I remember from an old TV show, HeeHaw, the quote, "if it weren't for bad luck, I'd have no luck at all." That pretty much describes riverbee's last couple of years.
I remember from an old TV show, HeeHaw, the quote, "if it weren't for bad luck, I'd have no luck at all." That pretty much describes riverbee's last couple of years.
Kind of describes her neighbors, too! :laugh:
(https://worldwidebeekeeping.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi156.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Ft35%2FBetsyBleepBlop%2Fheehaw.jpg&hash=8f694e8a229ee878ff993087a8aca92c6c4a4fca)
I remember from an old TV show, HeeHaw, the quote, "if it weren't for bad luck, I'd have no luck at all." That pretty much describes riverbee's last couple of years.
Kind of describes her neighbors, too! :laugh:
(https://worldwidebeekeeping.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi156.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Ft35%2FBetsyBleepBlop%2Fheehaw.jpg&hash=8f694e8a229ee878ff993087a8aca92c6c4a4fca)
Slowmodem, that picture is a hoot. An image from the past that is visually descriptive of riverbee's neighbors. Good job. :)
Lest someone get the wrong idea about Riverbee, she is not the complaining type. What she "exposed" in her introductory remarks is just objective, background reportage. For those of you who haven't yet "met" her, she is one positive, optimistic woman with an amazing sense of humor. And that isn't even the start of telling her merits. I'm not one for filling out her praises (she might read what I write and get annoyed at me), but keep your eyes open to anything she posts---you'll learn what I mean, and learn a lot of beekeeping too.
Lest someone get the wrong idea about Riverbee, she is not the complaining type. What she "exposed" in her introductory remarks is just objective, background reportage. For those of you who haven't yet "met" her, she is one positive, optimistic woman with an amazing sense of humor. And that isn't even the start of telling her merits. I'm not one for filling out her praises (she might read what I write and get annoyed at me), but keep your eyes open to anything she posts---you'll learn what I mean, and learn a lot of beekeeping too.
my apologies everyone for a delayed reply and an update to my monthly injections on wednesday last week. i am in florida, on the very southern tip of captiva island. i am very humbled by all the posts here and can't thank each of one you enough for all the kind things that have been said, even jack ...... :D good things come out of pint sizes...... ;D
i will update soon as i get a chance to sit down for more than a few minutes, the beach is calling me! 8)
OK, enough of all this "Kind, strong" syrupy stuff.
What kind of person jumps on a plane, heads south out of the cold, lays around on a sunny beach, takes pictures, and then posts pictures of it to the rest of us that are freezing our keesters off up here?
Mean I tell ya, Mean as all get out!
OK, enough of all this "Kind, strong" syrupy stuff.
What kind of person jumps on a plane, heads south out of the cold, lays around on a sunny beach, takes pictures, and then posts pictures of it to the rest of us that are freezing our keesters off up here?
i have been a little under the weather for the past 3 weeks, and the docs don't like to give allergy injections when one is running a fever/fighting off a viral infection of some sort.
Hey, we all are who we are, and people seldom change. Riverbee, remember that this forum is chocked full of people that love you and work accordingly.
River, considering how much help Mr. River is with your bees, it's amazing that you didn't get him into the act earlier. There are many moments when I wish Mrs. Ef would be willing to give me a hand but still, even after all these years she still keeps a repectful distance from our hives. :sad:
Hey River, isn't it about time for another round of injections? Please remember to keep us posted. We are well into our second year with your reaction adventure, and we do not want to miss the "happy ending."hehe.. and there are those that claim I can write a good line or two.. then looky here at what Lazy Shooter wrote!! WELL SAID!
I was into one of my nicer hives this week and had a bee crawling around on my hand, and I thought of you. As much as you love bees, I wish you could have changed places with me. When I was quite young, an old, wisened banker told me, "be ready for the changes." i asked him what changes? He told me, "everything changes." He was correct. It is regretful that with your love of bees, you will not be able to let a bee crawl on your hand. But, on the other hand, your tenuous ordeal will cause you to love the bee moments even more. I don't have the passion for bees that you do, but I so admire folks that go "all in" on anything. You're the kind of beekeeper that has the relentless energy to keep on studying and studying and studying. As a consequence, your addiction will cure our ills with the the bees.
