Poison Ivy? PLEASE ANSWER?

I have some poison ivy that I got when I was working one day last week. Do any of you have any remidies that will help heal it?

Poison Ivy? PLEASE ANSWER?
Are you sure it's Poison Ivy? That is the most important question you need to answer. If you are sure, then go to the local pharmacy or to the nearest outdoor store and look for Tecnu. It will help clean away the Urushiol, which is the oil in the plant that irritates the skin.



Also, since urushiol doesn't evaporate, it may still be on whatever objects or clothes you had with you as they may also have been exposed to the plants. You will continuously re-contaminate yourself by touching those items until you remove all the urushiol. You can also use the cleanser to remove the oil from that stuff as well.



Yes, anti-histamines like Benedryl will help in the short term but histamines will continue to be released as long as your body is exposed to the irritant, the urushiol. If this doesn't improve in a day or so, or if you start to have any swelling or oozing at the site of the contamination, see a doctor immediately as your condition may be getting worse.



As a side note, I was working in the mountains of Southern California about 10 years ago. From a very young age, I always thought I was one of those very rare, very lucky few that are immune to urushiol. I grew up on the East Coast %26amp; had been exposed to poison ivy so many times with nothing happening so I felt somewhat invincible.



Anyway, after a shift walking through some very thick undergrowth, I found two or three bumps in a cluster on my right forearm that were very itchy. I figured it was poison oak so I went to REI and bought some Tecnu. Well, guess what? It was poison oak and I not only was I allergic to poison oak but also to tecnu. I found this out after slathering my whole arm in the stuff trying to clean away the plant oils. The next day I woke up to a swollen, oozing mess of an arm. I could barely get dressed for work. I had to use my left hand to put my gun in my holster because I couldn't bend my right arm enough to do it. I showed my supervisor who literally freaked out and ran outside to one of our marked units to rush me to the local hospital. They gave me Benedryl and steroids, and sent me home with a prescription for Aveeno oatmeal bath packets. Three days later and my arm was back to normal. The doctor told me after my follow-up visit that he thought they were going to have to cut my arm to relieve the pressure so that it wouldn't restrict the circulation in my arm beyond the area of the swelling. I am a lot more careful now when out in the wild.



Good luck!
Reply:Peppermint oil and hand herbal creams.
Reply:you can get temporary relief by running hot water(as hot as you can stand without burning off the skin) over the areas...relief for 6-8 hours until the histamines regroup and itching starts again
Reply:clean the area well, try Gold Bond powder for itching, or Zanfar soap which is specifically for poison ivy. Try taking some Benadryl also to help reduce the histamine reaction. if it continues to spread and be a problem see your doctor to ask if you need steroids.