Poison Ivy (or Sumac or Oak)

[laurelrun]

I get poison pretty badly, so I am used to what you are going through. But several years back, what I thought was poison actually was shingles. By the time I went to the doc, there wasn't anything to be done to help with the rash, as the antivirals are only useful before teh rash erupts. I had nerve pain in the area for a couple years. But it has since gotten much better. If your usual treatments don't seem to work, I'd suggest you ask the doc about that. Shingles sucks!

I'm still too young for the vaccine, but I suggest anyone eligible go and get it.

 

[dryflyguy]

laurelrun wrote:
I get poison pretty badly, so I am used to what you are going through. But several years back, what I thought was poison actually was shingles. By the time I went to the doc, there wasn't anything to be done to help with the rash, as the antivirals are only useful before teh rash erupts. I had nerve pain in the area for a couple years. But it has since gotten much better. If your usual treatments don't seem to work, I'd suggest you ask the doc about that. Shingles sucks!

I'm still too young for the vaccine, but I suggest anyone eligible go and get it.

From what I understand, shingles is pretty painful. And did get the vaccine a few years ago. I really doubt that's what I've been getting.

 

[JF_]

I'm in day 6-7 of a bout with poison ivy after doing some bush trimming last week. Both arms have a decent rash, plus around my neck (from idle scratching) and waist ( from adjusting pants). I've had some serious cases before and should have known better, but I just wanted to a quick cleaning and didn't take full precautions, although I did wear long pants so my legs are clear.

 

[Swattie87]

Update: Original spot is essentially the same size, beginning to dry out some and generally less itchy, unless rubbed against or otherwise disturbed. Still a fair amount of swelling though given the size of the patch. A couple of other smaller spots have appeared elsewhere...opposite shin, along my waistline on my right side. Much less severe and much smaller in size but both look and behave like classic PI. I haven't touched my waders, clothes, or any gear I used fishing that day again in that time span. I know the urushiol can get anywhere and can be slower to react but I did some thinking...

That same weekend I went fishing (two weekends ago now), I now remember something with my dog. Winner winner chicken dinner to Tim Murphy. I usually let her out to go to the bathroom (#1) out front. She goes immediately and runs back in the house. Everything out front is landscaped and manicured. That weekend on Saturday we had to be somewhere and two of my neighbors were out front with their dogs as we were getting ready to leave. We were running late, and I didn't want her to be distracted by the commotion of the other dogs and not go, so I let her out back...something I don't usually do. For this very reason...She saw a bunny and chased it to the wood line surrounding a retention pond. She didn't go into the pond, but she stuck her head and at least her front feet into the wood line before realizing she'd lost the bunny. We had to be somewhere so I hurried out the door and didn't think anything of it and didn't even remember it until now...Just looked back there tonight after trying to figure this out some more. That wood line's ground cover is nearly all PI. The height of her head is right to my knee and she has a habit of nuzzling my legs after I get out of the shower, almost like a cat. After fishing that Sunday she sat with me on the couch against my right side too. Makes a bit of sense now.

Good news, I think we're safe in our waders again.

 

[FarmerDave]

afishinado wrote:

FarmerDave wrote:

Hmmm

The hot water might buy you some relief from the itching if you already have the rash. that sounds reasonable. But I want to add that if you know you got into it, use cold water to wash it off as a preventative.

If you know you got into it, wash with cold water. Soapy if convenient, but I usually don't carry soap with me in areas where I might get into it. My reasoning is that the oil is water soluble. Hot water will remove it, but is also opens the pores which could spread it or help it penetrate, so cold water is best after initial contact. IMO of course.

I don't seem to have a problem with poison ivy. It's either because I do that whenever I get into it, or I am one of those lucky ones who don't react to it. I don't want to test the theory.

Hey Dave,

With all the time you have spent outdoors, and have never had a reaction to it, chances are you are not allergic to the oils.

I have never had a reaction after all these years, either. My wife has had some really nasty bouts with poison ivy right around our house. She has learned to stay out ot the woods in and around our back yard, but most times it happens when the dog roots around and she touches him.

I've read estimates ranging from 15% - 25% of people have no reaction to contact with these plants. Anyone in this group should consider themselves lucky not having to go through with many of the guys above have to endure.

You are probably right, but I never said I never had a reaction. I just haven't had one since 1985 and that was minor. I was pulling it from my shrubs at my place in Connecticut without wearing gloves. I was careful not to touch my eyes and face, and when I was done I washed up with warm soapy water just in case it was poison ivy (i actually wasn't positive at the time). I ended up with just a couple blisters on the backs of a couple fingers. I've been more careful since, and haven't broken out since.

