# How to help children that are afraid of bees?



## labdogs42 (Jan 21, 2009)

My neighbor's dd is afraid of bees and she freaks out if she sees a bee or a wasp in my yard when she is playing with my DS. I don't want my DS to become afraid of bees and I'd love to help this little girl (age 5.5) get over her fear of bees. Any thoughts on what I can say to her to help her be less fearful? Her mom is out of ideas, too. BTW, my DS has actually been stung by a bee once and he's not afraid of them. Thanks!


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## Logan's mommy (Jan 19, 2007)

:

Ds1 (8) is terrified of bees for some reason. We've tried telling him they are more scared of him than he is of them and that they won't sting him if he doesn't bother them, but any time he sees one in our yard he runs away as fast as he can screaming "BEE!!!"

I'll be checking back to see what others have to say.


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## angie7 (Apr 23, 2007)

I hate bees and are scared of them myself. But I tell my kids to leave them alone b/c they will "bite". They don't run away screaming but they do avoid them.


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## snoopy5386 (May 6, 2005)

yeah, I am terrified of bees so I don't know what to tell you. I'm terrified of bugs in general and bees especially since you know they can hurt you. Yesterday a bee got into my car while I was buckling DD in and my knee jerk response was to scream, open the door and jump out as fast as humanly possible.


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## labdogs42 (Jan 21, 2009)

Hmmm.. . do you think your response to bees/bugs is learned or innate? I have never been afraid, per se, of bees or bugs. Sure, I don't like to be stung, but it has happened a few times and I survived. For those that are afraid of bees, have you been stung in the past? just curious.


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## clicksab (Oct 15, 2006)

Okay, I'm terrified of bees myself and I have to wonder...have any of us who are so scared of bees actually gotten stung? I haven't. I actually think that I'm more scared because I've never experienced it and picture it as being so much worse than it really is.


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## SunshineJ (Mar 26, 2008)

My mom has a pretty good method of helping when my kids are scared of any type of bug. She arms them with a flyswatter. It's amazing how well something so simple works!


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## Agatha_Ann (Apr 5, 2009)

I am really scared of bees and wasps. I stepped on a hive when I was two and they flew up my little overalls and stung me hundreds of times. Since then I have probably been stung maybe 3o times? They LOVE me







My kids are scared too and they have also been stung.

Personally, I don't like the fly swatter idea for two reasons. Firstly, I think with bees and wasps, it would aggravate them and increase the chance of getting stung. Secondly, and this is just my issue, but I don't like encouraging children to be violent with any living thing. Even in all my terror, we catch and release here.

My dad is an entomologist though, so I may have grown up with more of an insect apprecition than the average family


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## flower01 (Aug 1, 2007)

Hmmm...bees never bothered me...and to be honest I can get a little annoyed by someone freaking out about a little bee. Just calm down and walk away if it's bothering you (that's what I'm thinking). I have been stung once or twice - it does hurt, but there are much worse things. I don't really have any ideas for you...I totally get why PP is freaked out - I'm sure I'd be scarred for life by that experience, but why the general population is so freaked out, I do not know.


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## labdogs42 (Jan 21, 2009)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *flower01* 
Hmmm...bees never bothered me...and to be honest I can get a little annoyed by someone freaking out about a little bee. Just calm down and walk away if it's bothering you (that's what I'm thinking). I have been stung once or twice - it does hurt, but there are much worse things. I don't really have any ideas for you...I totally get why PP is freaked out - I'm sure I'd be scarred for life by that experience, but why the general population is so freaked out, I do not know.

I'm totally with you. It drives me a little batty that this little girl is constantly stopping the game she is playing to screech, "there's a wasp!", or "there's a bee! It is going to sting me!" (said bee or wasp is always at least 5 feet away at this point) So I tell her things like, "leave it alone and it will leave you alone" (is that really true? I hope so, I don't want to lie to the kid).

As for the PP who was stung 100 times, you DO have a reason to be afraid of bees!


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## FondestBianca (May 9, 2008)

Ok, first of all you should be treating bees, wasps, and yellow jackets differently. Hard part is, it may be difficult to explain to a child how to tell the difference. Heres why it matters. Bees (honey bees, bumble bees, etc) are pretty darn harmless (unless one is allergic). In fact, as long as you aren't attacking them or acting agressive and repeatedly trying to harm them they can actually be friendly.