Let us know about your next injection. We are waiting to hear from you………………..
What he ended up doing was he and his wife went to a restaurant and order seafood..."to go". They then drove to the emergency room, parked, and proceeded to dine not 100' from the ER doors. ;D
He had no reaction but had an entire ER and hospital waiting beside his "table".
That how my bees do the bumble bee when they enter the hive, quite a site to see, and it looks like they are biting the bee instead of stinging.I read that bees have a paralyzing chemical -introduced via their mandibles- they can use on intruders like a moth or beetle larva. A bite will paralyze a larva for a minute or two while bees have their way with them. Perhaps that was the strategy this time, they sure had their way with that alien bee.....? :)
Ken
I'm having my doctor refill my Epi-pen prescription before Spring "just in case".
DISCLAIMER: I'm not a medically-trained professional, though I have a pretty good understanding of quite a bit... Take my advice for what you pay for it. I won't be hurt if you ask for a second opinion :)
There's a difference between an allergy and a reaction... Swelling up at/around the site of a sting is just the reaction of your body fighting the venom.
Directions do say to keep the pen out of direct sunlight. I can remedy that tho by wrapping it in a small towel. I keep mine just inside the back door, inside a cupboard where it is never moved.
Up to this point, I have only been allergic to wasps and hornets. Unfortunately, I took a bee sting on Thursday and developed extreme itching and eventually hives all over my body. I didn't have any trouble breathing and didn't use my epipen. I took zirtec and benedryl and eventually got through it.
I don't know if all of this was because of the chemo or what. I should have been at the bottom on all my blood counts on Thursday or Friday and be on my way back up now. I also started throwing up during all of this. I had never done that during either of the other two anaphylactic episodes I had from wasp stings. That could have been caused by the morphine I was on for the previous 24 hours, but I don't know.
Tomorrow, I will be suiting up and we will see how it goes. I've got three supers to get off. Hopefully there won't be any issues. I will start seeing my allergist after all the chemo is done and get tested again.
Tomorrow, I will be suiting up and we will see how it goes. I've got three supers to get off. Hopefully there won't be any issues. I will start seeing my allergist after all the chemo is done and get tested again.
Tomorrow, I will be suiting up and we will see how it goes. I've got three supers to get off. Hopefully there won't be any issues. I will start seeing my allergist after all the chemo is done and get tested again.
Beeracuda: PLEASE do not go to the bees, even fully dressed. If, God forbid, you should get a sting (and who hasn't gotten stung though his/her protective garb?) it could be fatal We all cherish your presence on this forum and are sure that there are plenty of others who would hate to see you go this way.
No Joking.
Find another beek to do the work for you or just forego the crop. It's not worth the risk.
Get to an allergy specialist as soon as you can and till you get the OK, stay away from bees.
PLEASE!
you suffered from a systemic reaction and i would be concerned, your immune system has taken quite a hit! i would take the advice of your oncologist, as far as waiting until all is said and done. and as the oncologist said, you may have to start over.....that's fine, don't get discouraged! hang in there, and i know you can! going back to an allergist would be the least of my worries compared to what you are facing right now!
Nice update Riv- Thanks! and I think I'll start the process to get a junior epi for my grands when they are visiting. thanks for calling my attention to that :)
I'll update on this ;) 8)
bc......
THANK YOU for the update. our immune systems are so complex and you really have been through a great deal. like ef said earlier, i think i would forego getting near the bees until next spring, or whenever you are stronger, it's not worth the risk......
that's just my thought......
anyway, enough about me, let's give our support to beeracuda!
