Poison Ivy/Oak is pretty easy to identify - both have stems with 3 leaves; each which are particularly shiny and have jagged edges. AFAIK the Ivy variant (I don't think I've ever encountered it) grows more in civilized areas and in more abundance than Oak, which is usually sparce and in rural areas. I believe the effects caused by both are also nearly identical.

But yes, it does REALLY suck to get rashes from them. When I lived in the hills I got it a few times - I don't think I've ever encountered anything as annoying as constantly itching (though some lotions do help).

Very. I've known a few people who could literally wade through the stuff and have no negative reactions to it - it's supposedly due to the immune system (meaning it can be passed through genetics). I just wish I was that lucky [img]smile.gif[/img]

Quite a few times. However, one time is too many, especially considering a certain allergic reaction I had to Oak once. I had woken up once with almost my entire body covered in it (yes, even the ehm, "lower" parts :( ). I had a slight case of it beforehand, which I treated with a lotion with an active ingredient (benzoyl peroxide?). It's my hypothesis that it "carried" the Oak throughout my entire bloodstream - and I was literally fucked. One of the worst experiences in my life.

Assuming again that Ivy and Oak rashes are nearly the same, Benadryl has worked fine for me. As for the hot water treatment - are you certain that's a smart thing to do? I know with Poison Oak pouring hot water on the rash is a godblessing - however, I think hot water also opens the pours in your skin, which would let the oil seep in even deeper.

[ 10-03-2004, 05:48 AM: Message edited by: silencer ]

I know with Poison Oak this is very stupid - your entire lungs will be infected (which has happened a few times to people creating brushfires). You could quite possibly die.

I know with Poison Oak this is very stupid - your entire lungs will be infected (which has happened a few times to people creating brushfires). You could quite possibly die. </font>[/QUOTE]So its one hell of a Buzz!! :D

I had recognized the sarcasm ;) but the topic generally leaves me with a bad taste in my mouth. I'd seriously consider suicide instead of going through my previous experiences with it. Nasty stuff.

Look here. Only about 50% of people are allergic to poison ivy/oak/sumac, but some can become allergic, as antryg correctly points out. Aveeno paste and Benadryl can help with the symptoms, but only corticosteroids will actually make it go away. I prescribe 2cc of Decadron + 1cc of Depo-Medrol intramuscularly, and it works within the hour. Less desirable but still ultimately curative is a Medrol Dosepak by mouth.

I know with Poison Oak this is very stupid - your entire lungs will be infected (which has happened a few times to people creating brushfires). You could quite possibly die. </font>[/QUOTE]So its one hell of a Buzz!! :D </font>[/QUOTE]You said it! soo jhonny, plan on trying it out?

I havent seen poison ivy in a long time.. but i know there is some in my area.

Tell me about it! The worst thing about PI is the constant itching. And of course the more you scratch it, the more it starts to itch even worse, to horrible proportions!, not to mention scratching also spreads it. Vile Weed I say! I don't even live in the country anymore, but I did 4 years ago, and again I guess that bottle of gel still has the oil on it from back then, unbelievable.



I would give anything to be one of those immune people LOL.



OMG. That is strange how it spread all over overnight. I wonder if it was that lotion you used? Or if rubbing the lotion on spread it? How much PI did you have on your body before using the lotion? Very odd. I'd never use it again either way, sheesh! I do know one thing, Calamine lotion does NOTHING, never get that crappa, is an old wives tale yet they still sell it in stores for PI. That must have been absolutely horrible Silencer, I feel for you! I hope you got to the doctor and got one of those shots that Attalus mentioned. I can't think of anything worse than your PI situation, except for those people you hear about burning it while burning twigs and brush, and they breath it in. Imagine the insides of your lungs itching! *shudder*



You are probably correct. But luckily I don't think I have PI that bad atm, just sucks with the placement LOL (palms). I don't think I got too much of the oil on me, probably some miniscule amount but I'm so damn allergic to it, didn't take much! I only use the hot water thing if it is on my hands, as there is really nowhere else on my body that could take the pain of the hot water. Plus I can angle my hands in a way where I won't spread it, like, down my arm or on my fingers or anything. It IS an oil, and water breaks up oil, and it is working, the itch has gone down completely and only pops up now and then today, thank goodness! If I had PI worse, and elsewhere on my body, I'd be using the Aveeno oatmeal stuff, make it into a paste. It does work drawing out and drying out, just sucks having it on your palms because it dusts off and I don't like Oatmeal keyboard and mouse LOL.

<font color=plum>Well, I'm one of the lucky ones that seems to be mostly resistant to poison ivy/oak/sumac. I've never had more than a mild reaction, and that was usually the result of direct contact - since I am also unable to identify the stuff on sight.

My dad, however, is very allergic. He breaks out into a rash if he just walks near the stuff - and the worst cases he had occurred when he was burning brush. He didn't breathe any of it in (thank goodness), but he did get spread over most of his body by the smoke. He uses pure bleach to dry it out. I can't imagine how bad that must sting and burn, but it usually dries it up within 48hrs.

However, the absolute worst I ever heard of happened to my maternal grandmother. When she was a teenager, she and her friends would use poison ivy to see if their boyfriends loved them or not (guess they never heard of using daises). They would take a small twig with the leaves on it and trace the name of their boyfriend on their back. If they developed a rash, it meant that their boyfriend truly loved them. My grandmother had a friend trace Grandpa's name (Virgil) on her back. The good news is that she discovered Gramps really loved her. The bad news is that she was bedridden for 10 days due to the depth and severity of the rash.

Of course, it could have been worse - Gramps could've been named "Bartholomew" [img]graemlins/stunned.gif[/img] :D </font>

I seem to recall that your average soap doesn't do much for poison ivy or its cousins... other than to help spread the oil all over your body, that is :( An old friend used to say that you had to go to a heavy-duty soap -- something like Fell's Naphtha -- in order to wash the oils out.

Oh, and there are more precautions as well. The clothes that you were wearing when you caught it... those need extra special washing as well, unless you *like* getting reinfected...

Next time I get nailed with it, I'm going to find a doctor like Attalus... :D