Honey bees do their best to stay on task and will avoid humans if at all possible. The only time they will sting is if you try to trap them, step on them, hit them, mess with their hive, etc. They don't do it to retaliate, they do it to try to save their own lives. Honey bees are also pretty scarse these days so NO ONE should be killing them. I've never been stung or chased by a honey bee. Most people that do get attacked by honey bees are attacked after accidentally getting into a hive or coming across a more aggressive breed from another country. I don't bother moving if one comes near me. If I accidentally get close to one I simply move a few steps away so as not to disturb his business.

Bumble bees. The big, pretty, colorful, fuzzy, slow flying guys are actually a fairly friendly bunch. While pretty on task collecting nourishment they aren't nearly as inflexible as honey bees. They aren't overly worried about people being near. In fact, my brother and I used to actually PET THEM on their backs while they collected pollen from the flowering bushes in our mom's yard when we were kids. Never got stung by one. They don't want to sting you because these species will die after stinging. I don't even budge if one of these cute guys lands on a flower next to me. I quite enjoy them actually.

Wasps, those nasty buggers with long dangling hind legs a skinny lonh waist, will sting you. They are usually black in color but can also be a brownish yellow color (and maybe other colors in diff parts of the country). While I've never been stung by a wasp I have been chased by one. These guys love your compost, food garbage and sugar. So do your best to keep away from those things and keeping away from wasps should be much easier. They are pretty slow flying so you can outrun these guys and remember that they dont change direction or corner well. They eventually get sick of chasing you around and will stop. They usually only start chasing you around if they think you are competition for their food. These I will kill if they are chasing me or if they have nested on my yard.

Yellow jackets, the most hated of bee-like creatures! I'll unforgivingly kill each and every one of these I can. These nasty things LOVE sugar, compost, food, anything sweet smelling or rotten smelling. These actually eat meat as well. They love munching on fruit trees, berries in your yard, and dead carcasses. You'll also find them around garbage cans and dumpsters. These guys are like heat seeking missels. Catch them in a bad mood and they will dileberatly try to land on you and sting you. They want to sting you, you are competition to them and quite frankly you probably smell like food to them. They will work alone or gang up on you. Anything seems to provoke these guys. They can be very stelthy. You may get stung and never have known there was even a jacket in your presence. I've been stung many, many times by these. At first it doesn't hurt much.... then it feels like getting a shot or your blood drawn pretty quick... then it burns for several hours afterwards. I'm sure reaction severity differs person to person but its' really not all that bad. Nothing worth tear shed anyway.

Maybe put together a lesson about bees, wasps, & yellow jackets for your kiddo and the neighbor girl. Teach them how to tell the difference and how to treat each one on an individual basis. Have them do a project and perhaps even study one of the safer species in its natural habitat (with supervision of course). Heck, maybe even sew togther a cute little stuffed bumble bee if you're handy with a sewing machine. That way they have at least one positive accociation with bees. Just remember to gently let them know wasps and yellow jackets aren't exactly nice. Remind them to stay away from the things wasps and yellow jackets like to eat. Let them know that those two don't like people taking their food and get upset when they think someone is going to take it. Having kids eat sweet smelling treats or meat indoors is always smart too.

ETA: if people have never been stung before and are worried about possible allergy one can probably go to an allergy clinic and get tested.


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## Agatha_Ann (Apr 5, 2009)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *labdogs42* 
I'm totally with you. It drives me a little batty that this little girl is constantly stopping the game she is playing to screech, "there's a wasp!", or "there's a bee! It is going to sting me!" (said bee or wasp is always at least 5 feet away at this point) So I tell her things like, "leave it alone and it will leave you alone" (is that really true? I hope so, I don't want to lie to the kid).

As for the PP who was stung 100 times, you DO have a reason to be afraid of bees!

That was me







My dad (the entomologist) has always told me the stay still rule, but it doesn't work for me! A few years ago, I was sitting on my porch and a yellow jacket landed on my leg. I could hear my dad in my head telling me to stay still and I did not move at all, just watched it crawl around on me. After about five minutes it stung me! I screamed and ran inside
















Now my dad says that they can sense the chemical reactions in your body that happen when you are afraid and it is threatening to them. I believe this because they seriously chase me lol


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## Norasmomma (Feb 26, 2008)

Well our DD is afraid of bees and I have been simply telling her that we are outside and now we are in their home. It's partly our fault she is freaked because we freak out when we get wasps in the house(1907 farmhouses get wasps in them). So I just have stuck with telling her that bee lives outside and we are outside, so we just have to deal because it's their home too. Seems to work.

