Bites

[ladyofastolat]

Is anyone wise in the ways of insect bites? I know I could Google this, but reputable health sites tend to say "if in doubt, see your doctor," and other sort of sites tend to say, "OMG! You're DYING!" so I prefer to start with the wisdom of the real, sensible people who live in my LJ.



I picked up half a dozen insect bites in Capri. They did nothing out of the ordinary - i.e. they turned into small swollen white lumps which itched like crazy for 2 or 3 days, then slowly faded to pink. However, nearly 2 weeks later, two of them suddenly decided to come back for a second round, this time as battalions. First the site of the initial bite was surrounded by a perfect circle of what looked almost like new bites, although they had no puncture mark. Then the gaps filled in, so now I've got swollen, pinky-yellow lumps over two inches across. Now the other original bites are starting to do the same.

Is this normal? Should I just be patient, and continue to treat with antihistamine, and trust that they will go away in time? Or are they likely to spread even more, unless I take action?

Comments

[ladyofastolat.livejournal.com]

I'll try the chemist's tomorrow. There's one very near work, so it's easy enough to pop out. To be honest, I hadn't thought of trying a chemist. I once asked a pharmacist about a rash I periodically get on my hand (teeny pin-prick blisters on my fingers) and she reacted in a "why on earth are you asking ME? How should I know?" sort of way, which made me think I was wrong to assume that pharmacists might know that sort of thing. But I'll try tomorrow.

[wellinghall.livejournal.com]

It is worth asking to speak to the pharmacist, rather than random person behind the counter.

[squonk79.livejournal.com]

I know you're seeing your pharmacist about the bites - and you should! - but the rash you get on your hands sounds like pompholyx, a type of hand eczema. I get it from time to time, tiny little blisters that itch like crazy. Took an age to get a diagnosis, GPs were clueless but a specialist i was seeing for something else entirely spotted it right off.

[pellegrina.livejournal.com]

It's been years since a pharmacist offered me any opinion that wasn't so couched in "talk to your GP" as to be useless, so I'd try the GP. (I only ever had mosquito bites in Italy, and none of them behaved like that!)