... I have also had volunteers on this forum and in our bee club offer their assistance
riverbee's journey?
i am an allergic beekeeper having developed a bee venom allergy in the summer of 2012, and as it turns out, after the testing in october of 2012, i am allergic to all stinging insects; honeybee, yellow jacket, wasp, and hornets, and have been undergoing venom immunotherapy injections for all of these stinging insects since january 24, 2013 of last year, one year coming up. 3 injections per week and am now on monthly injections. the monthly injections, (3) consist of venom equivalent to one sting of each of the following; honey bee, wasp, and mixed vespid (hornets and yellow jackets).
in the spring of 2012, i developed larger than 'normal' reactions from honey bee stings not normal to what i had been accustomed to. these reactions increased in severity. as the season progressed into july of 2012, i wound up in emergency rooms after july into august 2012 on 3 separate occasions being treated for anaphylaxis. the last one was pretty scary for myself and my family. i still remember it, the fear, struggling to breathe, my life really essentially passed before me.
as beekeepers we really never think of suffering from abnormal reactions, or anaphylaxis, i never really did, and wasn't prepared for it. i was fortunate, i had early warning signs and ignored them. sometimes there is no warning, one sting is all it takes and within 20 minutes your life changes. one sting changes everything. for me it did. i have taken many stings, so why now, or why me? i can't answer this. no one can, lots of theories, our immune systems are so complex.
in the fall of 2012 i went through the testing process for stinging insect allergy twice. after the testing, it took a month to order all of the required venom before i could start receiving injections. my immunologist doc informed me that i could not work bees for at least 2 years and up to 5 years depending on my progress with the injections, to once again develop immunity to stings, and to protect myself from an anapyhlactic reaction. i might be in the category of a 'lifer'; continuing to receive injections on a monthly or 6 week basis for the rest of my life.
so i came to a 'crossroad' in my life, a choice of whether to continue to keep bees or not. whether i make that choice now or sometime in the future, one choice was clear, that i needed to take venom immunotherapy injections for all the other circumstances arising by coming across a stinging insect, but could i or can i give up honey bees? i still struggle with that. i have a great passion for honey bees, how can i give this up? only time will tell, and that is the journey i am on.
since late summer of 2012, i have not worked my bees, but did capture a swarm in full gear at about 100 degrees and high humidity last august. i carry two epi-pens, an emergency dose of steroid, and liquid benadryl. the winter months give me a reprieve on this. my epi pens have seen a fair amount of adventure and travel; learning to carry them, 'where's the pen", losing them, leaving them behind, being run over and near smashed, floating down a river, and actually having them stolen one time and returned..... :D
i still have the majority of my hives, and they have literally gone almost untouched. a great degree of frustration of crash training a spouse in the fine art of keeping honey bees who is now very addicted to them, and catching swarms.
my injections have been a long journey; weekly visits that were often times frustrating, stressful, and with a number of setbacks. i have suffered a great deal of abnormal reactions, (still do) adjustments to my injection schedule, a preparation of the needles to minimize the large reactions and taking benadryl before and after the injections. my doc and shot docs have been entertained/educated in the process. i found a way to teach about honey bees.....from painting smiley faces on my arms (where i receive the injections), to wearing all sorts of bee hats, antennae, bringing pictures, queen cages, package cages, honey, and comb honey and frames of capped honey with me. wearing bee antennae in a clinic waiting room full of allergic patients gets a lot of looks, laughs, and questions, especially from children.
i still suffer from large reactions to the honey bee injection; probably always will, and my doc says, once back into the bees, i will most likely always suffer from large local reactions, and will most likely have to wear full gear. i can deal with that.
will i be ready to work bees this spring? right now this is an unknown for me, my doc says lets talk about it come february or march and i think, another round of testing. my doc says venom immunotherapy is successful. and i might add, encouragement of others has made this journey less stressful, and me a less impatient beekeeper as time passes with the injections.