FWIW-where I live we have MAJOR bee years and with the yellowjackets going insane in August everyone seems to get pretty fearful of them. It's just a fact of living here. Plus DD has been stung quite a few times, through no fault of her own. Once a bee flew up her shorts and got in her diaper







and another time was when she was crawling a wasp was on the floor and got her hand. No wonder she is afraid.


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## LaLaLaLa (Oct 29, 2007)

I'm terrified of bees, and am trying desperately not to let my kids be afraid. So far things are going okay with them.

I've tried to talk myself out of it. I've had two children, given blood countless times, and voluntarily gotten a tattoo. I should not have this issue with bee stings. And yet, I do. I've been stung a handful of times and I know in my mind that it's not THAT bad. But still, it totally creeps me out, to think of an insect crawling on my skin and then injecting me with poison.

A year or so ago, a friend heard rustling in her walls and she eventually found out that there were several hundred bees in there busily building a hive. I was so freaked out by that, and it wasn't even my house! I did a lot of research at that point, wanting a contingency plan for what if we ever encountered a swarm of bees. I found that swatting or brushing at them was a bad idea, as they then sent chemical danger signals to all of their bee friends, who got a message to swarm you. Same deal if a bee stings you and dies--chemical messages to the rest of the hive that you are the enemy. Eek.

So, I'm still freaked out. Dumb, I know.


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## mamarootoo (Sep 16, 2008)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *labdogs42* 
Hmmm.. . do you think your response to bees/bugs is learned or innate? I have never been afraid, per se, of bees or bugs. Sure, I don't like to be stung, but it has happened a few times and I survived. For those that are afraid of bees, have you been stung in the past? just curious.

i was terrified of bees/wasps/yellow jackets when i was little, before i ever got stung. my dad thought it was really annoying, so he made me stand next to a yellow jacket nest to "help me get over my fear." i got stung twice and had to spend time in the hospital to recover from the allergic reaction that almost killed me.

i think there is some kind of evolutionary programming inside us that tells us to stay away. maybe it just got a little confused and turned into terror for some of us, rather than caution.


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## leighann79 (Aug 4, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *FondestBianca* 

Bumble bees. The big, pretty, colorful, fuzzy, slow flying guys are actually a fairly friendly bunch. While pretty on task collecting nourishment they aren't nearly as inflexible as honey bees. They aren't overly worried about people being near. In fact, my brother and I used to actually PET THEM on their backs while they collected pollen from the flowering bushes in our mom's yard when we were kids. Never got stung by one. *They don't want to sting you because these species will die after stinging*. I don't even budge if one of these cute guys lands on a flower next to me. I quite enjoy them actually.


I have not found this to be true. My DD2 had one sting her three times before she smashed it (it was stuck in her swim suit)
From Wikipedia: Queen and worker bumblebees can sting, but unlike a honey bee's, a bumblebee's stinger lacks barbs -- so they can sting more than once.


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## Shelsi (Apr 4, 2005)

Bees and wasps always chase me. I've only been stung once but I'm always running and those darn things won't leave me alone! It's not just bees though, it's all insects. If we're outside on a nice evening I'm getting bit to pieces from mosquitos and everyone else is looking at me like I'm crazy because they haven't noticed any! If I sit on the ground I will get ants all over, 100% of the time without fail. It's like as soon as I walk outdoors some sort of bulletin goes out to all the bugs and they swarm me! It sucks. It's been like that since I'm a little kid and it really makes the outdoors intolerable sometimes.

Also I used to live in southern AZ where we had killer bees so you had to be extra careful about that.


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## Mamafreya (May 13, 2004)

I'm also a bit afraid of wasps and yellow jackets. I hate how aggressive they are. For me though, wasps are by far the scariest. We have a pretty bad paper wasp problem for some reason which is frustrating. Some days in the summer are so bad that you can't safely be outside in our backyard without them landing on you and getting caught in your hair. It's really a bummer because I have no idea how to get rid of them. We can't find the hives and I don't want to use any poison. Last summer my poor dd was playing in the sandbox and I looked outside and she had three of them sitting on her back.







Thank goodness she had no idea so she didn't freak out but I was horrified. Luckily they flew off when I called her. Ugh.

I have been stung tons of times by yellow jackets and maybe twice by wasps. I agree with FondestBianca, those things are evil. Leaving them alone in my experience isn't a deterrent.


