This past weekend, I got quite a bit of weeding and yard work done. Even though the temperature was fairly warm, I had on jeans, a long sleeved shirt, and leather gardening gloves. By the end of Monday, I had been bitten on my wrists (where gloves met sleeves), side of face, and inside my gardening glove where one little bastard had found a way in. I also managed to sunburn that shiny white piece of skin where your shirt rides up and your jeans ride down on your back. Every. Year.
I react badly to blackfly bites. First, they take a nice little chunk out of your skin when they bite, and then they spit in the hole they make. Nice. I swell up after I've been bitten, and the itching continues to the point where I could take a cheese grater to my skin if it didn't gross me out completely. I take antihistamine for the itch, but even that doesn't help completely. Topical creams and gels are fairly useless.
Now let me tell you about my morning. I know that I had been scratching throughout the night on the tops of my wrists. I got up at about 2:00 a.m. to take more benedryl so I could get some sleep. When the alarm went off at six, I stumbled downstairs and had a shower. Then I had a good look at my baby finger. It was extremely swollen (that's where I got a bite from inside the gardening glove). In fact, I didn't have a whole lot of sensation. This was due to the fact that my ring was cutting off the circulation and probably had been all night long. Then mild panic set in. What if I'd already lost too much circulation? I tried to pull on the ring. Absolutely nothing. No movement. It was on there for life!
I googled something like "loss of circulation, swollen finger, ring" and found videos showing me how to wrap my finger in dental floss and ease the ring over the wrapped finger. Tried it, and no. Then I went to my husband. Did he have a tool in the shop that we could maybe use to cut my ring off? We both chickened out of that idea. Too close to the skin, not enough leeway.
At this point, I knew I would have to go to the emergency department of our little local hospital. I'd heard of people having to have their ring cut off for various reasons. That's what I was on my way to do. A very nice nurse brought me into a room. It was about 7:15 a.m. at this point. I had to go to work by about 8:45. She agreed that this wasn't looking good and brought out a box that contained the cutting tool and some instructions. She'd done this once. A year ago. So, a little guide / spacer was put under my ring and she affixed the proper cutting blade to a little dremmel-like tool. When she put it in place and started cutting, I pulled my hand away in a hurry because my ring heated up like a thing on fire!! Upon second glance, she noticed that the instructions called for lubricant to be put on the finger to help keep things cooled down. So, she started up again and managed to whiz away a few times before she had to stop to let things cool down again. This continued several times (now with another nurse watching just to see what was going on) until a score was made into the ring. Then we had to rotate the ring and cut again on the other side. My finger was a lovely shade of purple. Finally, after the second cut was made and we were able to pry the ring apart and get it off my huge purple sausage finger.
This ring was just a simple little gold band that I wore on my pinky finger. It wasn't a family heirloom and not a priceless piece of jewelry and quite frankly I was just so relieved to get it off my finger! Then I started to look at my other hand and all of my other rings. Oh boy. Remember, I had been bitten on the tops of both wrists and the swelling was travelling through my hands. So I decided to get all of my rings off. Two on the opposite hand just took a bit of soap and some twisting. However, my engagement ring and wedding band were frighteningly tight. That finger was also swelling. The two nurses had other business to attend to, so they left me at the sink with soap and hand cream. I managed to get my engagement ring off because it had a higher stone setting that I could grip onto and keep turning. The wedding band was another story. At one point I was certain we'd have to cut through that as well. But with lots of hand cream and twisting and saying to myself, "Just relax, just relax" I managed to ease it toward my knuckle and then micro-measurements at a time, I got it onto the knuckle, and then finally off. That finger was also a horrible purple mess by the time I was done. The relief was incredible. The nurse gave me a sample jar to put all my rings in. (Those were the best things I've ever had to deposit in a sample jar, let me tell you!)
