To draw a few recent threads together, I have in the last few days been put on Ibubrofen for a lower back problem which, besides being painful makes me walk crabwise - pressure on a nerve. Mindful of the recent warnings on the list, when I went to play with my bees yesterday I put a couple of Apis mel. pills under my tongue before opening up. Although the smoker was lit as back up I hardly used it but used a plain water mist from a sprayer instead. It worked like a charm. I did collect about 4 stings on my ungloved hands from as many hives but there was no reaction and within a few minutes I couldn't say which hand had been stung. This morning I helped my bee buddy hive his first swarm. They were fine but being in my hands and knees I put a hand on a bee and was stung. I did not take Apis mel. My hand swelled and is still swollen 12 hours later. Although this is a mere anecdote and not scientific evidence I think I'll keep the Apis mel. handy for as long as I'm on the Ibubrufen. Chris Slade