type of poison?
Or it could be that your smoker fuel was just down right toxic to begin with...Oleander comes to mind, the smoke from an oleander campfire killed a family of four two years ago in the Ocala Nat'l Forest.
Scott
Didn't think of that some one once told me orange wood is toxic to burn also.
By the way love the quote on your post hardwood
Thanks irerob...I use orange wood to smoke meat quit a lot...haven't had a problem with it yet!
Scott
my wife told me that a long time ago becouse I was going to use to smoke some meat. could be hillbilly wisdom or superstition hard to tell some times with her people..... lord I hope she dosn't see this :whip: :hissyfit:
I believe you may have been heading towards a heat stroke and the sting just got you there sooner with the additional stress it caused you. Make sure you have fluids near and drink plenty when working in the heat we've been having.
Glad you're still here. Be careful.
...JP
Hello Mpetershat,
Do we get the jar of jelly beans if we guess the correct answer?
I'd go with the bee sting, and also go with telling your doctor "Lone said I should get an epipen just in case so my wife doesn't have to carry me 50 miles if I collapse on her again".
Maybe the wasp stings had something to do with setting up an allergic response, but then again I'm not a micro-bio-chemo-physio-patho-sciento-ist, or a detective, but seeing as you are not charging for a guess, there it is.
Lone
I'm with JP on this one, fatigue, dehydration and heat. I had a friend collapse on the street just the same way, the paramedics thought he was having a heart attack, but when they got him to the hospital figured it was just dehydration and set him up with an IV, and he was fine a couple of hours later and he wasn't even doing anything physical. Ya gotta watch your fluids, it'll sneak right up on ya.
Glad it all turned out ok!
love,
Ziffa
Something I learned from you guys a little while back I thought I would mention again here.
I didn't realize it but I had been close to heat stroke many times on some of my removals. My ears would ring slightly and things would seem to get far and away, almost like some out of body experience.
I would push myself in intense heat, telling myself, I'll take a break right after this or that.
Now, I listen to my "inner voice" and take the break.
People in the know will tell you drink fluids when working in the heat, even if you aren't thirsty.
Be careful.
...JP
yup, i grew up in the desert and seem to need less water than most, but when i go south, i have to watch it. that high humidity heat gets to me before i know it. by the time you feel thirsty, you are already on the to late side of things.
the other thing is food. when you work in these hot temps, it's important to eat.
I've been closer to heat stroke more times working bees than I ever did working concrete. It's not hard when you're out in the sun doing hard work and then add a beesuit or a jacket...