burn help needed right now!

[LG Gone Wild]

I scalded my thumb an hour and a half ago. I iced it immediately. I've been icing it. OMGosh it still feel like its on fire. Should I go to Urgent care or ER. Or can I wait it out?

[Jennifer in MI]

How bad is it? Is there a blister? Or is it just red? Have you taken anything for pain? Advil? I'd try the pain reliever first. If that doesn't work, try urgent care and see what they say.

:grouphug::grouphug::grouphug: Burns hurt SOOOO much!!!

[LibraryLover]

Onion juice. Score an onion and saturate the burn with the liquid over and over again. If you don't feel any relief, go to the ER.

[Dobela]

Be careful with the ice. You can actually damage the skin even more with it. I agree with the pain killer. There are also some ointments for burns at most pharmacies that you can buy OTC. If it is blistered or black you need to go to urgent care.

[Jennifer in MI]

Onion juice. Score an onion and saturate the burn with the liquid over and over again. This is a miracle juice.

 

Really? This is GREAT to know! Thanks!

[LibraryLover]

Really? This is GREAT to know! Thanks!

 

 

Yes. It's amazing.

[specialmama]

If you haven't lost your skin enough to require a graft, the hospital won't do anything except put polysporin or vaselin on it and give you a pain killer.

[Lolly]

I've been known to sleep with my hand in cold water all night when I've burned it. Big pot, water, ice, insert thumb/hand.

[LG Gone Wild]

It's red with a tiny blister. I popped a vicodine. don't feel any better. the moment i take off the ice, the pain is right there

[LG Gone Wild]

I've been known to sleep with my hand in cold water all night when I've burned it. Big pot, water, ice, insert thumb/hand.

 

 

egads, that might be me....i've been burned before but this is the worst

 

i thought ur not supposed to put ointments on burns?

[TKDmom]

If you haven't lost your skin enough to require a graft, the hospital won't do anything except put polysporin or vaselin on it and give you a pain killer.

 

:iagree: That's what I was thinking. You can get some burn relief bandage things from the pharmacy. I can't remember what they're called. But it's a blue square with gel on it that you wear like a bandage. It feels nice and cool and it'll keep the burn hydrated to help it heal faster.

[rootsnwings]

Original Crest toothpaste (paste, not gel) really helps too! (((HUGS))) Burns really hurt SO bad! :(

[LibraryLover]

egads, that might be me....i've been burned before but this is the worst

 

i thought ur not supposed to put ointments on burns?

 

Yep. Don't smother a burn.

[Lolly]

egads, that might be me....i've been burned before but this is the worst

 

i thought ur not supposed to put ointments on burns?

 

That's what I've been told. Keeping it in water doesn't damage the tissues and keeps the oxygen off. I do put ice in the water, but just enough to keep it very cool. Not really icy cold. I've had burns that I thought would really blister, but I kept it in water and it wasn't nearly so bad.

Edited September 24, 2010 by Lolly

[Halftime Hope]

1) if you have any lavendar essential oil in the house, that will do wonders for the healing. I'm not sure any of the other items that have been mentioned will actuaaly help heal the burn, except for the onion juice. ? Lavendar will. I keep a bottle of the really good lavendar just for burns. It is truly amazing what it will do. If you do have some, mix it 1:5 parts with another carrier oil such as almond or EVOO if you have nothing else.

Lavendar by itself can be rather drying.

 

****

 

2) About the pain. I have had a number of burns, and I have a theory that what keeps the pain persisting is the repeated changes in moisture content of the skin. Normally our skin is able to keep a relatively constant moisture content, but when it is damaged, not only are the nerve endings damaged, but the area isn't able to function in the same way as before. If you can put something on it that will stabilize the moisture content and keep it constant, the pain will diminish and end much sooner. I believe that that is what makes the gel bandages comforting. I never use a gel bandage, but putting an ointment or an oil on it will soothe it as well. Aloe gel is healing, but it dries out, so I've never had that work well for me.

 

hth

[Matryoshka]

I've been known to sleep with my hand in cold water all night when I've burned it. Big pot, water, ice, insert thumb/hand.

 

I did this last time I burned myself. It was kind of by necessity - I usually just run a burn under very cold water or ice it, but this time every time I stopped for even a moment there would be burning, searing pain. So I just filled a bowl with ice water and sat there all evening with my finger in it. It didn't end up even blistering!

 

And as long as it was in the ice water, it didn't hurt much.

[kalanamak]

It's red with a tiny blister. I popped a vicodine. don't feel any better. the moment i take off the ice, the pain is right there

 

I burned myself on melted cheese last week, and the whole tip was very red. Ice hurt, too, so I put ice near it, in a wet cloth. After about 4 hours it suddenly stopped hurting. The next day it was just a little sore, the blister re-adhered, and that was it.

 

Keep it cool, elevated, and relax.

[gaillardia]

1) if you have any lavendar essential oil in the house, that will do wonders for the healing. I'm not sure any of the other items that have been mentioned will actuaaly help heal the burn, except for the onion juice. ? Lavendar will. I keep a bottle of the really good lavendar just for burns. It is truly amazing what it will do. If you do have some, mix it 1:5 parts with another carrier oil such as almond or EVOO if you have nothing else.

Lavendar by itself can be rather drying.

 

****

 

:iagree:A great reason to have lavendar oil around. Hope you feel better soon, power woman.

[GWOB]

Last week I accidentally poured boiling water on my pointer finger. Big ouchie! Like you, I couldn't take my icepack off without seering pain. I left the icepack on for about 4 hours, took an ibuprofen, and was able to sleep. Mine didn't blister. The pain had subsided dramatically the next day. Just today, about 10 days after the event, the damaged skin peeled off. Hopefully, this is a minor burn that will stop hurting within a few hours. :grouphug:. Burns stink!

[LG Gone Wild]

Thanks for the quick responses. I was (still a bit) freaked out over the intensity and longevity of the pain. Even vicodine is not helping (and vicodin makes everything feel better;)). I am waiting for that magical moment when the searing pain stops. Sadly, I have no lavender oil or onions even. I wish I had one of Asta's morphine lollipops.

[Starr]

Do you have an aloe plant?

[LG Gone Wild]

Do you have an aloe plant?

 

Sadly, no.

[Peela]

The official recognised treatment for burns here in AUstrala is to put the affected part under running cold water for I think it is 15 minutes, maybe longer. I have never heard of using ice before and I have done several First Aid courses...ice would burn!

[Lizzie in Ma]

The only way to keep them quiet it to keep it in ice water. NOT ever just ice, then you irritate the burn you already have. There were times when I worked in a bakery that I would actually go to bed with my hand still in a bucket of icewater.

It takes a long time sometimes.

[ktgrok]

Honey has been shown in clinical tests to work wonderfully on burns. They actually use it in some hospital burn wards now!

 

And ditto the "use cold water, not ice" information.

[MotherGoose]

Soak it in a cup of cold, iced milk. Really does wonders for me. Instantly takes away the pain.

[LG Gone Wild]

It's finally stopped hurting, twelve hours later. So far my thumb looks normal, just wrinkled and dry. I had it in ice water the whole time. For the entire 12 hours, every time I took my finger out, it immediately felt like my thumb was still cooking. Whew! Glad that's over.

[Jean in Newcastle]

I'm glad that it is feeling better.