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April Challenge – A Month of Photos & Reflections: Day 17, The skeeters are out to get me!

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I HATE MOSQUITOS

Photo by Jimmy Chan on Pexels.com

Apparently there is a thing called “Skeeter Syndrome”. This is when a person reacts extremely to a mosquito bite. If you are like me and bug bites become huge, red, and swollen, when others get just a tiny bump, read on.

According to Health.com, in medical literature, Skeeter Syndrome is defined as “mosquito bite-induced large local inflammatory reactions accompanied by fever.” It’s an allergic reaction to the proteins in mosquito saliva. People who experience these reactions tend to develop them within hours—or, like me, even minutes—of bites. Skeeter syndrome causes inflammation, including swelling, heat, redness, and itching or pain.

Purvi Parikh, MD is an allergist and immunologist with the non-profit Allergy & Asthma Network. According to Dr. Parikh, “The good news is it’s not as dangerous as allergies to bees and wasps,”. “Those insect allergies can be deadly, and people need to carry EpiPens with them in case they go into anaphylaxis. Fortunately, we haven’t seen any cases of skeeter syndrome that are that severe.” I found that information, also, at Health.com.

So what can you do to prevent bites?

  1. Avoid mosquito hotspots.
  2. Wear light colors.
  3. Use insect repellent.
  4. Avoid certain times of day.
  5. Wear appropriate clothing.
  6. Remove standing water.
  7. Use an insect net.
  8. Keep air circulated.

Oops. They got me! How do I treat my bites?

  1. Wash the area with soap and water.
  2. Apply calamine lotion or anti-itch cream.
  3. Put an ice pack on the bite.
  4. Take an over-the-counter antihistamine (such as Benadryl).
  5. If a bite causes fever, vomiting, or shortness of breath, call 911 or get to an emergency room immediately.

Personally, I use Avon’s Skin So Soft products to help combat this. If you are interested in these products you can click the links below and you will be directed to my Avon page.

Shop for my Avon products that repel bugs:

Regular Avon Skin So Soft products:

There are also lots of reviews that you can find online from customers who use Avon’s regular Skin So Soft bath oils as bug repellents. They were not created for this or marketed as a bug repellent but they do seem to work for shorter periods of time.

Review found on Amazon.com: “Bought this for it’s mosquito repelling qualities for our trip to Alaska. Even though doesn’t advertise this product as a bug repellent, and also sell other products labeled but repellents, my husband swears by this one. He used this as a young man working on mountains near streams in the summer time where mosquitoes and no-see-ums were abundant. So this product will moisturize our skin and keep us bite-free (Alaska can really dry out a tropical girl’s skin)”

Review found on Avon’s site: “I am a zookeeper and have been using Avon Skin So Soft Bath Oil directly on my legs for years. I wear shorts/uniform for work. I work outside with animals and the bugs often ‘bug’ me! This is the first time I tried the SSS Gelled Oil, I love it. Easier to apply, it smells great without that chemical smell of other insecticides, is non poisonous to the infant animals that love to lick my legs( calf, goats, etc) and moisturizes all at the same time. My legs take a beating with the weather, sun, cold, dry, and I am on my feet all day. The SSS Gelled Oil is just great.”

Thanks so much for reading my blog. I hope you learned something new here. If you suffer from reactions to mosquito bites, as I do, I sincerely hope that these suggestions/products will give you some relief. Stay safe.

35 comments

  1. I definitely have Skeeter Syndrome. I get welts like that and they can last for up to a week. And they are so miserably itchy for that whole week. Thank you for telling me about something that I didn’t even know had a name.

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  2. That bite was nasty! Never had it like that. I hope you’re okay now. I did not know that colors mattered in terms of mosquito attraction. Thanks for the tip!

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  3. God love you! We’re lucky we don’t have them here, just wasps and other insects which take joy in stinging us. Our climate is too cold for mosquitos.

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  4. Everyone hate mosquitos, I could not avoid wearing dark colours, because whenever I got to court I must wear black colour and it is the favourite color of MOSQUITO too. Your post is very much useful because it gives the information about preventions from mosquitos…

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  5. My daughter gets welts like that too. I absolutely love Avon’s insect repellents and their Skin-So-Soft. That stuff has been around forever and does the trick.

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  7. Mosquito bites are no joke! It is almost the season here when the air will be full of those little buggers. I wasn’t aware of those products but I am thankful I do now!

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  8. it’s a good prevention tips for those who have this syndrome. Never thought a mosquito bite can cause something like that for some.

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  9. Oh wow I never knew some people can get this bad reaction to mosquito bites – definitely a helpful article for them.

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  10. I am lucky to not be affected by skeeters syndrome. You have mentioned some great prevention tips. This will come in handy during this season when mosquitoes roam around in abundance.

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  14. I hate mosquitos too! I live in the Philippines and mosquitoes are scary. But here in Australia, they said mosquitoes are safe… but I don’t trust them, lol.

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  15. I also don’t like mosquitos. There was a time that mosquitos invaded our room. Sad part is, I was the only one being bitten. My roommate felt nothing. Perhaps, it had something to do with my blood?? I dont know.

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  16. I personally do not have an issue with this, but I’m sympathetic to those who do. They’re almost unavoidable during the summer. Hopefully they aren’t too bad this summer!

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  17. thirty years on this planet and i have never heard of skeeter syndrome. and up until I was 25 I used to get eaten alive EVERY year. Without Fail and then to boot I would itch the bite until I had huge holes in my legs and arms. for some reason the year i had my son I did not get one bite and then after that i think i have only had one or two bites. Something changed the year i was pregnant…whatever happened i like it!

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  18. I know someone who have a syndrome like that and she really feels so bad. That’s why I always put lotion for mosquito.

    Reply

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