Pesky Wasps/yellow Jackets

So, by the title, you would be correct in guessing I didn't make it to El Pollo Loco for some , lol - NOT

Yep, I go barefoot almost all the time, and as I was stepping around the front of the car, WHAM

I looked down and there it was , nasty little bugger . A yellow jacket . So, put hold for a half hour or so, pull out the foot soaker, a little vinegar, and back here to see what all I've been missing

Gotta admit, I've had worse. It's my own dang fault . I know they're there and I should be wearing shoes, but it's summer

Vinegar is another possible home remedy that may be used for wasp stings. The theory is that the acidity of vinegar can help neutralize the alkalinity of wasp stings. The opposite is true of bee stings, which are more acidic.

Betcha didn't know that

 

My family liked to use a cigarette for venomous insect stings when I was growing up. Break a cigarette, wet it and apply the tobacco to the sting. Don't know if that did anything or not, besides waste cigarettes.
We have a lot of scorpions in my current home, and when one of those zaps me I usually just apply a lot of swear words and throw stuff and that seems to help a lot.
I have been stung and bitten by a variety of critters and I have to say that the puss caterpillar is by far the worst one. A sting from that thing made a mark that burned my leg and left a mark for about a month, gave me abdominal pain, heart palpitations and chest pain, incredible waves of pain that lasted for hours radiating far from the site of the sting, and nearly passed out, probably from low blood pressure. My mom told me to walk it off, probably because she didn't know what had stung me. Afterwards, I realized what got me and as an adult I realize the severity of the sting. I sat on the thing. People have been hospitalized from these tiny little fuzzy caterpillars. I won't get anywhere near one as long as I live.

 

My family liked to use a cigarette for venomous insect stings when I was growing up. Break a cigarette, wet it and apply the tobacco to the sting. Don't know if that did anything or not, besides waste cigarettes.
We have a lot of scorpions in my current home, and when one of those zaps me I usually just apply a lot of swear words and throw stuff and that seems to help a lot.
I have been stung and bitten by a variety of critters and I have to say that the puss caterpillar is by far the worst one. A sting from that thing made a mark that burned my leg and left a mark for about a month, gave me abdominal pain, heart palpitations and chest pain, incredible waves of pain that lasted for hours radiating far from the site of the sting, and nearly passed out, probably from low blood pressure. My mom told me to walk it off, probably because she didn't know what had stung me. Afterwards, I realized what got me and as an adult I realize the severity of the sting. I sat on the thing. People have been hospitalized from these tiny little fuzzy caterpillars. I won't get anywhere near one as long as I live.

It's amazing how such tiny beasties can wreak such havock on us. I have to admit, I've had more painful stings, but this one hurt just the same. When I was a toddler, I got too close to a hornet nest and got stung by three, just above the eye brow. I don't remember, but have told. Scared the daylights out of my folks.

 

a few months ago I was trimming some vines and disturbed a wasp nest hidden inside. I got stung 4 times. I tried ice and vinegar. hurt for a little while. but the itching was so intense I had large red swollen areas around each sting site. I was itching for over a week, I had to take oral benadryl and using hydrocortisone cream at the same time and it barely helped with the itching. I would say it was as bad as having chicken pox.

 

I HATE Yellowjackets. When I was about 13 I stepped on one of their nests (they build them in the ground and they look like they're made of paper). I got stung 17 times in less than 5 seconds. On the earlobe, neck, everywhere. They got up inside my pants and even into the pockets. Luckily I have a high resistance to insect bites and stings (I'm immune to poison ivy as well) so I didn't get sick. To this day, if I see one, I'm gone. Other bees and wasps don't bother me that much but those little striped $#&^*'s I hate.

 

Me and a group of friends walked through a wasps nest when we were young, 4 of us ran and all got stung. One of us didn't run and was stood screaming in the middle of the swarm, her farther jumped the fence to save her, he got stung a bunch. The only person who didn't get stung was the girl who was stood in the middle of the swarm.

Living next to a woodland we often get nests in the garden, they're a pain to deal with It doesn't help that i'm a wuss.

