Help! Poison Ivy/Oak
 

Anyone have a special cure for this stuff? It is spreading like wildfire up my legs and I CAN'T get rid of the crap! It itches worse than the thought of a million spiders all over you!!!!!!!! :mad1:

I don't have a cure for it...don't think there is one but if you are extremely allergic, you can get shots for it to lessen the chance of getting it. I am very allergic too and get it several times a summer. I don't even have to touch it directly, I get it from the cats and dogs when the oil from the plants get on their fur.

What helps me is...I put rubbing alcohol on it to help dry it up faster and then I use calamine lotion (it comes in clear now too) to help with the itching. If the itching gets too bad, you can put cold compresses on it. I find, for me anyway, when I'm warm, the itching is worst. If it gets too bad or you have it in very large areas, you can get treatment for your Dr.

My Dr. insists the stuff doesn't spread, but rather, keeps forming new patches if the oil wasn't washed off properly initially, but sometimes, I think it does spread..it seems to anyway.

Also, if you haven't washed the oil from the plant off your clothes or shoes, it can infect you much later if you touch that item again.

Hope some of this helps. I feel for you...that stuff itches like crazy...I just got over some myself and try to stay out of the wooded areas as much as I can to help avoid it.

Good Luck!

OMG! My brother gets that stuff bad :eek: He just used calamine lotion and benadryl unless it got bad enough for him to have to go to the doctor.
I hope you can find something to get rid of it!

My neighbor told me to cut open a potato and rub that on.
The dr saying it doesn't spread is like saying babies' colds and ear infections are not related to teething. It does spread. I was keeping it covered, and the pharmacist just informed me that it will spread to everything under the band aid area if it's still oozzzzzing. Daaaa. That's why it's now ALL the way around my ankle.
I agree, heat makes it worse. Got in the tub thinking it would help, and the itching wouldn't stop then. Thanks Rose for the help. I'll be working on it. Joy

When I got posion Ivy/Sumac this summer, first I looked all these crazy cures on the internet that didn't work. I went to a pharmacy and the pharmacist told us to get this spray for it and it's called Ivy Dry. Don't put it on more than three or four times a day, because when it says dry, it means it. It'll shrivel your skin up if you put on too much, but it does dry up the poision ivy/oak/sumac or what ever. I used it and it worked, and my uncle also said it worked for him, so I recommend it. And if your skin does shrivel up, you can always put a little lotion on it and it will be fine. You might also want to take some benedryl before you go to bed so you won't scratch it in your sleep.
If you decide to try that stuff, hope it works. Good luck, the stuff sucks!

Geeze, I feel like I'm taking after my grandma, telling people what to do if you get this or that! Sorry if I was rambling on and on!

i have some poison oak or ivy on my arm right now. i think i got it while mowing the lawn on Sunday. I hope it goes away soon. I've been using some benadryl cream and i took some of the pills about an hour ago.

What the heck is poison ivy?

It's a rash you get from the Poison Ivy plant and it itches like crazy. You get patches of blisters that can be singular or in clusters and they can ooze a pus. Not everyone is allergic but alot of people are. I get it so often, I carry packets of alcohol wipes in my purse to relieve the itching when I'm away from home.

Hey Crest and others,

I totally have a cure for poison ivy. Dead sea bath salts, its made by Beauticontrol.
I get poison ivy soo bad and the doctor wants to give me steroids for it and I cannot take steroids. I have adverse/allergic reactions to them. I had poison ivy when I was pregnant for like 6 months (talk about miserable, you can't take anything when your pregnant)

It's called therapeutic bath minerals. It has salts from the dead sea and it is good for people with aches pains arthirits and skin diseases like eczema. I was soo desperate after weeks of it spreading and using aveeno oatmeal bath (which barely helped) I threw a couple of tablespoons of the dead sea salts in the tub and it was amazing. The itching stopped, the next day it was drying up and was not spreading anymore. Actually the areas were just pretty much fading away. Doesn't dry your skin out or have any harmful ingredients. All natural (god's medicine) Now If get poision ivy, (usually its from my dogs) immediately after the onset of the rash I would use it and I would hardly have a reaction. Seriously, this is the best stuff.... If anyone wants more info let me know. I have turned alot of people on to this and it has really helped them.
I really feel your pain.... I have been just a lurker here for the past few weeks and couldn't pass up this thread. good luck and let me know if you need more info. It really works amazingly well. Good luck, Terry

Thanks for the info and Welcome to the board. Can you get that at Pharmacies or Health Food Stores? Do you know if it helps Fibromyalgia?

I was prescribed Aveeno Oatmeal bath once for Poison Ivy and broke out in Hives from my neck down so I have to be careful what I use, especially if I soak in it. Is it ok for people with sensitive skin?

Have a good day.

OMG Rose. My son was soaking in Aveno once for Hives, and he started screaming. His hands and feet swelled up to balloons and I had to get him out right away!
PlayGtr, you are so kind for such a lengthy response to help. Sorry it took me so long to get back to this. I have had MAJOR computer issues lately. Hope you enjoy the boards here, really nice, kind folks here. Thanks again, Joy