Does anyone here sting themselves?

[melliphile]

   Normally, beginning in the springtime, I collect some bees from a strong hive and self administer stings. I begin with one per day for about a week and work up to 6-10 at a time. Now if I get stung on tha hand it doesn't even swell. I rarely get stung at the hive, but if I drop a frame or encounter a nasty bunch of gaurds, I don't need to worry about not being able to do my job because of swelling, or having to cut off my wedding band because of constriction. I was wondering if anyone else does this...

[melliphile]

Soooooo, I'm guessing that I'm the only one who is doing this.  I know that most peple would look at me like this:  :shock:.  But I figured that here, you've heard it all. That bee venom is really wonderful stuff and I use it for aches and pains, too.

[hardwood]

I get stung enough by accident that I don't feel the need to do it on purpose!

Scott

[iddee]

Would you consider doing a cutout without a shirt or veil on as being about the same thing? I wear a veil about 3 times a season, when the bees tell me I should put it on. Usually after 20 to 30 stings. I never wear gloves. I never get less than 100 stings per year. Sometimes that many in a day.

[FRAMEshift]

I have talked to several people who get intentional stings to relieve arthritis pains... or at least they used to.  Most of them now use arthritis drugs instead.

[melliphile]

Would you consider doing a cutout without a shirt or veil on as being about the same thing? I wear a veil about 3 times a season, when the bees tell me I should put it on. Usually after 20 to 30 stings. I never wear gloves. I never get less than 100 stings per year. Sometimes that many in a day.

Yes, I'd say that counts!

[slacker361]

I have heard of ppl getting stung for several different medical reasons from arthritis to MS. I think what you are doing is training you immune system not to hyper respond to the bee sting , the same thing we do with local honey and ppl who have allergies

[luvin honey]

I keep intending to. My back and hip are really aggravating me this year, and I keep intending to walk right up to the hive with my husband (he seems to rile them up for some reason) and bare my hip right at the entrance. Still haven't done it yet. Hmmmm.... This thread has me thinking about it again...

[melliphile]

I don't relish the idea of unintentional stings at the hive. But, I don't worry about them, either. Most of my stings are administered to my biceps because they're not that sensitive. But often I sting my knees, lower backs and shoulders. The pain peaks in about 30 seconds then subsides into a gentle warm throbbing sensation. It is a real relief if I have pain. Cortisone shots cost from $50-$100, bees are free.

[Scadsobees]

Would you consider doing a cutout without a shirt or veil on as being about the same thing? I wear a veil about 3 times a season, when the bees tell me I should put it on. Usually after 20 to 30 stings. I never wear gloves. I never get less than 100 stings per year. Sometimes that many in a day.

Are there small epidemics of transfusion patients dying soon after you give blood???  :-D

[Hethen57]

Melliphile:
I'm wanting to try this...how do you do it?  I have a couple of a bum shoulder that could use a cortizone shot but I don't have time to make an appointment and miss work..so it's worth a try.  I also have an aggressive hive that has lots of bees who would love to volunteer for the job.

[beemaster]

Somewhere in the archives I have at least 3 long posts about apitherapy, which I did 2 full seasons on my neck after a traumatic accident - a 20 foot fall to asphalt that fracture my right arm and compressed my neck and back.

To recap though, I did 30-40 daily stings on my neck - being sure to sting one bee on each side of my neck about 180 degrees apart first, then plopping them on in the middle didn't really hurt any more than the first two.

You grab the workers as they exit the hive using tweezers, crushing their heads to kill them quickly. The sting response is involuntary so just drag their abdomen across the target area and ZAP, you get stung. Leave the stingers in until done pumping and lay them on as fast as you can grab them up.

I did 30-40 a day from Spring to early Winter one year and most all the next. By the end of the first month, I started getting range of motion back and although my neck looked like an over baked cheese pizza, it felt as if a heating pad were under my skin doing miracles.

By then end of season two, I didn't feel the need to restart a third season and I've been well since. I truly believe in the effects and results, I am positive t varies from person to person and ailment to ailment, but for me it worked fine.

I informed my doctor about it, his concern was the amount of stings but after examining me many times and knowing I had little to no reaction (other than expected reaction from getting stung so many times in one location) he went along with it, as if he had any choice.

The thing to remember, not all places feel equal - the neck might be one of those places that hurts RELATIVELY little compared to the middle of your back, etc. Your own tolerance for pain is a huge concern, your ability to accept "That many" stings without adverse reaction is another.

I would never tell anyone how many stings is right and I'd surely have a doctor test for reaction PRIOR to any attempt of sting therapy - that said, it is trial and error, but NEVER ATTEMPT without a BeeSting Kit available within reach - being holistic and being stupid are two different things.

Search Apitherapy in the forum, find more related posts, but basically THAT is what I did. Lastly, if my neck or other parts hurt as much as my neck did post fall, I would do it all over again. But consult a doctor to be safe, I only informed mine AFTER I STARTED - in hind sight, that was the wrong way to go about it.