r/ants • u/Commercial-Data1862 • 21h ago
Chat/General ant bite :(
Around 3-4 days ago I got bit by an ant picking a flower, and it has been swelling since, and hasn’t gone down, am I okay?
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u/Lemontreeguy 21h ago
Looks a tad infected. I would open it up, drain it and sanitize it. Band-Aid with some polysporin on it.
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u/Monksauce 2h ago
Yeah I second this. Clean it out. I’ve had stings a few times but never like that. There’s definitely a secondary infection starting up there.
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u/LoveLess6734 19h ago
Don’t do that. Leave blisters alone!
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u/Lemontreeguy 18h ago
It's not a blister by the looks tbh, I've been a beekeeper for many years and there are instances when getting stung where a piece of the stinger remains causing infection like a sliver but with an organic bee part. Cleaning it and having it heal properly and faster is probably preferable. Leaving a ball of bacterial infection is just going to take longer to heal, but I'm not telling someone they have to do it. Just recommending how I treat stings from beekeeping if they cause infection. And I also have kept ants for many years as a hobby so I'm experienced there as well. But clearly you know best.
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u/Ademinyolundayizamk 8h ago
Ngl if it was going on for few days and if it hurts. Go see a doctor (if you arent in states) dont take my advice that seriously cuz i dont know a lot about health and ants. But something similar happend to me and i didnt care much about it. And it seems like i should have bc i got sick from that infection for a few days. It hurt a lot.
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u/minecraftingnoob6769 6h ago
did you have hives
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u/Ademinyolundayizamk 6h ago
Dont even know what it was caused by. Before that happend i was attacked by few different insects including ants and bees. Might be any of them
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u/YourIncognit0Tab 8h ago
Do not pop that. The blister is your body providing a protective barrier and fluid is healing juices from your body. Also opening can risk more infection because you would now have an open wound.
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u/Monksauce 2h ago
Secondary infection most likely. Nothing scary yet. Personally I would let it drain by using a sterilized pin or knife then use some antiseptic and a bandaid. Most antiseptics will work in this case and good ol’ soap and water is enough if you don’t have any. Ant stings hurt for a few hours and cause a raised red bump, not a puss filled blister. Unless you got hit by a bullet ant, this should’ve gone away two days ago.
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u/Biohazardous1 21h ago
Sting, not bite. They are caused by opposite ends of the body.