Any poison ivy suggestions?

[Tyrone Slothrop]

I picked up some poison ivy all down both of my legs recently, and it's kind of driving me crazy.

I've been using Caladryl, and it seems to be helping -- albeit slowly.

Does anyone else have any tips or hints? I haven't had this in about 15 or 20 years since I was a little kid...

On edit: Btw, thanks in advance. I'm going to be in and out of meetings all day so I might not have a chance to respond...

[MissMillie]

1. antihistimine will help with the itchiness too

but it will make you sleepy.

[Tyrone Slothrop]

3. I took some benadryl yesterday

And was very sleepy all day -- especially with the heat.

I don't think I can get away with that at work, though, unfortunately...

[Whoa_Nelly]

18. Try Clariten Clear OTC

And pick up some of the OTC poison ivy cure (it's a two part product)...can't find a link, but ask the pharmacist at your local chain drugstore...I know it's on the market most everywhere.

Maybe pick up some of this as well, as a preventative measure for next time:
http://www.cvs.com/CVSApp/cvs/gateway/detail?prodid=336779


And here's a site with natural use options:
http://www.mothernature.com/Library/Bookshelf/Books/47/108.cfm

Be sure to keep your handd and fingernails clean. Should you scratch, the urushiol (the toxin from the plant) can be easliy spread to other parts of your body.

[Katina]

2. my son is horribly allergic

take some benedryl tablets and don't use that pink stuff. the sores can get infected by it. You would be better off using either benedryl topical gel or a hydrocortisone cream to stop the itching.
You can also do an aveeno oatmeal bath to sooth them. Whatever you do, do not wash the clothes you were wearing with hot water, use cool or cold water. It will only spread the poison ivy oil onto other clothes. You should also strip your bed sheets and wash them in cool/cold water.

[Tyrone Slothrop]

4. Hmmm...

I washed everything yesterday on the warm setting. I didn't realize that it should be on cold...

Maybe I should go to the laundromat again tonight.

[Katina]

5. as long as it wasn't hot, you should be ok

but make sure you do the sheets too. The thing about the hot water is that it doesn't wash the oil away, it just spreads it, like a slick.

Another tip for the future. If you are in an area where there is poison ivy, when you come in, wipe down your legs & arms with alcohol based towelettes (like the wet wipes) they will remove the oil before it has a chance to cause irritation (which occurs about 24 hours after exposure). If you have a cat or dog that runs through it, you should consider wiping them down with a cool wash cloth as well.

[Tyrone Slothrop]

7. Thanks for the tips

Actually, I live in NYC so I'm almost never around any plants, let alone poison ivy. I must have wondered into some while playing golf last weekend.

[hfojvt]

9. I would think gel or hydrocortisone cream is contraindicated

What you want is for the sores to dry up. Cream, being moist, is a bad idea. I find calamine (the pink stuff), rubbing alcohol, or even cheap soap to be effective in that regard.

[Katina]

12. you have a point

however, the benedryl gel has alcohol in it. They also stop the itching which is one of the biggest problems with poison ivy. If you don't stop the itching, you will get infected sores. I've found that the pink calamine gets "stuck" on the sores & scabs and can cause scaring.
Personal preference of course, but I'll stick with the gel or the hydrocortisone cream.

[Deep13]

6. Salt water. The ocean if you are near.

Dries it up.

[Lars39]

8. Stuff called Tecnu helps.

It's OTC.

[Spaceman Spiff]

10. Do all that's been suggested

and then wait. It's gotta run its natural cycle I'm affraid.

[underpants]

11. What Spiff said

plus something about boiled Korean bark.

LOVE the sigline. :O

[Courtesy Flush]

13. My Suggestion: Avoid it

[raccoon]

14. Docs can give you a shot for this if it's really bad.

My sympathies.

[atomic-fly]

15. here's my routine...

I get that Aveeno oatmeal soap and lather it up and
leave it on skin to dry. It stops itching and dries it out.
Do this a lot. Tecnicu gel works well.
Take an antihistamine, it helps speed up the process.
Wash anything that you may have had contact with or you will
just keep reinfecting yourself.
I take alcohol to the steering wheel of my truck, the stick shift,
the window ledge.
I also wash my sheets right away and every few days until it's gone.
As mentioned above the ocean is great for drying it out.
I'm sure a pool would be good too (chlorine).
It takes about a 10 days to run it's course. It itches more as it dries out.

[jobycom]

16. Blow dry it or run hot water over it

People are skeptical until they try this. Heating the rash releases all of the histamines at once (So I've been told), so you get a strange rush, which feels kinda cool, and for a while the itching will stop. Blow dry it for a minute or two, or run hot (careful not to scald, because your senses will be a bit off in the affected area because of the rash) water over it. You'll feel when the rush hits. After that, the itching will stop.

Careful, though. You can burn the rash and make it take longer to heal. Don't let the BD cook you, or the water scald you. It has to be hot, but not painfully hot. Warm won't do, though.

[arwalden]

17. Yes... This Worked For Me.

I've never heard of the blow-dryer technique before... but taking a very hot shower (as hot as I could stand it) and "torturing" myself by shower-massaging the skin with the poison ivy rash was very theraputic.

Honestly... it's NOT fun to do. You really have to grit your teeth and just DO IT. When you can't stand it anymore, switch to the other leg, then back again.

After the shower you'll be relatively itch-free for a few hours. (It was effective enough that I could get to sleep and STAY asleep until the morning.)

Aspirin seemed to help me too. Not for the itch, but for the inflamation.

Also try "Rhuli" anti-itch gel... I think it's been bought by Johnson's so now it's called "Band-Aid" anti-itch gel.

Good luck!

[HeardOnTheHill]

19. Take a shower!

I think that the best trick is the shower right after you been exposed. The stuff that makes you itch is an oil that only begins to affect you after a few hours, so if you know you've been exposed, you have a little while to wash it off. Just a shower, washccloth, and some strong soap, and you're good to go. Wish I had better advice for your case though!

[Arkansas Granny]

20. My advice is "don't suffer with it". Go see your doctor. The shots

and antihistamines will help with the itch and start to dry it up immediately. I'm quite sensitive to poison ivy and poison oak and haven't found any OTC remedies that give any long lasting relief. If the outbreak is quite extensive or on my face (especially near the eyes) I go to the doctor.