Sandfly Bites
Sandfly bites often turn into a raised red welt that itches horribly usually in the middle of the night! If there are quite a few bites, the whole area can swell. You may have on and off itching for a few days to even several weeks before the bites to completely heal.
Sweet First Timers
As an American, I’ve experienced first timer’s disbelief that such a creature exists and can cause so much discomfort. (see Welcome to NZ)
Many Kiwis just grow up with sandflies as a fact of life, and don’t even realize how iconic and horrible they can be to visitors. There is a wide range of reactions possible to sandfly bites. If you are new to sandflies, you may find that you are “sweet”, in other words the sandflies like you better than they like the locals.
Becoming a “Local”
People often find that they respond less badly over months as their bodies get used to processing the bites, and can actually reach a mythical state where you have almost no mark and no itching with bites. This is small comfort if you are visiting Milford Sound for the day. It’s enough to drive the most brave natural souls to consider applying chemical bug repellents. Natural repellent and bite soother, Goodbye Sandfly is made to deal with the sandflies. In addition, the best defense against getting sandfly and mosquito bites is to dress well.
Soothing Sooner is Better
Put Goodbye Sandfly on straight away after being bitten, it reduces the severity of the bite.
This is because you are immediately disinfecting and soothing the sandfly or mosquito bite before a reaction begins. You can also gently massage Goodbye Sandfly into your skin to soothe the itch once it’s started.
Don’t Scratch! (even if you feel insane)
Scratching extends the healing time and can cause infection. This is where bites can turn into real problems. Don’t scratch. Gently massage a bite soother on the irritation instead.
Other Natural Remedies
Over the years we have tried several other natural remedies. We have applied raw onion (our 6 year old swears by it), straight lavender, tea tree & manuka essential oils (sorta works), homoeopathics (have seen two miracle treatments), massage and gentle point pressure (works pretty well).
There are several herbs which have antihistamine properties, and you may benefit from taking them as an infusion (tea), or adding them to a bath or compress. When taken as a tea, the herb will support your whole body to process the bites. Herbs to try are chamomile, peppermint, basil, echinacea, fennel, oregano & tea (green or black).
Get through it and try again
If you are one of the unlucky ones that is reading this with legs covered in bites, all we can say is, survive this round of bites as best you can and try NOT to scratch. If your bites are getting out of hand, or you’re not sure if they are getting better, see a professional (doctor, homeopath, naturopath….).
Then, work on how to stay bite free. You can live and travel in fierce sandfly country and get very few bites.