Why do my bites always go like this now?

[SinkGirl]

I’ve always been sensitive to being bitten (seemed I would get bitten more than others and always had bad itching and swelling) but over the last few years whenever I get bitten it’s awful. They go scarlet red most of the time, insane itching and often bruising too.

I have one under my knee that happened two weeks ago and is still a deep red / purple patch. Now this one on my outer thigh which is so painful and it’s already been about 5 days. Now the redness is going down a bit but what looks like a bruise in the middle.

I know all bites are allergic reactions, but do other people go like this? None of my family do but I’m more prone to allergies generally.

The hot tap method is a great tip but only works if yuh have access to boiling water and a teaspoon when bitten!

@CatherineAragon we use this one - battery operated so great for popping in your bag on walks/at the beach.

mybiteaway.co.uk/

I am evangelical about it because I get such horrible bite reactions and works so well if you do it quickly. I never go for a day out without it now (after the great wasp sting incident of October 2030).

Never heard of hot spoon before but also good to know!

[quote Berkeys]@CatherineAragon we use this one - battery operated so great for popping in your bag on walks/at the beach.

mybiteaway.co.uk/

I am evangelical about it because I get such horrible bite reactions and works so well if you do it quickly. I never go for a day out without it now (after the great wasp sting incident of October 2030).[/quote]
Wow! Thanks so much!

I am atopic and have had bad reactions to insect bites since I was around 40. They were not so bad at first but now usually spread to cellulitis and I need antibiotics.

@Bathshebahardy

I am atopic and have had bad reactions to insect bites since I was around 40. They were not so bad at first but now usually spread to cellulitis and I need antibiotics.

Oh bless you! I had cellulitis in my knee after my caesarean and it was so painful (caught it quickly luckily).

I guess I’ll just keep taking antihistamines, keep using my hot spoon, and keep an eye on it - if it keeps getting worse then I’ll raise it with a GP at some point when I’m there about something else. This isn’t the worst one I’ve had at all, but was really really painful - Venice mosquitoes were the absolute worst! I did look up some pictures of bites and couldn’t find anything that looked like my reactions so I guess it’s good I’m not the only one!

Mine do I counted 35 last week and they are still all very visible and look like that. My legs are a mess. One night I forgot to put repellant on and woke up covered.

Try Piriton. Makes you drowsy but it's the best for bites.

Get this too and I am also hashimotos - got them long before diagnosed with it but sounds like part of a general atopic picture, interesting. Also hadn’t heard of spoon so will try!

Piriton does nothing for me and definitely doesn’t make me drowsy - I take promethazine at night when I’m really itchy which helps and helps me sleep. So for anyone in the same boat it’s worth trying other things - you can buy it over the counter (sometimes sold under the brand name Phenergan - we actually got the paid version when our twins had chicken pox and it helped them sleep through the itching and pain).

@Allsloppy
“am allergic to a few things and have had iritis, hives and plantar fasciitis“

Plantar fasciitis is not an allergic reaction.

I get bites like this. My legs are still full of scars from bites I got earlier in the month, they swell so big.
Last time I followed this routine and for the first time ever they went down within 48hours.
Took fexofenodine antihistamine, sat in Epsom salt bath and used hydrocortisone cream.
Interesting the link with thyroid, my results always come back just under the threshold and I’m tested every year, so think there maybe something in that.

Yes I get bad reactions to bites too. Take antihistamines every day all year now as I’ve constant reactions to random things which we can’t identify. I keep rotating meds but I’m desperate for other tips. Im covered in scars from the itching from hives/bites.

I’ve also got an autoimmune condition

Ex partner had a hospital admission for a ? horse fly bite in 2019, needed IV antibiotics. Similar incident a couple of weeks ago, ended up in A/E and antibiotics. He mountain bikes a lot wearing shorts so presumably picks the bites up then. It would be interesting to know if there was something underlying going on.

My bites have started to come up like this, but not until several hours later, often the next morning. I'm unaware at the time that I've been bitten, so the spoon trick or anything that needs doing straight away wouldn't work for me.

@thewreckingcrew

My bites have started to come up like this, but not until several hours later, often the next morning. I'm unaware at the time that I've been bitten, so the spoon trick or anything that needs doing straight away wouldn't work for me.

Yes that’s what happens to me too

When l said straight away, l meant before they blistered. Perhaps it was the wrong choice of words.

I did my last lot 3 or 4 days in. When they were hard, itchy and angry.

I meant before they popped! Some people seem to get oozing blisters. But as long as the skin isn’t broken it’s fine.

Oh I see Yes mine last about a week. I'll give it a try then.

I wonder whether it’s actually considered a symptom of an immune issue by GPs etc, rather than one of those things that sufferers realise they have in common but that isn’t taken into account IYSWIM.

If I get any more this year I’ll take photos and mention it next time I see a doctor (if that ever happens!)

What’s really weird is that when I have a reaction to something that causes redness, that redness just gradually fades from red to normal skin. But with this, that redness is what turns into bruising - this is what it looks like today. It’s so odd. Ugh, I wish my body just worked normally!

It’s called ‘Skeeter’ syndrome in the States.

@ArseInTheCoOpWindow

It’s called ‘Skeeter’ syndrome in the States.

That’s interesting and there is an article with a line it to auto-immune conditions.

www.everydayhealth.com/bug-bites/is-it-skeeter-syndrome/

That’s interesting. Eczema and asthma run in my family and I’m allergic to washing up liquid .

Histamine tolerance, autoimmunity, poor methylation etc

betterbydrbrooke.com/what-is-histamine-intolerance/

Wow that skeeter thing is interesting and I think lots of body systems are all related to allergies. There's a lot that isn't understood about histamine response and its interaction with other body systems.

One of my kids is kind of allergic but his allergies have shifted over time. Eg he used to get anaphylaxis to a couple of things, then he was allergic to a load of things but mildly, then he hit puberty and started getting a sort of whole body allergic overwhelm every now and again and we found out he was allergic to lots of substances that are just around all the time like mould and all the pollens ... I've never had a satisfactory answer as to why it's happened, just to feed him anti histamines which sort of keeps it under control mostly. Allergies are weird.