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## Shelsi (Apr 4, 2005)

Mamafreya, you just reminded me of an incident that happened to me a few years ago. I was 9 months pregnant with dd. I was with my son at the local pool, just sitting in the baby pool while he played around. Well suddenly one of the other moms looks at me and says, "uh, ma'am, you have a wasp in your hair!" So I'm like, "get it out! What do I do?!" And all these moms start swarming me lol. They tell me to just submerge myself. Uh, yeah, easier said than done when you are 9 months pregnant and in a pool that is only 2.5 feet deep!
 






So I manage to get my head under the water, I come back up and they all scream that it's still there! Go under again! I did this 3 times, feeling like a complete moron but not knowing what else to do. I had to put my butt way up in the air to even get my head totally submerged. Finally I put my head under and "swam" around a bit and it finally floated off and then the other moms beat the crap out of it.







:


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## FondestBianca (May 9, 2008)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *leighann79* 
I have not found this to be true. My DD2 had one sting her three times before she smashed it (it was stuck in her swim suit)
From Wikipedia: Queen and worker bumblebees can sting, but unlike a honey bee's, a bumblebee's stinger lacks barbs -- so they can sting more than once.

I must have gotten that factoid mixed up with the honey bee. Either way, bumble bees aren't big on stinging and typically only do so if they feel like they won't be able to get away from you unless they take some preventative measure. However, did it say that they continue to live after a stinging session (1 or more stings in a short amount of time)? Maybe they do die but not until a few moments later??


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## holothuroidea (Mar 30, 2008)

I'm a bug lover. I had a friendly jumping spider in my house yesterday, he danced around on my ceiling for hours looking for a mate. We became good friends and when he decided to come down from the ceiling, I caught him and put him outside so he could find a lady spider.

That being said, bees just make me crazy. I have no idea why. I was stung once by an unidentified bee while I was standing still (I was in marching band, and we were standing at attention for 5 minutes







). So that standing still advice is total crap. It was not painful at all, it left the stinger and everything but to be honest a mosquito bite is more annoying.

As far as helping the kiddos, knowledge is power. Educate them about bees. They might be kind of young for that, though. Maybe you could play make believe like you're bees in the yard. Buzz around and "fly" and pollenate the flowers.


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## Mamafreya (May 13, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Shelsi* 
Mamafreya, you just reminded me of an incident that happened to me a few years ago. I was 9 months pregnant with dd. I was with my son at the local pool, just sitting in the baby pool while he played around. Well suddenly one of the other moms looks at me and says, "uh, ma'am, you have a wasp in your hair!" So I'm like, "get it out! What do I do?!" And all these moms start swarming me lol. They tell me to just submerge myself. Uh, yeah, easier said than done when you are 9 months pregnant and in a pool that is only 2.5 feet deep!







So I manage to get my head under the water, I come back up and they all scream that it's still there! Go under again! I did this 3 times, feeling like a complete moron but not knowing what else to do. I had to put my butt way up in the air to even get my head totally submerged. Finally I put my head under and "swam" around a bit and it finally floated off and then the other moms beat the crap out of it.







:

OMG!







you are a much braver woman than me that's for sure.







That story is hilarious.


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## LauraLoo (Oct 9, 2006)

I just had this conversation with my dc's. DS was stung by a yellow jacket about 3 years ago. Yesterday, he was outside, thought there was a bee nearby and freaked. His freaking out caused my dd to freak out, and they were both telling me that they were going to stay inside all summer long.

We had an honest conversation. Yes, bee stings hurt, but the pain goes away. I told them that I had been stung once in my life - when I was a little girl - but it doesn't keep me from going outside and enjoying the nice weather. I don't bother the bees, and they don't seem to want to bother me. I reminded them that they've both fallen down, scraped knees, etc., but they still ride their bikes and run around. I just reminded them that swatting at bees was most likely going to make the bees mad, so their best course of action would be to just find somewhere else to play until the bee flew away and to let me know if they see a hive anywhere. Both were outside playing today.


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## EviesMom (Nov 30, 2004)

DH is deathly allergic to bee stings. He also hates shots and the epi pen. So he freaks when there's a bee around (has run in another room and shut the door leaving me with an infant DD even when there was one in the house). Which is fine, we sorted that out, dude needs to take the baby (and now baby and kid) and I'll deal with the bee as need be.