 

[FarmerDave]

dryflyguy wrote:

Anyway, I always have some Tecnu around. And start scrubbing with it at the first sign of a rash.
And once blisters have formed, I use witch hazel - which seems to help dry the blisters, and relieve the itch

I planted a witch hazel bush a couple years ago. Partially for the late bloom, and partially because it has medicinal properties. No idea what those properties are though.;-) I'll have to look into it's uses. I'm hoping it blooms this fall. It apparently has cool looking flowers.

 

[FarmerDave]

laurelrun wrote:
I get poison pretty badly, so I am used to what you are going through. But several years back, what I thought was poison actually was shingles. By the time I went to the doc, there wasn't anything to be done to help with the rash, as the antivirals are only useful before teh rash erupts. I had nerve pain in the area for a couple years. But it has since gotten much better. If your usual treatments don't seem to work, I'd suggest you ask the doc about that. Shingles sucks!

I'm still too young for the vaccine, but I suggest anyone eligible go and get it.

I was going to say similar. Wife is sensitive to poison ivy. She had the same thing happen. She got a rash, and for a day or two we thought it was PI. Turned out to be shingles. She was luckier than you though. We apparently got to the doctor sooner than you because her nerve pain cleared up in a few weeks.

Since you brought that up, there is a new shingles vaccine out that apparently lasts longer. Doc said I don't have to wait until I am 60 to get it, and it is covered by insurance.

This is good news for me because I am 58. Of the 6 kids in my family, 3 have already had shingles, and every one of them before age 60.

Wife said it was at least as painful as passing a kidney stone. Doc said that you can get shingles more than once, so she will be getting the vaccine, too.

 

[Bamboozle]

FarmerDave wrote:
You are probably right, but I never said I never had a reaction. I just haven't had one since 1985 and that was minor... I've been more careful since, and haven't broken out since.

Urushiol sensitivity increases WITH contact so your "carefulness" may have helped.

In other words, the less you come in contact or the more diligent you are after coming in contact, the less severe the reaction.

 

[FarmerDave]

Bamboozle wrote:

Urushiol sensitivity increases WITH contact so your "carefulness" may have helped.

I heard that way back then. Was told or read that nobody gets it the first time they get into the stuff, but if they keep getting into it, they will eventually break out and it gets worse after that.

I didn't say it earlier because I have no idea if it is true. But that is why I have been careful.

I suspect that I am not very sensitive to it, and I have no desire to test this theory. I hesitate to claim that I am immune. I could be, and the blisters could have been from something else.

I know I have been in it a lot over the years, but I recognize it when it happens and take precautions.

If I suspect that I have gotten some against my skin, I start looking for water to immediately wash it off. If I suspect I brushed against it with my clothes, clothes go straight into the washing machine when I get back to the house so wife is not exposed to it. She had broken out from it badly before we met. But by me coaching her... and removing it from anywhere near the house,she hasn't had a real issue, either.

BTW, I am knocking on wood.

 

[dryflyguy]

FarmerDave wrote:

dryflyguy wrote:

Anyway, I always have some Tecnu around. And start scrubbing with it at the first sign of a rash.
And once blisters have formed, I use witch hazel - which seems to help dry the blisters, and relieve the itch

I planted a witch hazel bush a couple years ago. Partially for the late bloom, and partially because it has medicinal properties. No idea what those properties are though.;-) I'll have to look into it's uses. I'm hoping it blooms this fall. It apparently has cool looking flowers.

My wife keeps a bottle in the bathroom. She uses it as an astringent - whatever that means.
But the label also says that it's good for many kinds of minor skin irritations.
I like using it - instead of calamine lotion - because it's clear, and absorbs into the skin fast. And I don't have those chalky, pink blotches that the calamine leaves

 

[afishinado]

FarmerDave wrote:

I heard that way back then. Was told or read that nobody gets it the first time they get into the stuff, but if they keep getting into it, they will eventually break out and it gets worse after that.

I didn't say it earlier because I have no idea if it is true. But that is why I have been careful.

I suspect that I am not very sensitive to it, and I have no desire to test this theory. I hesitate to claim that I am immune. I could be, and the blisters could have been from something else.

I know I have been in it a lot over the years, but I recognize it when it happens and take precautions.

If I suspect that I have gotten some against my skin, I start looking for water to immediately wash it off. If I suspect I brushed against it with my clothes, clothes go straight into the washing machine when I get back to the house so wife is not exposed to it. She had broken out from it badly before we met. But by me coaching her... and removing it from anywhere near the house,she hasn't had a real issue, either.

BTW, I am knocking on wood.

Interesting FYI on who is effected by those plants:

Have you ever wondered: Can I get poison ivy? What you're really asking is: Am I allergic to the plant? Not everyone is. Up to 85% of Americans are allergic to poison ivy, leaving at least 15% resistant to any reaction.