After I got all registered (they had brought me in and started proceedings without even registering me), the nurse said the dr. would be in after 8:00. I asked if I really had to see him. She hemmed and hawed and finally I signed something saying I was leaving the emergency dept. without seeing a dr. against advice (or something like that). I reassured her that she did a fabulous job, but I hadn't even had coffee yet, I had to whip home, do something about my scary hair, eat something, and then whip to work. Which is what I did.
Ready for some pictures?
This is my sad little ring.
Here's the lesson I learned today. When I get bitten on my hand or on a finger by a blackfly, I should take off my rings immediately.
O.K., folks. I'm guessing someone out there in blog land has experienced some sort of similar mishap. I can't wait to read about it!!
Jenn, Your hand looks so sore. You were lucky to get things done when you did. That is scary. I know what black flies are, thankfully I haven't be bitten by any. Bless you, xoxo, Susie
ReplyDeleteSo sorry you had to go through that ordeal but I'm glad it turned out OK for you. I don't wear any rings as my knuckles are very swollen with arthritis and, after hearing this, I am glad of it!
ReplyDeleteThat is too awful to contemplate. I won't throw in my ring adventure; it was about as bad, but turned out OK, as I hope your blackfly adventure does.
ReplyDeleteOh no! I'm surprised there wasn't something they could give you to make the swelling go down.
ReplyDeleteI've managed to get through seventy and a half years without any exposure to black flies, deer flies or ticks....it sounds horrendous.
ReplyDeleteWe don't have black fly, we have deer fly and the bite sounds the same. A couple of years ago I lost the diamond in my engagement ring and had to replace it .Couldn't get the ring diff. Went to a jewelry store and they got it off, they used Windex. You u bites sound horrible e. Nothing repeals deer fly buy we've learned that if we paint bottles, bleach size, coat them in Tanglefoot, a sticky substance, we can catch a d kill hundreds of them.
ReplyDeleteOh man, that looks sooo uncomfortable, and sounds like a horrible experience! We don't have black flies here, but they sound kind of like the flies that are on the cows...they're really small, and their bites hurt and itch like crazy! Maybe they're distant relatives? I hope you feel relief soon!
ReplyDeleteHow terrifying! You have my sympathy. I am so glad you didn't have to cut your wedding band. We have buffalo fleas or no-see-ums and my head swells up like a melon if they bit me. My husband has either never been bit or isn't allergic, because he never has a problem. I'm glad you are ok.
ReplyDeleteMy brother once had to cut a ring off my little finger. My finger was starting to go blue and I was panicking and there was no way the ring would come off even with my mother soaping my finger and assuring me it would ease off. I had not been bitten or anything. It was a silver ring that my grandmother had given me it. I have noticed recently that her rings are tiny and she clearly had very small fingers. I don't know how I managed to get the ring on in the first place. My brother took a file from the workshop and filed it through in a few minutes. I felt very stupid but also very relieved to get it off. I feel for you.
ReplyDeleteYour story is worse than mine, you had the whole hand swell up and a bunch of rings but it reminds me of what happened to me years ago. I was hanging out washing and got stung by a wasp on a finger. The finger started to swell and I panicked too thinking the ring would cut off my circulation. I couldn't get the ring off with soap or oil so K cut it off with great difficulty. How he did it I don't remember because the ring was quite thick. I just remember the relief.
ReplyDeleteI kept the pieces of course and it was about ten years later that I finally got it fixed again. It was a 21st present from my mother so I didn't want to lose it.
Your bites were terrible. You're going to need a bee keepers outfit before you do gardening again!!
That's terrible. I wonder if your black flies are the same as our horse flies?
ReplyDeleteThat looks painful! I am thankful that the ring was not a special one.
