The first time I was ever stung, I was 3 years old and sat on a bee when I was sitting down on the grass next to the garden to pick peas. I ran in SCREAMING, and (when they finally figured out what was wrong) my parents put the baking soda paste on itand it did nothing. I think that bee sting is my first "real" memoryÂthatÂs not from pictures! So baking soda didnÂt work for me, but I definitely want to agree with what David said about ammonia. Years ago I bought an expensive little applicator thingie called Afterbite. It worked for mosquito and ant bites, but I used it up very quickly and since I didnÂt want to spend a bunch more for another one, I tried to figure out what was in it. There was no list of ingredients, and the only thing that I could clearly smell was ammonia, so the next time I got a mosquito bite I saturated a folded up little square of paper towel with ammonia and plastered it over the mosquito bite. NO ITCHING! It really works. Try it, youÂll like it! As a kid I cut the grass barefoot and stepped on multiple bees every summer. Baking soda didnÂt work, so I started running the garden hose cold water over my foot each time, and in 15 minutes the "sting" would go awayÂand IÂd finish the grass! Then, for 10 years or so, I never got stungÂturned into a shoe-wearing city girl! Then one fine day when I happened to go outside barefoot I stepped on a beeÂor somethingÂnever did see it. I ran in and stuck my foot in the sink and ran cold water over it, but it felt very strangeÂdifferent than it had when I was a kid. By the next morning my entire leg was swollen up, all the way up to my hip, and it ITCHED FROM THE INSIDE OUT! We went to an emergency room and they said I was allergic to bees and gave me a tetanus shot and antihistaminesÂwhich did absolutely nothing for the itching. It took nearly a week for it to go away, and my foot was so swollen up that I couldnÂt put anything but the loosest sandals on. After that I got and carried a bee sting kit with me for years, but the next time I got stung I was working at the first garden center here in Denver, and when it happened I sat down with my bee sting kit and waited to start going into anaphylactic shock! One of the other girls got me some ice which I put on it immediately, and I never did have any trouble with breathing, so I didnÂt stick the needle in myself! ThatÂs when I discovered that if I got ice on it IMMEDIATELY, the venom absorbed slowly enough that I didnÂt get all swollen up, and I didnÂt itch! I kept the ice on it for almost 24 hoursÂI was afraid to take it off. Ever since then IÂve used the ice method whenever I get stung. I worried for years that since I hadnÂt been at all allergic for 20-some years, that the allergy I had developed that caused the swelling and itching could suddenly worsen to an anaphylactic reaction type allergy, but IÂve had a doctor tell me that that rarely happens. I donÂt carry a bee sting kit anymore, but I do still worry a little bit when I get stung, and I get ice on it right away. All that being said, itÂs been years now since IÂve been stung, which is pretty amazing considering how many bees IÂm around out in the yard, especially around the veggies. ItÂs pretty amazing how if you just leave them along, they leave you alone. I think youÂre pretty unlikely to get stung unless you accidentally squoosh them somehowÂlike swatting at them, or grabbing themÂlike you accidentally did, Bonnie, or getting them inside your clothes somehow, like you did, Alice (thatÂs how I got stung at the garden centerÂit got inside my sleeve). But one other thing I want to mention. DonÂt assume that just because a bee is dead, it canÂt sting! That might sound ridiculous, but another time, years agoÂand before I had discovered the ice methodÂI sat down on the carpet by the slider and put my hand down on the carpet and got stung. When I looked, there was the back half of a DEAD bee stuck to my hand. Apparently I put my hand on it just the right way that it "self injected!" That time I guess I figured that since it was dead it wouldnÂt be a problem, but the next day my hand and arm, up to my elbow, were all swollen and itching! Whoda thunk a dead bee could sting??? So I know better now, and even when I see a dead bee laying somewhere, I pick it up and dispose of it VERY carefully! IÂve never even tried the ammonia method on bees, David. Just never thought of it! But next time I get stungÂand IÂm sure there will be a next timeÂIÂm gonna put an ammonia patch under the ice and see how much difference it makes. IÂm still gonna use the ice, since IÂm allergic, but maybe the ammonia will "fix it" faster! Skybird

I was stung several times as my dad raised bees then 1 day I got stung on the top of my head ran across street to our house & dad was up the ladder,I started up & couldn't see, I was terrified, he worked his way down & got me to dr. Been stung several times since,once walking in ocean-bees actually go in the water!!!! I had a yr of shots but couldn't finish last 2 as I was having very bad reactions. Got stung & ended up in ER again & they "watched" me, I finally told them, "I'm checking out here, I've got 2 kids & they need a mom. My ears were itching & I was seeing oceans & cornfields & all sorts of things, I had high BP & irratic pulse up to 200 as near as they could tell so they gave me the shot of adeneraline. 15 min later I was fine. I said, what were you waiting for. Dr said he was sure the antibee shots would work. They didn't. So no way to be tested. I even had a reaction to cheap China made candle for Halloween, a little witch, didn't sit even so I took knife & scraped off the bottom to level it, I started talking "funny" myDD asked me what was wrong, the stuff I scrapped off when I got it under the light had bee parts so they use old used beeswax in candles that are dark & cheap!! 2 Benadryl worked that time as I had not been stung just touched the stuff. I carry an epi pen & benadryl. Jan

I vote for going to a doctor. But, which one? I hate it when you go to one and they have no idea and send you to someone else and on and on. What are they doing? Sharing the wealth? My guess for you and what I would do in this situation, is go to an allergist first. Hopefully, they would know if an insect bite could cause this reaction and what to do about it.

My husband is sensitive to bee and wasp stings, and we keep a tube of super Benedryl cream with us when we are working the hives. Yes, you read that right, we have two bee hives manned by my husband who looks like the Michelin Man when he gets stung. That, and some Adolph's Meat Tenderizer applied immediately helps keep the swelling down, as well as the pain.