I was in a botanical gardens about 10 years ago. I don’t quite remember the circumstances, I may have put my hand down on a bench or something. A wave of pain hit me. I pulled my hand up and I think there was something sizable still there (like the bottom bit of a bee) at the base of my thumb. I flicked it off.
That sting hurt like #$%&*. It was truly one of the most painful experiences in my life for the first hour. It hurt for at least 5-8 hours, and the swelling didn’t completely disappear for at least a week. I didn’t have any noticeable reactions (outside of the area) like swelling or difficulty breathing.
This doesn’t seem to match up with many other people’s experiences. I have seen people on TV talking about getting several stings when harvesting honey and they seem all nonchalant about it. Online, people compare it to a needle prick or a bad pinch.
Was what stung me a bee? Why did it hurt so terribly? Am I the world’s biggest wuss?
Could’ve been a bee, but maybe it hit a nerve or a sensitive spot? Also, if you flicked it off, it probably was a bee, I understand that hornets don’t leave a stinger
I can’t think offhand of anything but bees that routinely leaves bits of themselves stuck in someone, but if you’d squished something, I suppose that could have left a bit stuck in regardless of what it was.
The effects of bee stings varies pretty widely between people, the only sting I’ve had so far kind of hurt a little bit for an hour or so, but that was it- however, other people say it hurts like a mofo for days. People who are stung often say the reaction gets milder every time they’re stung, so beekeepers tend to have less painful reactions than most (especially taken with the fact that people having a bad reaction tend to give up beekeeping a bit earlier).
Only way I can suggest finding out at this late date is getting yourself deliberately stung by a bee, and checking how much it hurts this time.
On reflection, that picture wasn’t the greatest illustration of how a deerfly and a bee could be confused if you didn’t get a good look, because the yellow coloring wasn’t obvious. I think this one is better.
I didn’t mention this in the OP, but I was actually in the botanical gardens because I was about to propose to my (later) wife. It was not part of the proposal plan.
I have definitely been bitten by both of those before, usually around water (pool or lake). They sure are a pain in the butt, but not in the same league as my bee sting.
Southern US location, the excruciatingly painful sting, rough resemblance to a bee: paper wasp.
Paper wasps get a # 3 rating on the Schmidt Pain Index. The only higher ranking insects are Tarantula Hawk Wasps (Pepsis) and Bullet Ants. T Hawks are only found in desert and semi desert areas in the US, and Bullet Ants aren’t found in the US at all.
I’ve been stung by fire ants, honeybees, bald faced hornets, yellow jackets, and sweat bees. I wouldn’t describe any of these as intensely painful, just painful.
Ninjaed by 3 minutes by the redoubtable Belowjob2.0.
In other words, yes, it sounds like a paper wasp sting.
I grew up in Georgia, USA. Those are not friendly insects.
Southeast? The most painful thing here is a cow killer, otherwise known as a velvet ant. They’re really a solitary wingless wasp, but they don’t leave their stingers. Paper wasps aren’t close in the pain department.
"See, that is why I question if it was a bee. Other people don’t think it was that awful. "
And still other people are killed by bee sting.
Personal experience, Two years ago, I had a heart attack(went “a-fib” as they say) brought on by multiple bee stings to my stomach area - and the areas of the sting were swollen and painful 'til the next day, so I pretty much do think they can be “that awful”.
