Worst Experiences with Poison Ivy, Oak and Sumac?

June 14, 2007 | MississippiMasterpiece

[Blueflag]

My herbicide of choice is the Roundup formulated for poison Ivy. It really does kill it.

I also enjoy the winter-time hikes with a machete where I cut the big mother-vines growing up the oaks and polars..

[ken5050]

I seem to remember that you’e NOT supposed to wash with cold water, or is it the other way around..and you have to use a strong soap, becuase otherwise you just spread the oils to more skin area....is this true?

[showme_the_Glory]

When I was in the 7th grade all my friends had experienced poison oak and some were very allergic. I, on the other hand had brushed against it many times with out so much as the slightest itch. So, we were down by the creek and a friend said “look out, that’s poison oak”. I said I’m immuned to it. So on the dare, I grabbed a handful and rubbed it on my left arm. Wow, what a hard lesson. I still have the scars. Now I avoid it like the plague.

[Tribune7]

Eat the stuff (Poison Ivy that is) to build up an immunity to it's affects.

A false and dangerous myth

Myth 2. If you eat poison ivy, you'll be protected from it in the future.

False. It's difficult to imagine how such a dangerous myth became so widespread. Eating poison ivy can result in a serious reaction and can even be fatal. Still, every year, students repeat this myth beginning, "My uncle says..." or "My Papaw says..."

[Rte66]

Tecnu dissolves urushiol. I can’t leave home without it. I slather it “all over muh body” when I’m going someplace outdoors that I’m unsure about - even under my long-sleeve shirts and my socks - and on my face, especially. I put a few capfuls of the lotion in the wash with all my clothes I’ve worn outside.

I’ve gotten poison ivy off the arm rest of a car ridden in by people who cleared their own brush and are immune to PI. We both had back yards full of it along the fence lines.

I used Brush-B-Gone to get rid of it, but went through too much of it to keep it affordable for me, so I went out and sprayed Clorox, diluted with just a little water to stretch it, directly all over the plants, leaves, stems, everything, three clear, non-windy days in a row and it usually killed 99% of it.

Note also that it turns red in the winter time and makes berries - and even the soil where a small vine used to grow has urushiol in it. I can’t be in the same county with this stuff!

[Enosh]

"Others say clear nail polish painted over the bites help ."

That's a myth, covering chigger bites with anything to "suffocate" them does nothing because the little torture bug is already gone.

What the pest did to you was inject digestive fluids and suck out the liquid flesh. Unfortunately, that stuff is still in there and the only solution is to wait for your body to heal.

But MAN! That's an itch that goes into your brain and out the other side and scratching it only makes it itch more.

[alwaysconservative]

Hot, hot, hot, HOT baths with no soap are the first step. Someone up thread suggested bleach. I’ve not tried that, but I would first try hydrogen peroxide on a cotton ball, which seems to work for everything else.

And if you’re a fan of “My Big Fat Greek Wedding”, there is some truth to the belief that Windex will dry out most rashes. You can google “Windex” and “rash” to find out the (quasi-) medical explanations for that.

[kenth]

It might be worth it to pay someone to clear it out for you, just make sure they don’t weedeat it or burn it, but carry it off. You might want to let them know that it is poison ivy, etc. 8-)

I can rip the stuff up and get nary a welt. My brother can look at a picture of the stuff and break out all over. Calamine, buckets of calamine is what my brother always used.

[Blueflag]

Tecnu is actually new information for me. FReepers always add value, eh?

I’ll see if I can get some at my local ACE h’ware or perhaps the Piggly Wiggly ;-)

[Rte66]

Tennis shoes and boots, too! Get the oil off the bottoms, by washing or scrubbing, or you will track it into your house.

Then, when you walk barefooted on the linoleum or even the carpet, you get it on your feet. If you sit cross-legged, like I do, or even when you just take your socks off, however you might touch your feet, you’ll get the oil on your fingers and boom! Another outbreak.

[Ditter]

A piece of poison ivy brushed against my foot and I continued to react with hives and whelps on my foot for 5 months, thats right FIVE months and that is with taking everything the doctor had in his bag. I know what will kill it now.

Get something called Stump and Vine Killer mine is Green Light. Don’t bother spraying the leaves, the root will put out new vines and leaves and continue to grow. Find where the root goes into the ground and make a cut just above the ground. Put a few drops of the Stump and Vine Killer right on the cut. Don’t delute it, use it straight, it only takes a few drops, depending on the size of the vine.

Good luck and remember everytime you get poison ivy it is a little worse than the time before. I didn’t used to get it at all and now I am extremely allergic.

[trimom]

Make sure there is none on any firewood you plan to burn, even outside. My husband and some friends went camping and some nitwit threw a log entwined with poison ivy on the fire.

Since it was summer, several men slept on top of their bedpacks in shorts. Those downwind of the fire had rashes everywhere - and I mean EVERYWHERE - that the smoke had drifted.

Bad enough to need steroid does packs.

Hubby slept upwind.

[MortMan]

If you think you’ve come in contact with it, wash the area right away. Use only water—soap only spreads the oil.

I recommend Dawn dishwashing liquid as the soap - It does a great job absorbing the oil. Most soaps tend to spread and thin the oil, but with poison ivy (and oak, and...) a little goes a LONG way!

Good luck with the new piece of land.

[Rte66]

Walgreen’s. It’s a tiny bit pricey, but worth every penny, believe me. Bottle of lotion is maybe $12 - but Walgreen’s sometimes has BOGO sales of “Buy One Get One Free” (2 for 1), which I always watch for. Little amounts of it go a long way, luckily.

I haven’t needed it lately, but I think there’s possibly something even better - I’ve heard that there is, but haven’t looked for it to find out.

My doctor told me not to use hydrocortisone cream on the itch, as it would leave scars. I’ve had the dosepaks and also have used gauze or cheesecloth soaked in Domeboro Burow’s Solution and laid across any blistered places, to dry up the oozing and weepy places, so I always keep a package of that handy, too.

[traderrob6]

I went through bottles of nail polish, it helped a bit. Certainly have learned my lesson.

[doc30]

Not me but my uncle on a hunting/fishing trip in northern Ontario. He had to do his business in the woods and found a fallen log to act as a toilet seat. No toilet paper so he grabbed some nearby leaves to wipe with...Big Mistake! Poison Ivy and it was a 2 day hike out of there! ANd no, we didn’t increasse his beer ration.

[expatpat]

I believe (but don’t know) that you start with lots of cold water, no soap, to get as much off as quickly as possible. Soap acts as a surfactant, and will probably help the oils to get into the skin. When you have as much off as possible that way, then use soap to remove any thin film of oil left.

[andy58-in-nh]

A word to the wise: when you wash an area of skin affected by poison ivy be sure to use cool or cold water only. If you use hot water, the oil will get deeper into open pores and the rash will be greatly intensified.

[Little Ray]

For my entire childhood, I was not allergic to poison ivy, etc. I could play in the stuff and not get a rash - folks touching me or my cloths might, though.

Nowadays, I don’t take any chances, though.

[Thrownatbirth]

I found that Anatabuse (disulfiram), the stuff they give alkies, makes me immune to poison ivy, and my doc confirmed it. I thought it might be because I simply wasn’t falling down in the woods as much anymore.