Mosquito bite allergy - WARNING - pic attached

[Fuckedupleg]

I've recently developed this. I'm taking prescribed steroids which is helping a bit with the current crop of bites but I don't want this to keep happening. Is there a way of overcoming it or should I just bathe in deet for the rest of my life? As well as the weals and sores I actually felt quite ill at one point earlier this week and it's just miserable. Is it worth asking for a referral to the allergy clinic or something? Pic attached to give an idea of what I'm talking about. After a couple of days they bruise.

IMO, you need to be in a fight or flight state of mind at all times, at this time of year. This is the only thing that works for me. I live in the UK, Home Counties.

https://www.chemistdirect.co.uk/mosquito-milk/prd-hi5

On top of this, if I feel I am at risk of being bitten on holidays (in Spain) ( I take two antihistamines every night before bed (no bite required) it is rare I get bitten, but if I do, when I wake up it is an annoying spot not a weal and very swollen body part that requires A&E.

Took a long time to change my mindset from it will be fine to always aware. It has paid dividends. IMO

Do over the counter antihistamine tablets do nothing?
are you certain it’s mosquitos?
before I read the text, I thought giant hogweed burns x
how long have the reactions been getting worse?

poor you, it doesn’t look like much fun.

I get a reaction like this and worse. You’ve got to make sure no mosquitoes can get in your bedroom and ideally in your house at all. Use screens on the windows if you have to have them open, or get a mosquito net. You don’t want to be dousing yourself in chemicals unless you absolutely have to be outside in the evening.

Thanks @HighEndGrifters I'll give that one a try. I've tried several with varying success, none absolute but also I guess I'm not always vigilant. You're right - I need a change in mindset. . @Igletpiglet unfortunately, no, antihistamines don't help once I'm bitten. It's definitely mosquito - this current lot, at least. I heard the whiny little bastard (but sadly slapped her too late).

@HighEndGrifters interesting about antihistamines as a preventive measure. Do you think that might be worth my while, just taking them every day? I tolerate them v well and they don't make me drowsy.

I take them, they generally don’t make me sleepy and if they do, it is bedtime. IYKWIM

Thanks @smooththecat this is all really helpful. Sorry that you're suffering too.

Similar reaction and live in Australia. Basically I never step outside toward the latter part of the day or at night without covering myself in insect repellant. I keep one in my bag at all times in case I'm caught out unexpectedly, and my sons have a roll on version in their cricket bags for the same reason.

Apparently drunks used to not get malaria because mosquitoes avoided them. But I prefer using insect repellant to being drunk every day.... especially given that I've been bitten when drinking alcohol so it must take a hell of a lot of alcohol before mosquitoes give you a wide berth.

Also do remember there are different breeds of mosquitoes. Some can breed in moist soil and have no need of stagnant water. So pretty much anywhere that has pot plants can be a breeding ground. Sometimes when I watered my pot plants I would have a swarm of mosquitoes come off them. Bloody horrific sight.

I googled extreme reactions to mosi bites and none of them came close to my first bite.

I had only landed three weeks earlier with a lovely multinational company and I was limping down the stairs and bumped into the MD, he was horrified at my leg and sent me home in a taxi on the company to see my GP. Looking at the images I just googled (and they were all mild in comparison) he must have been horrified.

In conclusion prevention is better than the cure. (Hate it when proverbs are correct 😊)

First bite of the season/summer is always the worst. It gets slightly better after a bit of time. No matter how much you protect yourself you will l, at some point, not quite get it right.

And the bastard mosquitoes here in Australian will get through denim jeans and long sleeve tops too....

Honestly, I think that it IS absolutely worth seeing an allergist. I don’t think the medication would be changed too much (although taking steroids long-term comes with its own array of issues). I think you possibly need an epipen just in case. Allergies like this have a way of getting worse with each exposure.

I also get v bad reaction. So if I get bitter I have prescription strength anti histamine which I double up with otc ones and then apply steroid cream on top of the bite. If I do that plus usually wrap the area in cold cloth overnight to ease itching then it recovers without getting infected. I've tried UV light treatment in the past too which helped.
No one seems to take it that seriously in UK and I've had cellulitis twice from bites so my main strategy is to avoid getting bitten so I have permanently got a plug in repellant in the bedroom during summer months which does make a big difference. Skin so soft from Avon as a moisturiser if you are going out and getting bitten

I also get really bad reactions, so much so that one holiday I went down a rabbit hole of research whilst pretty much refusing to leave the building.

I discovered that if you take enough vitamin B that you are excreting it (it's water soluble and you apparently can't overdose) and so your urine turns nuclear yellow, it means you're also sweating it from every pore. The mosquitos really don't like the smell (they can smell it, but we can't) and so will choose another victim instead!

The research out there often debunks it because it involves them sticking the arm of a person in with the horrible creatures, but not providing an alternative source, so they will bite rather than starve. But it has absolutely worked for me, and I have literally never been bitten since I started taking them (rather than being the local buffet before!). Also recommended liberally to friends and family who have also all found the same.

The main problem is getting a high enough strength tablet that you are excreting it because most tablets are the wrong type of vitamin B. The ones I have discovered that worked best are the old Waitrose own brand ones, but they have recently changed them so they are a third of the strength so not sure if they will be effective any more. But I am sure there will be something with enough B6 out there! (The old ones had 7.4mg per tablet!)

Good luck, and second all the other posters who suggest getting epipens just in case.