If you are allergic to poison ivy, you're more likely to be allergic to poison oak and poison sumac, because all three plants contain the same rash-triggering plant oil called urushiol (pronounced yoo-ROO-shee-all). You're also more likely to have an allergic reaction to other plant resins, such as the oil from Japanese lacquer trees (used on furniture), mango rinds, and cashew shells.

Sensitivity to poison ivy, poison oak, and poison sumac varies from a mild to severe reaction, and may not cause any reaction at all the first time you're exposed. Some adults who reacted to poison ivy as children may find that they are now less sensitive. Some may even lose their sensitivity altogether.

Link to source: https://www.webmd.com/skin-problems-and-treatments/guide/understanding-poison-ivy-oak-sumac-basics#1

 

[Swattie87]

Yeah, it's kinda backwards. Technically, you're still building a "tolerance" to it as you're exposed to it more and strengthening your body's reaction to it. Problem is, in the case of urushiol, your body's reaction to it is what you're trying to prevent.

I got it a lot as a kid. Some moderate cases probably, but none as severe as the location on the back of my knee this time. By far the worst.

FWIW - My fiancé appears to be in the 15%. She's never had it in her life, and the dog (if she indeed was the source) has spent far more time in her lap in the last 10 days than mine. She has extremely poor tolerance to sunburns however...She burned like crazy at the Pocono race on Sunday, where I am fine and applied far less sunscreen than her. We all have our chinks in the armor.

FD - Witch Hazel is good for the roids, if you got em'.

 

[redietz]

It works both ways:

https://www.zocdoc.com/answers/6199/can-you-lose-a-natural-resistance-to-poison-ivy-as-you-get-older

 

[Fredrick]

I used to get rashes from the plant but I believe I have developed a resistance as I haven't had any rashes in a long time and I fish regularly . I also have developed a almost complete resistance from stinging nettles I can tell when I have been stung by the plant but I have a very low reaction to it .

 

[FarmerDave]

Swattie87 wrote:

FD - Witch Hazel is good for the roids, if you got em'.

I did have one two cabins down from us at the jam this year. ;-)

 

[afishinado]

Fredrick wrote:
I used to get rashes from the plant but I believe I have developed a resistance as I haven't had any rashes in a long time and I fish regularly . I also have developed a almost complete resistance from stinging nettles I can tell when I have been stung by the plant but I have a very low reaction to it .

Never had a reaction to poison ivy....but stinging nettles ssssttttttiiiinnnngggg!!!

 

[Bamboozle]

Best advice I can give anyone is do what Dave said:

FarmerDave wrote:

If I suspect that I have gotten some against my skin, I start looking for water to immediately wash it off. If I suspect I brushed against it with my clothes, clothes go straight into the washing machine when I get back to the house so wife is not exposed to it. .

I carry Technu wipes & soap leaves or a small bottle of liquid soap in my fishing shirt pocket too however, like many moist wipes in a sealed package the Technu wipes WILL dry out so you have to open one once in a while to make sure or replace them every so often.

The Technu/soap thing has been a life saver for me MANY times.

Once while fishing the Breeches without paying particular attention I proceeded to remove a fly snagged in a tree branch only to discover (too late) that the branch was covered in Poison Ivy and the leaves I was fumbling around in were "leaflets three".

Without missing a beat I left my rod tucked under my arm, retrieved a Technu wipe and cleaned up. I immediately followed that with some soap & water and escaped an outbreak that would have been a doozy.

Some more SUPER good advice: If you think you got it on your hands, remember to wash you hands BEFORE taking a leak...

...the outcome if you don't is NOT fun and yes I know from experience. 😳

 

[FarmerDave]

Bamboozle wrote:

Some more SUPER good advice: If you think you got it on your hands, remember to wash you hands BEFORE taking a leak...

...the outcome if you don't is NOT fun and yes I know from experience. 😳

I don't know.

Imagining someone trying to splain the rash to their wife sounds pretty funny to me.

 

[bigslackwater]

Don't use bleach!!! When I was in my early 20's, I gave myself a chemical burn by applying it to a large open patch of poison ivy. My calf and ankle turned black and I couldn't feel my foot. They put me on a heavy does of steroids. Doctor said I could have lost my foot had I waited any longer.

 

[Dave_W]

bigslackwater wrote:
Don't use bleach!!! When I was in my early 20's, I gave myself a chemical burn by applying it to a large open patch of poison ivy. My calf and ankle turned black and I couldn't feel my foot. They put me on a heavy does of steroids. Doctor said I could have lost my foot had I waited any longer.

:-o