Well, I am extra glad that you are not dead! Gracious heavens what a way to start the day! I hope you feel better. Do you have plans to eradicate the beasts?

Oh wow...you sure have my sympathy. They hurt like the dickens!!! I'm

glad you weren't/allergic to the stings. Please be careful...and stomp those

devils!!! I have noticed just in the last couple of days that the bees, wasps,

seem to have come out of nowhere. Spring is popping I guess. Be careful.

Glad you are okay and not allergic. My husband and I were attacked by killer bees several years ago. Fortunately we were close to the house and we ran inside but they followed us inside....as did a goat and some chickens! We went from room to room and fortunately had a mosquito fogger in a back room and was able to fight them back. We were stung many multiple times but we didn't have any ill effects, but almost killed on of my dogs and she had to go to the vet.

Been there, done that and I feel your pain :-) Except mine was in the head. Tending a spot in my garden that had a high birdhouse included and was unaware wasps had taken up residence. They did not appreciate my attention in their area and attacked. Was stung multiple times and all on my head! Felt like my scalp was on fire and I developed a headache to end all headaches!! But felt fine in a few hours. Wasp spray put paid to the nest :-)

Just be thankful you didn't run in to any of these - murder hornets. They have shown up here and have made national news. Giant, aggressive buggers that apparently like to feed on honeybees

So sorry for your hurt! Seems like 'the little things' (bees, wasps, *viruses*) are bent on 'getting even' with us humans.

Best thing for bee/wasp stings is https://www.cvs.com/shop/cvs-health-icthammol-ointment-1-oz-prodid-705149

We used to call it black salve and it's a miracle how quickly it takes the sting out of the sting.

Crossing my fingers that I haven't seen any wasps yet this year. I'm so happy you are okay.

Ouch! I've only been stung by one at a time. That's pretty painful. You have my sympathy.

Owie. Some stings hurt like crazy and then itch like crazy. I always put a paste of baking soda on the sting. I’ve also heard to remove the stinger by scraping a credit card across it. I have a nest in my yard of tiny wasps and I always have to watch out for that.

I am finding that paper wasps have become more aggressive in this area. They have also started to do something that I do not remember seeing before. They will drop straight down to sting. One hovered above my husband by twisting wings side to side then dropped. No nest unless it was just starting to build on the branch. I remember then landing on you then arching their back to sting giving you a moment to fling them away.

i had a battle with some bees on Saturday that were building a nest in my chicken run which has now turned into my storage area for tomato cages. They weren't very happy with me but I managed to not get stung.

Wasps and hornets do not lose their stingers after they jab you. Only bees do that. You can be stung multiple times by the same wasp.

Oh, I'm sorry that happened to you! I detest wasps and hornets; they are so darn aggressive. The hotter the weather, the more aggressive they seem to become, so I usually spend most of August indoors. If one gets near me, I get all twitchy and it's all I can do not to run. Sometimes, I do run. I have a terrible fear of them.

Last summer, I a paper wasp crawled up my pants leg and then started to bite when it couldn't find it's way out. I was able to grasp a fistful of the fabric of my pants with wasp inside the wad of fabric which stopped the biting, but then I only had one hand free and couldn't get my pants unzipped so I could take them off. Plus, I was wearing a belt and I couldn't get it undone either! That sucker stung me five times before I was able to get out of my pants.

Hubby came to the rescue and got me out of my pants. He shook them out, the wasp fell to the floor and was quickly dispatched.

gardengal, I just heard about those wasps last night. For me, that's a nightmare come true. I hope they don't make their way down into California.

I ran over a yellow jacket nest with the lawn mower years ago. They attacked my legs and feet and I ran into the house and into the shower. They were still attached to my legs! I ended up with huge black and blue marks all over my legs and have dark red marks to this day. The pain was really horrible.

Yikes! So sorry for you! I've never had more than 1 sting at a time and that's enough to bring me to tears! Hope the pain is gone soon!

Everyone: please be aware that even if you are not presently allergic to stings, multiple incidences over time can increase the likelihood of developing serious life-threatening allergic reactions.

Ouch! Glad you are okay.

Ouch that really hurts!

Ouchie!!

Moved our hose cart Friday and wasps came flying out. I didn't know I could even run anymore!!!

I saw on CBS This Morning that Murder Hornets had made their way to Washington State from Japan, and these can kill you if you receive multiple stings. I hope they can be eradicated. I certainly don't want to see them in California, especially if they feed on honeybees. That could be devastating to the almond crop here.