ReplyDeleteOh Jenn I know only too well that side affects of black fly bites. Your poor fingers, your poor ring!!! On my recent hospital stay, one thing that was checked (oh ouch that sample taking) was a infected spider bite. Yep I have an allergy to spider venom & was told to keep an epi pen. You might be like me falling into those not common but not rare allergy reactions to things like black fly bites. Oh yes it's that time of year to tuck everything in & now we have to worry about black legged lyme carrying ticks!!! I hope the ring can be fixed ... Mary-Lou
ReplyDeleteI, too, have severe reactions to insect bites and I can relate having much the same situation happen to me many years ago. I got a black fly bite on my wedding ring finger which immediately swelled hugely. Didn't even have time to think about getting my wide gold band off. Small, clear blisters started to form on the finger which swelled like crazy and a nurse friend strongly suggested I get the ring cut off. Went to the doctor's office and he found the tool he usually used for cutting off rings wouldn't go through my ring so sent me to the local dentist's office where the dentist used a drill to make a cut through the wide band. He had to shove a metal file-like thing between my finger and the ring first and that hurt more than anything. Once he completed the cut, we found the ring was too "stiff" to bend off so he had to make another cut on the opposite side which left my ring in two halves. But it was off. I sent the cut apart ring to my mom who still lived in the same town as the jewelry store where we originally purchased the ring and they did a fabulous job of putting the ring back together, for which I was so, so thankful. And my finger recovered also! Your problem, and mine, was because of a little (&*%*#!) black fly!!!
ReplyDeleteOh my gosh! What an experience. That is a lot of swelling. I'd suggest not wearing rings at all when you're working outside. Just to stay safe!
ReplyDeleteAhhh... I feel your pain. Had to have my high school ring cut off years ago for the same reason. Insect bite. Now I never wear rings at home, or when we're put on our bikes, or camping etc. Bites swell up on me and stay for weeks. Baking soda and water paste helps me somewhat... but it's messy. And in Barry's Bay, a small town up the Ottawa Valley, I found a compounding pharmacy that makes their own bug cream. I now have a tube in my bike pack, in the camping supplies and one at home. I mean if a pharmacist up the "valley," right next door to Algonquin Park, doesn't understand bug bites, I don't know who would. It works a treat.
ReplyDeleteOh, oh, oh, what a time!!!!
ReplyDeleteWe don't have a lot of black flies. Thankfully. But in the state over... Where granddaughter used to go to visit her other grandparents... They did! I used to be furious, when she came back, with black fly bites. -sigh-
So glad you got those rings off, with .... Well, not easily, but... :-)
-sigh-
Oh my gosh you poor thing, that looks so sore!!! The mayflies are absolutely awful around my house, but they are tiny things not nearly as big as a house fly. Not sure if that's the same thing that you call black flies? They do bite but I guess I'm not allergic. They are annoying as heck though - every time I'm outside for any length of time I have to wear a straw hat I have absolutely doused with bug spray!
ReplyDeleteWow, serious wow. I'm so sorry you had to deal with that one. I have black flies at the cottage but usually by the time we get up in July they've eased off a bit -- but I know what you mean. The bites are ugly. I've never had that reaction, though and oh, I really feel for you. I'm grateful they could cut the one ring off and that you could finally get the others off without. That hand looks ugly. I hope you don't have to use it too much. Are you putting ice packs on it to help bring down the swelling?
ReplyDeleteI can’t imagine how they looked if this is 9 hours later. Why are so many bugs assholes?
ReplyDeleteO no !!!....it looks verry painfull...poor you...i wish it is better soon...love from me Ria x 💜
ReplyDeleteAre these black flies small like midges? They love eating my daughter. I think she must be very tasty and she is a terrible scratcher.
ReplyDeleteYou really went through it with your rings. I once fell over walking over cut down trees that rolled when I stood on them. I put my hand out to save myself and bent my ring finger backwards. It became swollen straight away so I whipped off my engagement ring but couldn't remove my wedding ring. It was obvious by the next morning that action was needed. I had to go to an out of hours surgery where she cut it off quite neatly. No pain involved! I have subsequently had it repaired and made slightly bigger.