poison ivy / alergy in general

[Soundguy]

I guess I have about 'average' to moderate alergy symptoms.. Grass especially cut grass.. polen.. etc usually gets me goin.. I take either zyrtec or alegra and sometimes nasonex to control this.

Insect bites don't bother me.. usually have only very minor issues.. like redness at bit site.. but no other symptoms ( I used to be alergic to ants and bee's like crazy... however after teenage years.. nada.. )

Now.. poison plants. No response to oak or sumac. And I've only had very light reactions to ivy in the past ( also cresote ). however.. i chalked the ivy issue up to 'proper' handling.. I.e. gloves.. and good washing with soap.. thus figured I wasn't getting much contamination.. thus none or little kin reactions.

Yesterday I was at the back of the property and i set up another chix pen. i was clearing some brush and vines I had cut with my machette and a swing fling, and was piling it outta the way.. no gloves... was being lazy. after I had piled all the stuff up.. i noticed it had alot of poison ivy in it.. not just a little. Rain was fast approaching so I had to finish the pen and get my supplies put up... besides.. it was almost dark anyway..

A little bit later I noticed the telltale red sploches showing up on my hands and arms... I did a few good washings with soap, and then had my shower and before bed I took a benadryl and put some antihistamine/steroid creme on the splotches, and just 'hoped' they wouldn't be worse int he AM. To my surprise, there was virtually noting left of the splotches. I had to look very hard to find even 2 of them.. the rest went away.

Did I just get lucky? Or? Does poison ivy just not effect some people very much ??

( any med people out there to comment? )

Soundguy

 

[scott_vt]

Mornin Soundguy,
Well, not a medical person but I have about the same reaction to poisonous plants as you. If I wash up good after being in it Im usually good to go. But honestly, I dont think I would go rollin in it in this heat and humidity There might be that one time where soap and water doesnt work When I was a kid I got it good a few times and my memory still is servin me well

 

[Farmwithjunk]

I'll get a touch of Poison Ivy every year, but POISON OAK....Uhhhh! 3 times in the last 10 years I've ended up hospitalized of that stuff. NASTY. I've found one good preventitive and one good treatment for me. Wash effected areas with chlorine bleach as soon as possible. That seems to reduce the effects if not prevent. Once I get it, the only real relief is when I wash it with the hottest water I can stand. Takes the itch away. That takes away the tendency to scratch. That in turn helps prevent further spreading.

After the last episode, I've got my "radar" tuned to POISON OAK frequency. The leaves might as well be neon orange now. I can spot that stuff in a heartbeat.

This has been the worst allergy season I can ever remember. Grass and tree pollen has been unbelievable this year. I ALWAYS get at least one bad cold every winter. This past winter I beat the odds. No colds. I DID IT! Then spring got here and I got socked with the worst case of allergies I've ever experienced. Short of staying inside, which was absolutely NOT an option, there wasn't much to be done but suffer the effects.

 

[Soundguy]

Yep.. I was startin' to get worried. I usually have low to no responce to p-ivy.. but never knew if it was just that I wasn't too alergic to it.. or because i really really tried to stay out of it...

I still will chalk this one up to luck and good soap and post care.

We have a lady at work that is so alergic to p-ivy that her skin turns tomato red, bubbles up, then crusts and crack.. takes her 2 weeks to get over it.. Yikes!! i sure don't want that to happen!!!

Soundguy

 

[John47]

I'm pretty alergic to Poison Ivy and P/Oak, if I don't wash and scrub up right away I end up with watery blisters that weep and itch like crazy. Only cure or relief I've found was the same as "Farmwithjunk" chlorine bleach! It dries the affected area up and stops the itching.
Funny though, when you research p/ivy treatments, all say DO NOT USE chlorine bleach! I still do!

 

[slowrev]

Poison ivy does not bother me , I can weed eat the stuff.
The wife is another matter though, she can just get close to the stuff in hot weather and break out. Working with roundup I have just about eradicated all of the poison ivy on my property. Should finish up this year.

 

[SailorBob]

It is funny that you started this thread now. I had a storm knock down a magnolia tree this weekend. I had to get it moved out of the way. I dragged it off with the tractor but, to get the chain around it I had to wade into a brushy area. I did not notice it at the time but, that brush was full of poison oak. I woke up itching like crazy the next day. I got it all over my legs. If I had been paying attention I would have avoided it by putting on some long pants and shirt but, nooo!

I am very sensitive to PO. Last time I got it I had to go to the doctor and get a injection to dry it up. PO is some nasty stuff much more potent than poison ivy.

 

[roxynoodle]

When I was about 6 years old I had poison ivy from head to foot. After that was no longer allergic to it until about 2 years ago. I could walk through it and pull it out with my bare hands. Then 2 years ago I had a really bad reaction that took all summer to clear up and a minor reaction last summer. So now I'm being very respectful of it.

 

[JRobyn]

I had exactly the opposite reaction, Roxy! When I was a kid we played in the woods all the time and had plenty of exposure to poison ivy, but I never or rarely had any effects. Then when I was a smart*ss teenager, I bragged about my "immunity" to some friends, grabbed a big handful and rubbed it all over my arms and face. It took me about 3 or 4 weeks to get over the extreme allergic reaction, and I have been very "sensitive" to it ever since!

 

[Spark_man]

Neither my wife nor I have ever had a case of poison ivy/oak/sumac - we're in our mid forties. We have 4 boys (ages 11 to 25) and they have all come down with reactions from mild to severe. The youngest seems to be the worst - all he has to do is get near it. I have a friend who never had a reaction until he was in his 70's, so never say never.

I will say that if you do have a bad reaction, the best thing for it (besides steroids) is a product called Zanfel which you can usually find at your local drug store. The stuff is something like $40 for a small tube, but it really does work.