Anyway, now DD is a little freaked about them. I tell her to just shoo them like she does flies and not worry (for her, this means being about 12 feet away from a flying thing you have decided is a bee but might well be any other flying thing and flapping your arms while yelling "Shoooo!"). I figure it's a little like my mother telling my baby brother that a water sprayer had "monster repellant" in it. It helps her deal right now, and she'll get less scared over time and mimic me instead of DH. (I let him off the hook with the bee allergy thing, but he flips right out over everything crawly just about-like roaches too.) Or she'll marry someone who isn't afraid of creepy crawlies.


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## KaylaBeanie (Jan 27, 2009)

I think it's one of those things you're either scared of or you're not. I got stung by a bee when I was a toddler and have been hideously scared since. I'm also mildly allergic...my skin bruises and gets all hard and nasty. Yuck. I also donate blood every 8 weeks and have 3 tattoos, all done with no problem...but those darn stinging insects!


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## labdogs42 (Jan 21, 2009)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *FondestBianca* 

Maybe put together a lesson about bees, wasps, & yellow jackets for your kiddo and the neighbor girl. Teach them how to tell the difference and how to treat each one on an individual basis. Have them do a project and perhaps even study one of the safer species in its natural habitat (with supervision of course). Heck, maybe even sew togther a cute little stuffed bumble bee if you're handy with a sewing machine. That way they have at least one positive accociation with bees. Just remember to gently let them know wasps and yellow jackets aren't exactly nice. Remind them to stay away from the things wasps and yellow jackets like to eat. Let them know that those two don't like people taking their food and get upset when they think someone is going to take it. Having kids eat sweet smelling treats or meat indoors is always smart too.

ETA: if people have never been stung before and are worried about possible allergy one can probably go to an allergy clinic and get tested.

Wow, thanks for all the good info! We do tend to get some wasp nests in our backyard 9they seem to like our deck roof). My DH will spray them when we find them. I'm not big on pesticides, but I don't want swarms of wasps in the backyard either. I like the idea of teaching the kids about the different bees. My DS would be totally into that.

I didn't realize so many people were SO afraid of bees, even as adults. This has been a very interesting conversation so far!


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## MamieCole (Jun 1, 2007)

I've been stung several times while growing up in the country. Mainly by wasps and yellow jackets. Wasps stings really, really hurt. And yellow jacket stings aren't a walk in the park. The worst was when I accidentally stepped on a yellow jacket, while barefoot. Getting stung on the bottom of your foot is not fun. I agree with the pp that honey bees are pretty harmless and there is really no reason to be afraid of them.

As far as bumble bees go, when I was growing up I was taught that there were two different species where we lived: one kind that had a solid black head and stung if you messed with them and one kind that had a yellow spot on their head that didn't sting. (I think I'm remembering correctly. Maybe it is the other way around: spot=sting, no spot=safe) Anyway, I'm not sure if this was scientifically true or if I just got lucky, but as a child I've caught and played with bumble bees many times and never got stung. I had a cousin who would catch bumble bees and tie a string to them and fly them like a kite, then let them go. I know, not nice to the bee.









Obviously I try to avoid getting too close to either wasps or yellow jackets, but I am not afraid of them and don't run away when one is near. Come to think of it, I don't think I have even seen a wasp or yellow jacket since we moved to Oregon.

My DD got stung by a wasp when she was about 3 and is afaid of pretty much all insects, especially ones that fly. DS has never been stung and he LOVES bees. He gets SO excited to see a bee in the backyard. He waves "Hi" to the bee then says "Bye Bye Bee" when it flies away. Maybe because he has watched The Bee Movie a couple of times? I have always tried to talk to him about how we should give the bee his space and not try to touch, but we can look at the bee from where we are standing. We talk about what the bee is doing and why they like to buzz around flowers.

Who knows if he'll continue to love them or end up afraid. But for now, he loves them.


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## snoopy5386 (May 6, 2005)

I can't remember ever not being afraid of them. Bugs in general to me are icky (even ladybugs and butterflies they are just bugs all prettied up). I don't ever want any bugs touching me. Flying bugs freak me out more, well because they can fly and bees/wasps can sting. I have been stung and it hurts so I try to avoid it. I do this by running away from bees/wasps like a big baby. IME bees/wasps tend to follow me or fly all around my head when I am trying to get away from them. They are unpredictable and freak me out. I keep my distance and kill all the ones near my house (not honeybees). I don't want them around. It is like instinct to run away or swat at them to get them away from me. One time one was in the backseat of the car while I was driving on the highway. I never got over to the shoulder so fast!!! Pulled over and jumped out of the car. Another time a friend (equally terrified) was driving and there was a bee in the car. She immediately slammed on the brakes and we both jumped out, utterly terrified. My DH makes fun of me but I can't help it, I just react.