So glad you were able to treat yourself at home without having to visit the ER - that would be a nightmare.

That's about how it seems these days, wildchild. Just one thing after another!

I just heard about the Murder Hornets for the first time this morning...yikes!

Yikes what a painful experience! Yes glad you are not dead! I would have been in the hospital! Very allergic to stinging critters.

I hope never to see a murder hornet! How did they make it here? Did someone think it would be a good pet? Death to the murderers!

Apparently they hitchhiked their way to North America from Japan, like Asian longhorn beetles and any number of other insect pests.

Hope things are still OK. I got hit by 3 some years ago - right in the center of my chest. Same circumstance of accidentally disturbing a nest of paper wasps when doing yardwork, and I broke out in hives. I didn't have any benadryl then, or know to use it, but I do now, so hopefully that will make a difference for you.

Were they the small, medium or large size? That makes a difference too.

I took a benadryl tablet shortly after it happened as soon as I realized I wasn't going into an anaphylactic episode. That made me drowsy and I laid down and snoozed for about an hour. These wasps were actually quite small but man they were fast as lightning, I mean I had gotten stung 4 or 5 times before I even had the chance to react and try to knock them off of me. I have a feeling they are the same type that hit my son last year - he wound up in an ambulance and off to the ER, scared the life out of us. DH sprayed the nest with wasp spray, the nest was small, too - that's why I missed seeing it but it had MANY of those suckers in it. I don't even want to imagine something called a murder hornet. We have something here called a "cow killer". It's also called a velvet ant. It's not an ant, it's a wingless wasp and it's actually quite beautiful to look at but they say the sting is so painful it can knock down a cow but I have a feeling that's a legend. But, if you happen across one and you try to hold it down with a stick, it will hiss like a snake. I don't want to get stung by one just to see if it's name fits the pain, though.

I'm glad you're doing OK, and have a way to get rid of the nest. I'm pretty casual about bees in the garden, all types, tolerant of yellow jackets if they are not close enough to be bothering us or guests (or mail or UPS), but I've got no tolerance at all for the black and white (bald faced) hornets. Very worst sting of my life one year - I really didn't feel well and had a pounding headache from a behind the ear sting. I called my nurse friend and she said Advil, Ice, Benadryl all at once and do it right now. It took a couple of days before I felt myself again.

Year before last I called an exterminator for a black and white hornets nest above my circle driveway. Appeared in a cherry almost out of nowhere and right above where a friend will typically park every time he stops in. I really didn't want to deal with a ladder, flashlight after dark to take care of it myself but I won't admit how much I paid to have it removed ;0)

Shortly after, I found a company that will come and remove all but yellow jackets, free. Only if no attempts have been made to get rid of them yourself, including water sprays. They extract the venom for medication for those allergic and make their profit there, not in charging the homeowner. They don't address yellow jackets because those are so plentiful, the venom not in high demand. I've got the number - someplace ;0) But haven't had reason to ask for help since having the fully suited exterminator here that day. Very nice guy, just expensive.

Ritaweeda, glad you recovering. That’s a good reminder for me to start looking for new nests now. It’s that time of year.

Ouch! I hope no one is not going to the ER in case of emergency. Most ERs are not overwhelmed with covid 19 patients. They may have some people positive in their hospital but they are triaging patients at the door and separating them in ERs. At least this is what we are told. People are dying of heart attack and strokes because they're waiting too long to go in or just never go in because of the virus.

Ritaweeda, those wingless wasps you are talking about are red and black aren't they? I haven't seen one of those in a long time.

I have watched a series of videos on YouTube by a guy named Coyote Peterson who travels around the world to capture stinging insects, and intentionally make them sting him. All so he can compare and contrast the experience of the different stings.

According to him, the Japanese Giant Hornet (its real name, as opposed to the media appellation of "murder hornet") packed the most painful sting of any of the insects he had experienced.

I hope you're feeling better by now, Rita. If you should need some attention, perhaps Urgent Care rather than the E.R.

If they came from the ground they are probably what in this area are called yellow jackets. I have only found one of their nests and they chased me to the house stinging all the way. I waited until one night after a rain and poured a lot of boric acid powder the type you use to make eyewash out of on and around the hole then quickly turned off my flashlight. In a few days they were gone.