Controlling the (over) reaction to mosquito bites.

[LivinLOS]

So I am one of those who is a mossie magnet, normally at home we dont have many (home chosen in part because of that) but I am having a lovely month is a great rented villa on an island with one downside, swams of them and an 'open bathroom' full of tropical plants making every midnight <deleted> a gauntlet. Theres only so much spray and deet (and 20 smoke coils per day) can do. 

 

My body seems to be able to cope with a certain level of bites, but over 5 - 10 concurrent it seems to go bananas at each new bite. I now have bites swelling into liquid blisters, with a 1 - 2 inch zone of swollen hard skin tissue behind it, which when the blister is popped leaves baht coin sized dead skin and tissue under it that will take weeks to heal, even scarring. It not an exaggeration to say that I would have a lower physical reaction to a bee sting, than I am having to many of these simple mossie bites. The 'itch' is so far beyond an itch and into pain on the burning level of a bee sting also. Its putting a bit of a bummer onto the holiday. 

 

My wife gets bitten by the same insects, slaps it off and with a scratch its gone an hour later, for me every bite is a multi day swollen lump building up over time as more are being added daily. All the tiger balms, ya dong ya mong type things tried, some actually making it worse / more infected. At home I have a little electric zapping device that if applied at the first time of the bite seems to stop the bodys over reaction. I also have taken B12 vit pills in the past which are supposed to make you less appealing to mossies, while also making your <deleted> smell, but only limited benefit. 

So long story short, is there any medicine that will assist in controlling the allergy reactions, which is non drowsy? I dont want to spend the vacation half monged out on anti hystamines but this is becoming a bit of a joke. 

 

Is there anything out there which can assist with controlling the bodys reaction to mossie bites, rather than controlling the mossies ?? 

EDIT Just for clarity.. This isnt a normal reaction to a mossie bit. This is now a baht coin sized hole in my leg, not the only one. 

 

Edited June 28, 2020 by LivinLOS

[johnray]

Buy the incense from Tesco.  They work really well.

[Rookiescot]

Absolute sympathy mate.

I know its no use to you at the moment as you are away from home but I have Aloe Vera plants growing in my garden. If I get a mossie bite I cut a little bit off the plant and rub the juice onto the wound.

Its almost instant relief and seems to stop any further issues. If the bite gets itchy again later just apply some more juice.

So upon your return home I suggest growing some of your own. They take little maintenance apart from regular watering.

Looking at the wound you have I suggest a trip to hospital or a pharmacy is needed. 

Take care.

[cooked]

I started getting that kind of thing after being bitten by a tick (back in Switzerland). Any wound after that. I spent four weeks disinfecting and dressing the wounds, I also used Systral, which reduces swelling. 

[LivinLOS]

1 hour ago, Rookiescot said:

Absolute sympathy mate.

I know its no use to you at the moment as you are away from home but I have Aloe Vera plants growing in my garden. If I get a mossie bite I cut a little bit off the plant and rub the juice onto the wound.

Its almost instant relief and seems to stop any further issues. If the bite gets itchy again later just apply some more juice.

So upon your return home I suggest growing some of your own. They take little maintenance apart from regular watering.

Looking at the wound you have I suggest a trip to hospital or a pharmacy is needed. 

Take care.

My wifes started a little factory of them recently, tho strangely hadnt tried them for mossies. At home I am barely troubled, this seems to be that the increased laod has made me hyper sensitive or something and each new bite is reacting 10x more than a 'normal' bite. 

[LivinLOS]

2 hours ago, johnray said:

Buy the incense from Tesco.  They work really well.

As said this isnt about controlling the insects, I am burning 15 - 20 coils per day all around the property. 

Its a truly lovely indoor / outdoor villa, with nice plants and a unsealed master bathroom, all planted out with tropical plants..  But the appeal is lost when the volume of blood suckers is simply this high. 

[LivinLOS]

Thai Chinese pharmacist just gave me a extra strength cortizone steriodal cream, seemed confident it should stop bites over reacting into wounds.. We will see. 

[stephenterry]

Your boils and hyper-allergic reaction remind me of the one time I was travelling up country in Sri Lanka. i slept without a completely covered mossie net and next morning my hands and fingers were covered in these boils. The problem with bursting them, which is what I did, is the wound is open to infection, and best resolved at a sanitary clinic, if possible. 

 

If this is a nightly occurrence, my advice is to up sticks ASAP, if possible, and/or dose yourself with antihistamine pills and ointment.  As an aside, it's also quite possible that  - apart from mossie bites - some 'foreign' plant leaves cause an adverse boils reaction - as I found out to my cost when younger - so watch what you touch and where you tread. 

[Sheryl]

Some people find that taking Vitamin B6 decreases the frequency of bites.

 

I would also suggest you buy a steroid cream (hydrocortisone or dexamethasone etc) at a pharmacy and apply it to bites as soon afterward as possible to help control the reaction.

[Saltire]

II sympathise with you, I too am a magnet for mosquitos.

 

In rural Kanchanaburi at the strart of the wet season i.e. now, they are everywhere. I never take my shirt off outside and wear socks and long pants at all times, but my back still gets covered. Recently I have taken to wearing a shirt over my T shirt at nights on the porch but these mozzies still on occasion seem to be able to get through it, but not so often. Lots of water around the village and so they fumigated 3 times this year so far on all the possible hatching areas but it obviously did not work.

 

I was reading your post and was going to recommend applying lemon or lime juice, takes the itch out for 8 or 9 hours but then I saw your photo.

 

Agree with those that suggested visiting a pharmacy, which you did so I hope that works out for you.

[tiocfaidh]

I am yet other person who is a mosquito magnet.

One word of advice is don't pop the blisters as they may get infected.

[twocatsmac]

I’ve tried everything mentioned above and more, only the Soffell creams (7-11, Makro multipacks) work for me as a deterrent and big fans for situations you describe like the bathroom, balcony and patios.

Pharmacies and docs haven’t helped either. 

Regarding popping the blisters, I wait a few days then puncture them hygienically rather than have them pop when I’m out.

[LivinLOS]

Just because a bit of closure and info helps these threads have a purpose. 

 

The cream given by the Pharmacist, Klobecort Cream containing Clobetasol propionate at 0.05% has done exactly what was needed. While I may still get bitten a couple of times per day, application of this has stopped them reacting and they are simply as annoying as a mosquito kind of thing. Sure a few of the heavy ones I already had are still healing, but new ones are not becoming a drama. 

 

I have no idea why I became hyper allergenic or reactive, its a first for me that bad, but this stuff is worth having for anyone else who has this issue. I will keep it in my goto grab bag for rural / camping / country trips now. 

[myprivate]

On 6/28/2020 at 10:21 AM, cooked said:

I started getting that kind of thing after being bitten by a tick (back in Switzerland). Any wound after that. I spent four weeks disinfecting and dressing the wounds, I also used Systral, which reduces swelling. 

100% agree with the Systral cream, works for me. If you rub it on the bite as soon as you feel the itch within an hour it's gone. I urge you to try it, available from most pharmacies here.

[BritManToo]

Just now, myprivate said:

100% agree with the Systral cream, works for me. If you rub it on the bite as soon as you feel the itch within an hour it's gone. I urge you to try it, available from most pharmacies here.

Me too, it's all I use.