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## Doodlebugsmom (Aug 1, 2002)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *labdogs42* 
I'm totally with you. It drives me a little batty that this little girl is constantly stopping the game she is playing to screech, "there's a wasp!", or "there's a bee! It is going to sting me!" (said bee or wasp is always at least 5 feet away at this point) So I tell her things like, "leave it alone and it will leave you alone" (is that really true? I hope so, I don't want to lie to the kid).

Boy, my dd (she's 7) would send you completely over the edge!







She is TERRIFIED of bees. I can assure you it isn't learned behavior with her. Dh and I aren't afraid of bees one bit. I assume it's a phase she'll grow out of. I've known lots of kids who have gone through such a phase. She did get stung by a wasp when she was 5, and it was pretty bad, but I don't think that's why she's so scared. My dd would run home as fast as she could if she encountered a bee in the neighbor's yard! She's completely nutty about it. I just try to offer her support at this point and I try not to act like she's being completely unreasonable. It's obviously a pretty serious fear for her.


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## labdogs42 (Jan 21, 2009)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Doodlebugsmom* 
Boy, my dd (she's 7) would send you completely over the edge!







She is TERRIFIED of bees. I can assure you it isn't learned behavior with her. Dh and I aren't afraid of bees one bit. I assume it's a phase she'll grow out of. I've known lots of kids who have gone through such a phase. She did get stung by a wasp when she was 5, and it was pretty bad, but I don't think that's why she's so scared. My dd would run home as fast as she could if she encountered a bee in the neighbor's yard! She's completely nutty about it. I just try to offer her support at this point and I try not to act like she's being completely unreasonable. It's obviously a pretty serious fear for her.

Are you my neighbor?







I'm sure if it was my kid that was afraid of bees, I'd have a different perspective. I didn't mean to offend anyone with that statement! (but while I'm at it, kids who are scared of dogs and swimming freak me out, too!







)


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## bluey (Apr 28, 2004)

My middle dd could be that child







She is completely terrified of flying insects. I don't know what it is about her in particular that makes her so desirable to wasps but man, do they go after her with a vengance. Twice she has been swarmed, resulting in multiple stings. The first time she was 4, and it turns out there was a nest in the neighbours hedge. We were all out there but *she* was the only one that got bothered. That time she got just about a dozen stings to the back of her head/neck area. The second time she was in the backyard with her sister. Again, they ignored her sister and went straight for her. That one was the worst because she was paralyzed with fear and I had to run into the swarm to get her. They were all up her shirt, in her hair. I got stung so many times for that, damn those uav's hurt!!! Btwn my dad, and dp those wasps are no more. Now she doesn't like going outside







She played outside all winter( weather permitting!), but as soon as it warmed up she's gone back inside. She'll come out if she's with dp or I, but never alone.


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## Chicky2 (May 29, 2002)

Fondest Bianca, I loved your post! Very informative!

I was going to suggest taking your child (and possibly neighbor's child) to a working beehive that has one side that is glassed in--we have a local peach and apple orchard that has one. Or out to an apiary where soemone can give a lesson about how they work.


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## darcytrue (Jan 23, 2009)

My DD doesn't like bees either. Perhaps you could get a good book that talks about bees and read that to the child?? I homeschool and I did a neat unit study with my DD one time about bees and it talked about lots of things, especially when bees are threatened and most likely to sting and when they are not likely to sting. It really helped her a lot to do the unit study and to learn about bees and that they are living things as well and don't live for very long at that, so she felt sad for them.







DD is still a bit nervous when outdoors and she sees a bee but she doesn't get overly upset like she used to.


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## lindberg99 (Apr 23, 2003)

My kids hate bees too. We have carpenter bees right now (which I am trying to get DH to deal with). They are big like bumble bees but not furry. The male carpenter bee doesn't even have a stinger but they are very aggressive and will buzz around a lot and I don't like them either! My DS got a wasp under his shirt last summer and was stung 4 times, hence his fear. He won't even wear the shirt he was wearing anymore. I have no idea how to get the kids past their fear, I think it is something they will just have to learn to deal with one their own.


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