To expect Nasty bitey bastard mosquitos to leave me alone? (And to ask for tips on dealing with the biyet carnage that is my body right now)?

[lightlypoached]

On a lovely, much yearned-for holiday. It’s beautiful. The mozzies (little fuckers) are out in force, and despite industrial quantities of near-lethal DEET we are ravaged. Anti histamine pills and cream aren’t touching it and I’m swelling up and so itchy I might have to tear my arm off.

Other than hot-spooning , any hints tips or folk tales we can try please to stop more and to deal with the ones we have?

And no ‘you’re lucky to be on holiday so suck it up buttercup’ posts please, we know we are

Bitey not Biyet. Ffs

I use Picaridin as a repellent. It’s much nicer to use than DEET and it’s very effective. I first found it for sale in Spain in a pharmacy. You can get it on Amazon.

If I do get bitten then 1% hydrocortisone cream is the only thing that gives me any relief.

Toothpaste on them is meant to help. Never tried it though. We had them in our holiday. Ruined sitting outside in the evening. Bitey bastards indeed!

I hear you! Just coming out of 3 days of hell after being bitten alive and having a massive allergic reaction of some sorts. Up to 20 anti-histamines a day (1 a day my swollen, itchy arse!), 1% hydro cortison cream, topical benadryl, after burn aloe vera....not a thing has worked!! 2 sleepless nights and body burning so badly and weird rashes everywhere, multiple pharmacists have just said keep taking anti histamines!!

Temporary relief was provided by sitting in a cold bath with calamine lotion - all night!!! Finally a pharmacist said the only thing that might now work is prescription steroids, i.e. prednisone

So, perhaps try prednisone if as bad as i was, or a cold bath with half a bottle of calamine lotion poured in

Tried and tested: ice the bite as soon as you feel you've been bitten (ice cubes, frozen bottle water), for min. 10 minutes but ideally 20. Then 5% hydrocortisone cream (you can get it over the counter in Europe but it's only on prescription here), thinly applied but several apps in that first day. If bites continue to itch ice will also temporarily relieve the itching - but by icing immediately you get bitten it disrupts your body's immune response and for me at least - after years of blisters as big as ten pences - means the bites remain very small and are itchy for less time. The 5% cream is supposed to be harsh on your skin but I figure it's less bad than infected blisters that once they get really bad can cover 10cm 😱

One year we bought a little battery operated device that delivers a tiny electric shock when you put it on the bite . It seemed to help.

I got this thing called a zapp it from amazon. Bit late now for you but for the next holiday.

We are in Croatia and I have 20 bites all in. It does help stop the allergic reaction to a point. I'm very allergic but it's meant I can enjoy my holiday and not end up in docs.

I've also taken 2 different antihistamine one at night and one in morning. Lotaerzine and cetri what ever they are. Stocked up in U.K.

I also used smidgy repellent ordered from amazon before coming here.

We have aloe Vera gel and witch hazel gel with us too and they are soothing. Preparing is key for next time.

Sand. That's the zapp it. Brilliant little devise.

I am always bitten to buggery by mosquitoes and don't have to go abroad to suffer. Currently have at least 20 bites from here in the UK!
Have been taking Asda own brand allergy relief tablets (active ingredient Chlorphenamine Maleate) which have helped tremendously, and an antihistamine cream on the bites.
Like you I have covered myself in jungle strength repellant but it makes no difference. I have tried every natural repellant known to Google, but I am just unlucky to be one of those who the bastards LOVE.

Taking a maximum allowable vitamin b supplement is mean to make you taste unpleasant to biters. Might be worth a try?

A sock full of porridge in the bath will help with the itching.

I taste amazing to all bitey creatures. Would second the electric shock device. There's one called a Zanza click that I've been using for years. You put it on the bite and press the top, and it gives you a tiny shock. The idea is that it eases the itching, as the itching is what makes the reaction worse. (I'm not medical, but if you scratch, it releases histamines, which then make the itching worse. Or something like that. So stopping the original itching helps prevent the swelling and pus stage...)

No good now, but for next time if you can face it a bit of marmite every day for a fortnight or so before you go and then take a squeezy bottle with you for breakfast toast. I guess it’s the vitamin B thing someone mentioned upthread but it really made a difference for me when I lived abroad.

We have some stickers to put on clothing that is basically concentrated lemon eucalyptus oil.

Hairdryer on hot, point at a bite until it gets really hot and very itchy, then stop. That instantly stops it for at least 24 hours, redo if the itch comes back. Guaranteed to work. Also I'd carry on with the anti histamines and add in hydrocortisone cream.

Which antihistamine are you using? If Loratadine isn’t working, try Zantac/ranitidine(yes, the antiacid). About 10% of people have a variation in the type of histamine receptors they have outside the gut (ie on their skin and elsewhere), and Zantac is worth a try for this reason.
I used to react to bites in the most spectacular way, and Zantac was suggested to me by a GP in the Australian outback (yes really!). Worked like magic.

Interestingly, I went gluten free about 7 years ago and I stopped reacting that way to insect bites almost immediately... I think that’s because grains cause histamine release in the body (and I overreact to that, and a bite causes a huge response), and nothing to do with the gluten iykwim.
I’m still amazed every summer now when I get bitten and just have a tiny red dot with hardly any itch, instead of huge red weals that last for weeks and itch an insane amount.

Yes, yes to the hairdryer. I am.horribly allergic, covered in bites here in the UK.

The hairdyer is the only thing that works.

NZ'er here loved by any bitey insect. Any bite turns into a hot volcano of pain and itch.

Preventative: DEET. Tropical strength. Shit loads of it. Applied at sundown. Wear clothes that cover your favoured bited bits (mine are legs so straight on with leggings). Main issue is not applying repellent at the right time. They are evil at dusk and most people miss that time.

Remediation: Hairdryer as above to remove an itch for something already angry and itchy. We have something called 'Goodbye Sandfly' which is essential oils in a oil base which, if applied immediately to a bite and regularly over 12 hours means a bite comes to nothing. Otherwise a cream called Anthisan is excellent.

Picaradin might be better than Deet, as it works on ticks and other bitey things that aren’t affected by deet- and picaradin doesn’t melt your plastic belongings (fun facts I picked up off another mn thread!).

In the U.K., it’s easiest to get picaradin insecticides from Amazon.

Apparently a bicarb paste is meant to help soothe them.

We use the wristbands from amazon as prevention
Mosquito Repellent Bracelet, (5 pcs / 5 Colours) Stylish Leather Bands, Long Protection Against Mosquitoes & Insects - [DEET-FREE, NO-SPRAY] - Wrist Bands for Kids, Babies, Adults, Men and Women. www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B015QBK7GE/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_TVwABb2E68CF4?tag=mumsnetforum-21

The only real thing to do whilst on holiday and miserable with bites is to drink, lots, gin, vodka, rum, whatever is your tipple, won't help the bites but you'll care less :)

Also ask the pharmacist for fexofenadine antihistamines, they're pretty strong, and should / could help the reaction.

Calamine lotion and/or Vaseline. I feel your pain x

And the other thing is using repellent from around 4pm. Since I have been doing that I get fewer bites.

I go to Scotland regularly, it’s not only the midges, but horseflies that bite me! I carry antihistamine cream and apply to the bite immediately. Seems to work.
Nothing I’ve tried, keeps them away.

After bite pen, worked wonders on my bites, watching for repellent recommendations though as DEET doesn't deter them