It’s January, yet here I am talking about the best essential oils for bee stings. And there’s a reason for that.
While our ground is covered in snow I am busy picking my garden seeds. And dreaming of my garden. And thinking about summer. I love winter, but it doesn’t stop me from getting excited for other seasons to come.
Oh, and it’s got me thinking about bees. I mean, we love bees. We know how much we need them and their super pollination skills. Plus, I have a mild addiction to some good quality raw honey. Bees are a blessing.
Except, you know, when they sting you. Wasp stings and other insect bites are nothing to laugh about. A painful bee sting can really bring down the mood.
You see, I have this one child who seems to attract bees. I’m not kidding. This kid is only 10 and he’s been stung like 8 times in his life time, all at different times. It’s fair to say he knows the pain of a bee sting.
My earliest memory of him being stung was as a baby as he stood up in his playpen. I noticed he had something in his hand so I opened it up to discover a wasp! It promptly stung him and flew away.
Seriously, I’ve only been stung once in my life. You know when that was? When I was standing next to my little guy. We both got stung.
Even this past summer, nearing the end I thought to myself, “we’ve made it through the summer without him getting stung.”
Guys, don’t ever tempt fate like that.
He got stung shortly after that thought. He wasn’t outside. Nope, he was sitting on the couch, watching a show. Doing nothing to antagonize a bee that had somehow made it’s way inside our home and none of us noticed.
Guys, I can’t make this stuff up.
Needless to say, he does NOT like bees. He is pretty scared of them. And frankly, I don’t blame him. I’d have a pretty big fear of them too if they seemed to find me wherever I went. I mean, his brother and sister have yet to be stung once and they are always together!
Poor kid.
I’d say the only way to avoid them is to stay inside, but clearly that’s not true for my child. We wouldn’t lock ourselves in anyways (although he might argue otherwise in the height of bee season) but apparently it wouldn’t even do any good in our house.
So all that to say, we’ve had a lot of bee treatment going on in this house over the years. I’ve always got bee sting relief on my mind. And before I discovered essential oils my go-to was a cold wet cloth to take down the swelling. It didn’t seem to soothe the stings as quick as I wanted while I watched my little guy cry. 🙁
So, this past summer, now armed with essential oils I was able to find a new treatment that was extremely effective and I could feel good about it.
I quickly reached for my lavender and tea tree essential oils and rubbed them on the sting. It didn’t take long for it to soothe the affected area and my son was able to find relief quite quickly. It took the swelling down, and we were good as gold in no time.
While I often use lavender and tea tree oil without a carrier oil because they are mild and safe enough, in this instance I did use a carrier oil just so I could massage it gently in a little easier. I use either coconut oil or olive oil for a carrier oil.
If you have any doubt about the use of essential oils, the best option is to always use a carrier oil to prevent a reaction from them.
Sometimes if it’s a really bad sting though, I’ll use an ice pack after the essential oils have been applied because the cooling sensation seems to have calming effects on my child who is upset from the sting.
While those are my go-tos, there are a few others that are a great natural bee sting treatment. These essential oils are for mild reactions. If you have a severe allergic reaction, or have difficulty breathing after getting stung, DO NOT try and treat with essential oils.
You’ll want to get medical help as fast as humanly possible, because severe reactions to bee stings are nothing to joke about – they can be fatal and you don’t want to risk it.
However, if you are not allergic, and just want something to treat the sting site because the bee really just caused an annoying skin irritation, you’ve come to the right place for the best oils for the treatment of bee stings Check them out below.
BEST ESSENTIAL OILS FOR BEE STINGS
Lavender. Lavender essential oil is great for bites, cuts, and minor burns. It will soothe the area with it’s anti-inflammatory properties. Lavender oil is one of the most common essential oils and you may already have it at home.
Tea Tree. Tea tree is an anti-septic which can help reduce the pain level of the bee sting. It’s a super-soothing oil. And that’s what we really want to do for our kids as moms, don’t we? Ease the pain? A drop of tea tree oil can do wonders for many skin irritations.
Roman Chamomile. Another good oil for reducing swelling and pain. Roman Chamomile oil is an antihistamine as well which is a pretty good bonus when you are dealing with bee stings.
Peppermint. If you have a mild allergic reaction you can rub some peppermint essential oil on the bite and it may reduce the swelling from the reaction. Peppermint oil is anti-inflammatory, and analgesic as well. It’s cooling so this helps too!
Blue Tansy. This one is an antihistamine as well as a bug repellent (I know, it’s a little too late to repel AFTER you’ve been stung, but it’s good to know for future reference. 🙂 ) It’s anti-allergenic and antifungal. Basically, all good stuff when needing to heal.
Copaiba. Copaiba is an anti-oxidant essential oil, along with being anti-inflammatory (see a trend here with oils yet?) and antibacterial. This will all help reduce swelling and pain associated with a bee sting.
WHAT ESSENTIAL OILS TO USE WHEN STUNG BY A BEE
If you don’t know where to start on this list, I encourage you to just a pick a couple and reach for them when there is a bee sting. Or you can add them to a roller ball and top that roller ball with a carrier oil like coconut oil so it’s ready to go for you when you need it. You can also use the same oils on bug bites from things like mosquitos. Mosquito bites are unavoidable if you spend any time outdoors, but some natural solutions for pain relief can make the aftermath a little better.
The best thing about this list as well is that some of them are great for anxious feelings as well. If you or or your child is stung and feeling anxious and upset over it (and I mean, who wouldn’t?) you can just breathe in the oil to help. Lavender would be my go-to to help me relax in that kind of situation.
But, what about what oils to use? You can get them here. And can I tell you a little secret? You will discover that you use these oils for WAY more than bee stings. They work for so MANY things. That’s what I love about essential oils. Not only are they a natural, safe alternative but they are so versatile. One oil is used for multiple things.
I’m really hoping this summer my little guy gets a break from the stings. I mean, I think he deserves it, don’t you? But, if we don’t get the break we are hoping for we will definitely be ready with our oils to soothe and treat any bee stings that may happen this year and to accelerate the healing process.
