Poison Ivy! Help!

[Melissa in St Louis]

My sweet DD has poison ivy -- anyone have a miracle cure? For the most part she feels fine (her eye is quite swollen, and that bothers her a bit) but she looks kind of awful. :crying: She has a little patch on her tummy, back, and arm, but it's mostly all on her face. We went to the ER in the middle of the night two nights ago because she woke up miserable and puffy. She's on omnipred and benedryl. She DETESTS the hydrocortizone cream they recommended and cries when I put it on. So far our best bets are keeping frozen veggie bags on the area and having her knit to keep her little hands busy. She's in good spirits and wants to fun around and be wild. :D Is there anything I can do to help her heal quickly?

[DusksAngel]

You might try calamine lotion

[GoVanGogh]

I got a lot of relief from Zanfel.

I read the reviews and they were very mixed, so I was hesitant to spend the money. But after a few days of suffering, I was eager to part with my money and give it a try. Your mileage may vary, but it was worth the $$ for me.

I also like the Aveeno poison ivy ointment.

[Lara in Colo]

It is the oil from the plant that is irritating.

 

#1 Do not spread the oil

do not scratch a and then b, b now has PI

try and keep cloth between skin parts (for instance when it is on the inside leg, when you sleep, you touch legs-- Whammo! next morning, PI on a new leg

 

#2 clean as much oil as you can.

There are some cleaners specific to PI, but I find dish soap to work as well.

Wash in the SHOWER (oil floats, you get up, you now have PI in new areas).

 

#3 now you are in the "grin and bear it " zone.

Benadryl

 

Sorry, PI is very Unfun.

 

Lara

[Melissa in St Louis]

Thanks so much for the responses. We are in the "grin and bear it" stage, for sure. Even worse, I just saw that my son is starting to break out as well! :banghead: This coming week was supposed to be "Camp Grandma" for the kids so the Mr and I could have an amazing anniversary celebration! :banghead: :banghead: :banghead: Good grief!

[Nakia]

Bless her! Unfortunately we know all about poison ivy. :(

 

My best recommendations are oral Benadryl, which you are already doing, and topical Calamine. And don't forget to have her take her entire steroid series even if she is much better before it's done.

 

:grouphug:

[Lang Syne Boardie]

I do know a miracle cure: Tecnu. Check your local pharmacy. It is a little pricy but it works incredibly fast. She'll feel better within half an hour, and by bedtime you'll see a dramatic difference.

 

You have to kind of rub it in, so read the label instructions before you use it around her eyes. If my child had the poison ivy on the eye area I would use Tecnu, but use your own judgment, of course.

 

The product to clean clothing, bedding, etc. with:

 

 

The product to use on skin:

 

[Ginevra]

I do know a miracle cure: Tecnu. Check your local pharmacy. It is a little pricy but it works incredibly fast. She'll feel better within half an hour, and by bedtime you'll see a dramatic difference.

 

You have to kind of rub it in, so read the label instructions before you use it around her eyes. If my child had the poison ivy on the eye area I would use Tecnu, but use your own judgment, of course.

 

The product to clean clothing, bedding, etc. with:

 

 

The product to use on skin:

 

 

 

Wow! Incredibly helpful, though we don't have an outbreak to handle at the moment!

 

Poison Ivy = Plant of Satan. :glare:

[Lang Syne Boardie]

Wow! Incredibly helpful, though we don't have an outbreak to handle at the moment!

 

Poison Ivy = Plant of Satan. :glare:

 

Yes, it is! My third child has a real knack for finding it, too.

[Ginevra]

Yes, it is! My third child has a real knack for finding it, too.

 

I used to brag, because I was apparently immune. When I was pg with my youngest - lo and behold! Suddenly I could catch it by merely walking past the woods! (And I live in the woods!)

 

He messed up my body chemistry. I blame him. :glare:

[orangearrow]

The Tecnu is amazing. Unfortunately, it works best if you use it immediately after exposure. We have one child who is highly allergic and here are the things I've learned in the meantime:

 

* the poison ivy doesn't "spread." What happens is - some areas get more of the oil than others. So, it first shows up on her elbow... then a couple hours later, it's WORSE on her elbow.... then, hours later, it's on her wrist. Then, the next morning - it's on her face! Then on her knee!! ....

 

so, we assume it's "spreading" but it's just that certain areas were less exposed and thus take longer for the rash to make its appearance.

 

Once we understood this, my child's life improved dramatically. Originally, we tried to keep her away from siblings/friends - we kept the "bad" areas bandaged or covered so they wouldn't spread... she was miserable.

 

Now, we just let her skin be. She's still itchy, etc... but not miserable because we're keeping her all covered and "protected."

 

* Wash anything she wore, wash her bedding, clean her seat in the car, etc. The oils could still be lingering on those areas, thus giving her new rash areas.

 

hope she's better soon!

[raceNzanesmom]

A cool shower washing the PI in Dawn dish soap can help. Make sure to wash everything that came in contact with the PI- shoes, hair ties, everything.

 

My friend had good results with Ivy Dry, but the 2nd time she got it she tried Dawn and said that worked well too.

[Melissa in NC]

Tec Nu is a wonder.

[zaichiki]

Zanfel is amazing. My oldest has ended up in the ER several times b/c he is extremely sensitive to poison ivy. We found Zanfel and haven't been back to the ER. Wahoo! (Love that Zanfel!)

[torikei]

As someone else said, poison ivy doesn't spread. The oils can stay on clothing, shoes, etc. I read about a gentleman who got poison ivy at the same time every year. They finally figured out that his hunting jacket was covered in the oil. He only wore the jacket at hunting season. The easiest way to prevent spreading is to shower and wash exposed clothing.

 

Almost everyone is allergic to poison ivy, but some people have to be exposed many times before they will break out. My husband used to say he wasn't allergic, but then he filled his quota of exposures :D Hope your daughter feels better soon.

 

Tori(who dislikes posting from her iPhone)

[Denisemomof4]

I do know a miracle cure: Tecnu. Check your local pharmacy. It is a little pricy but it works incredibly fast. She'll feel better within half an hour, and by bedtime you'll see a dramatic difference.

 

You have to kind of rub it in, so read the label instructions before you use it around her eyes. If my child had the poison ivy on the eye area I would use Tecnu, but use your own judgment, of course.

 

The product to clean clothing, bedding, etc. with:

 

 

The product to use on skin:

 

 

a pharmacist told us NOT to use Technu on the face.

[scmama]

My oldest son is just now drying up and is out of the itchy stage...man was it HORRIBLE!!! I was trying to find stuff that wasn't so mixed with chemicals. But you really want to wash with the Dawn dish soap, it breaks that oils up and gets it off. And I totally agree with doing it in the shower, you definitely don't want to sit in those oils as a girl!! Then you want to get something that will dry up those blisters.

 

After trying all kinds of things to get him relief, my son decided that white vinegar helped, and aloe vera. Every night while he was itching and blistery, I made him wash with Dawn, and then put on the white vinegar, and then after that soaked in he wanted the cooling feeling that the aloe vera gave him. I don't know...but it helped him.

 

We brought at Walmart the Ivarest (I think that's what is was called), he said it burned him., maybe because of the opened blister, raw skin. Also be careful with things near the eyes, and on the face, because even the scent or chemicals in the product can aggravate and irritate the eyes, which will cause her to want to rub her eyes.

 

Good luck, and I hope she heals quickly!!

[k2bdeutmeyer]

I didn't read all the responses, but we JUST went through this a few weeks ago. Thankfully, our ped put DD on oral prednisone. Cleared it up within 2-3 days. So thankful for that!!