i have never spoken of this or shared this. the summer of 2012 was a very hard summer for me besides developing the allergy. i hope never to see another emergency room, dentist, orthodontist, oral surgeon, or an orthopedic surgeon again, well, at least not all in the span of a few months. the allergy was enough in and of itself.....so some history...... :laugh:
in 2010, i had to have a root canal re-done through a 3 crown bridge on an anchoring crown of a tooth of the seated bridge, leaving the bridge in place but cleaning out of the original root canal, as i said through the crown of the bridge. just wait......don't forget this...... :D
in the spring of 2011, i suffered a stress fracture to my r hip socket and completely tore the hip flexor muscle, so spent most of the fall and winter, 2011/2012 on crutches. working bees in crutches is not on a bucket list and neither is fishing on a pair of crutches....don't forget this....
in the spring and summer 0f 2012, the fracture was not healing properly. i thought i might have to have surgery on this.
fast forward to 2012:
in june 2012 i lost a very good long time friend to ovarian cancer, she was only 48. her husband is still lost without her. can't imagine.
in july of 2012, i developed a toothache under the 3 crown bridge. in short, a trip to the dentist, a trip to the orthodontist to look at the re-done root canal, back to the dentist, off to an oral surgeon, who sent me back to the dentist to cut the bridge off and then back to the oral surgeon who extracted the tooth. lots of mystery tools these folks have. LOL. i chose to be put under. needless to say i went to sleep without realizing it talking bees, and when i woke up apparently i was describing how drones mate with queen bees. :D
in late july 2012, off to montana. the night before we left, i checked the bees. i was stung. i didn't feel good, by very early morning to get on the road, hives. by noon i was covered in hives. in miles city, montana i was treated with massive injections of steroid, an antihistamine, and a steroid prescription.
two days later, SOMEONE left a window open next to a doorway that shouldn't be there, where underneath sat a cooler of cold ones. after a long day of fishing, i grabbed a couple cold ones, and whack, hit my noggin on that window. didn't feel so good. about knocked myself silly. red stuff trickled down my face. off to the emergency room in livingston, montana.
two days after that....are you all still with me? :D .....i slipped going up the bank of a river, and fell on my right knee on a rock and jammed that right hip. and dinged a new fly reel. it was a long haul back to the truck. stubborn as i can be sometimes, wasn't going back to an emergency room.
3 days later in an emergency room in kalispell, montana, i was treated for that fall. i was in excruciating pain. i thought i had either re-fractured the socket or tore the muscle again. so pain killers and a pair of crutches until i could get back home to the orthopede. the crutches; alot of mileage, from my dad, to me, and now to my brother. so my fishing/family vacation was spent in e/rs, on steroids, painkillers, benadryl and crutches.......btw, you can fish on crutches with drugs.....hard to run after grandchildren though....... :D
august/september/october 2012, two more e/r visits for anaphylaxis and then the tests for the allergy. and ps, never want to be on steroids again, the withdrawal from these are incredible.
i don't lead a dull life, but does settle down from time to time.... :D
so....up to date...i hope with this new thread to keep everyone updated on my progress, and also answer any questions, or help educate others on reactions to stings, or the entire process; testing, venom immunotherapy injections, epi pens, etc i have learned a great deal of information since my allergy started and wish to share what i know with others from my own experience, and maybe a few funny stories along the way.
last but not least, i can't express enough of a thank you to all who have encouraged me through 'my journey'. i have never 'met' any of you but think and feel as if i have. many of you have given me a great deal of encouragement when i needed it the most. thank you. sorry for the long winded post!
what a great start for me to a great new year, one year of injections behind me.....old friends, new friends and a great new forum!!!
how cool is that!!!
Here, here, I always have been, and still am, in Riverbee's corner. As always, Ef's use of our language is extraordinary. We're privileged to have River and Ef on this forum.
Gotta keep the river River; without it, we'd just have to call you "Bee"! Life decisions are tough wish you the best in the process!
well, maybe you all can call me squirt bee, cuz jack calls me a 'squirt'.
Gotta keep the river River; without it, we'd just have to call you "Bee"! Life decisions are tough wish you the best in the process!
Or maybe “The Beekeeper Formerly Known as Riverbee.”
BFKAS, for short.