No one wants to come in contact with a creature while swimming in the ocean, let alone one that can hurt you in a matter of seconds. Unfortunately, stingray injuries are more common than most beachgoers realize.
One woman’s painful run-in is going viral as a reminder that a simple technique could prevent the whole thing. Have you heard of the stingray shuffle?
Woman Steps On Stingray
In a viral TikTok with more than 943,000 views, Brittney Zirkle (@myprettyinfertilelife) documents what happened after she was stung by a stingray at the beach.
“POV: You step on a stingray, it slices your achilles tendon, and leaves its barb in you…” the text overlay on the video reads.
The video opens with Brittney sitting in a beach chair, her leg elevated. She’s being attended to by what appear to be beach emergency responders, who are working to get her stabilized and onto a golf cart for transport.
“Steve Irwin died, didn’t he?” she says to the responders at one point, referring to another famous stingray injury. However, one of them walks her back from the ledge: Irwin, they explain, was stabbed in the heart by a much larger stingray.
Meanwhile, the pain is escalating. “It’s getting worse,” Brittney says.
“Yeah, it’s normal to get worse,” a responder confirms. They’re trying to get her an IV line for pain medication, navigating her allergies since she’s extremely allergic to Benadryl, while keeping her calm.
“It felt like a knife,” she says at one point. “Like someone stabbing me.”
By the end of the video, she’s being transported, treated, and seems noticeably better. She’s talking more easily and sounding less panicked.
The barb landed right on her Achilles tendon. “That does not look fun,” one of the responders says, getting a look at it.
“I was barely moving too,” Brittney says, still processing how it happened so fast.
“This is your annual reminder to shuffle your feet when walking in the ocean…” she advised in the caption.
What To Do If You Get Stung By A Stingray
Hot water is the first line of defense. According to U.S. Masters Swimming, the best immediate treatment for a stingray sting is soaking the wound in the hottest water you can tolerate—ideally between 104 and 113 degrees—for 60 to 90 minutes. The heat helps break down the venom and can significantly reduce pain.
Beyond that, the steps are: exit the water immediately, rinse the wound with seawater, apply pressure if it’s bleeding, elevate the limb, and get to a lifeguard or medical professional as soon as possible.
The barb itself is worth paying attention to. Stingray barbs can leave fragments embedded in the skin. This is why a doctor needs to confirm that nothing is left behind. Antibiotics are typically prescribed to prevent infection. Infection is the real danger, not the venom itself.
Injuries that land on tendons or joints tend to be more complicated and may require more involved medical attention.
What Is The Stingray Shuffle?
Stingrays aren’t aggressive. They bury themselves in the sand, sometimes just inches from shore, and their barbed tails are purely a defense mechanism. The problem is that they’re easy to miss, and stepping on one is all it takes.
According to Visit Florida, instead of lifting your feet as you walk in shallow water, you drag them along the sandy bottom. The vibrations signal to any stingrays nearby that something’s coming, giving them a chance to clear out before you make contact.
Commenters React
“I wish everyone learned the stingray shuffle immediately when they get to Florida it’s so important. Im so sorry this happened to you- they hurt like hell and these dudes are really under estimating the pain or really good at trying to keep you calm,” a top comment read.
“Asking you to walk is actually insane,” a person said,
“Why is he so nonchalant? No empathy,” another wrote.
@myprettyinfertilelife This is your annual reminder to shuffle your feet when walking in the ocean… #stingrayshuffle #stingraybarb #springbreak #floridacheck #onthisday
BroBible reached out to Brittney Zirkle for comment via email and TikTok direct message.