 

a few months ago I was trimming some vines and disturbed a wasp nest hidden inside. I got stung 4 times. I tried ice and vinegar. hurt for a little while. but the itching was so intense I had large red swollen areas around each sting site. I was itching for over a week, I had to take oral benadryl and using hydrocortisone cream at the same time and it barely helped with the itching. I would say it was as bad as having chicken pox.

We had a block wall separating our front yard into two parts. The outer yard had a planter along the wall with a couple dwarf palms in the NW corner. While trimming those, I discovered that a hive of bees had removed the mortar on the end of the wall between two of the blocks,and had built a nest inside. Got stung several times before I could get away. I know bees are in trouble here in the US, and really tried to have them relocated, but the city and county wouldn't help. I called a couple bee keepers and the said it would be too difficult getting the queen out, so I had no alternative than to fill the hive with Wasp and hornet spray and reseal the hole. Hated to do it, but had no choice.

I HATE Yellowjackets. When I was about 13 I stepped on one of their nests (they build them in the ground and they look like they're made of paper). I got stung 17 times in less than 5 seconds. On the earlobe, neck, everywhere. They got up inside my pants and even into the pockets. Luckily I have a high resistance to insect bites and stings (I'm immune to poison ivy as well) so I didn't get sick. To this day, if I see one, I'm gone. Other bees and wasps don't bother me that much but those little striped $#&^*'s I hate.

When I was about 8, I was reaching into a juniper that our (USA) football was in. Got stung 3 or 4 times from that encounter.

Me and a group of friends walked through a wasps nest when we were young, 4 of us ran and all got stung. One of us didn't run and was stood screaming in the middle of the swarm, her farther jumped the fence to save her, he got stung a bunch. The only person who didn't get stung was the girl who was stood in the middle of the swarm.

Living next to a woodland we often get nests in the garden, they're a pain to deal with It doesn't help that i'm a wuss.

I was on my bike, doing about 80mph on the freeway. Felt a bug hit me just above the belt. About a mile later I realized what the bug was. The stinger had gone through the shirt and was still in my belly. Got out a credit card and had to scrape it out which pumped a bit more venom before coming out.

We have a couple paper wasp nests under the eaves of the house and they don't really bother me. It's when the wasps and yellow jackets swarm (as many as 2 dozen at a time) the lawn, all day long that bothers me. I don't know where the yellow jackets are nesting so I can't try controlling them, but I suspect it's either underground or one of the many trees in our neighborhood. With my granddaughter being 16 months and having two dogs, we can't bait or spray the lawn.

I live with my son and his family and our biggest concern was my granddaughter. It finally happened, she got stung on the side of her foot. We treated with ice and she got over it pretty quickly. Were just glad she didn't show any signs of being allergic to the venom.

Sucks to get stung! Thank the powers that be, we don't have chiggers and ticks!

 

I am very lucky not to be bothered all that much by wasp stings. I mean, they don't tickle...but I don't do the whole swelling thing.
However.
When I was pregnant with both of my kids I developed a pretty significant allergy to mosquitoes. Now, where I live, they are sort of a fact of life. But while I was pregnant I would get enormous bumps the size of half a grape that would itch so bad that I scratched myself open in the middle of the night. Had scars on my legs for months after my daughter was born.
Also I have a topical allergy to grass. No picnics for this girl.

 

I am very lucky not to be bothered all that much by wasp stings. I mean, they don't tickle...but I don't do the whole swelling thing.
However.
When I was pregnant with both of my kids I developed a pretty significant allergy to mosquitoes. Now, where I live, they are sort of a fact of life. But while I was pregnant I would get enormous bumps the size of half a grape that would itch so bad that I scratched myself open in the middle of the night. Had scars on my legs for months after my daughter was born.
Also I have a topical allergy to grass. No picnics for this girl.

Thankfully, all my allergies are pollen related. I didn't think to add mosquitoes to the ticks and chiggers, but having lived on the Gulf Coast and the South in general, they are a real nuisance to be sure.

I can't imagine what the discomfort of being pregnant and also having to deal with these pests would be like .