Poison Ivy! How can I fight it with stuff I find in my kitchen?

October 20, 2017 5:53 PM

Last weekend I was in upstate NY and rolling around in leaves and playing with dogs etc. Now I have what appears to be poison ivy. Theres a big patch on my left hip and then little random dots elsewhere on both thighs. What to do?

So I think I have poison ivy. First off, it's not that bad. No blisters or pus or anything else horrifying. Just red dots. It looks kinda like this -picture I found online that looks similar. The picture is not that gross, I promise.

The itching is very slight. There is no pain. I've had it about a week and it seems to slowwwwly be getting better BUT it's also spreading in that every day I notice a new little dot or two elsewhere on my leg. What can I do to stop the spread and speed up the healing process?

Slight wrinkle - I'm also sick in bed so I"m not about to run out to a pharmacy and pick up some new meds. I'm looking for suggestions I can do tonight like oatmeal or rubbing alcohol etc.

posted by silverstatue to Health & Fitness (21 answers total)

How long between the time of contact and the time when the rash appeared? Is the rash in an area that had direct contact with the plant leaves/oil?

What are the other symptoms you're having that are keeping you sick in bed, and when did those begin?

I'm wondering if it's really poison ivy, since you say it's on your hip and it isn't blistering.
posted by bunderful at 5:59 PM on October 20, 2017

Response by poster: Oh no, the sick in bed part is from a cold that has been going around my office! Totally unrelated! That's a head cold that has already almost run its course.

The poison ivy I assume was picked up this weekend and showed up sunday night, so about five days ago. Its all on my upper thighs.
posted by silverstatue at 6:02 PM on October 20, 2017

Your upper thighs were exposed to plants?

It usually crops up on hands, feet, ankles, forearms - areas where skin is exposed and likely to come into contact with plants. Forgive me if I'm beanplating. It just seems odd it would happen there and not anywhere else.
posted by bunderful at 6:04 PM on October 20, 2017 [1 favorite]

If it is in fact poison ivy, get some Tecnu. You're supposed to use it right after exposure but it does help a little if you use it over the whole affected area afterwards.

After you've gotten all possible oil off yourself and your sheets, cloths etc using the tecnu, calamine lotion or oatmeal baths are nice.
posted by Dr. Twist at 6:06 PM on October 20, 2017 [1 favorite]

Soap is poison ivy's worst enemy. The rash comes from the plant's oils, which can be picked up on hands or gear, brushed against skin, and pop up in different places. Some spots on the body may be impervious where others got an extra dose. The best way to prevent an outbreak after being outdoors around PI is to scrub hard with just plain soap - the scrubbing in combination with the detergent removes the oils really well, and you can forestall an outbreak with that alone.

If you're already breaking out, still worth scrubbing your hands, fingernails, and skin really well with soap to get rid of any lingering oils. If you have aloe in the house - such as aloe vera gel for sunburn - that's an effective treatment. And here's the Mayo Clinic's science-based home remedy recommendations. It'll go away quickly if you keep it clean, and try to avoid scratching because you'll create sores and they can get infected, which prolongs the problem. I also find hot compresses help relieve itch.
posted by Miko at 6:22 PM on October 20, 2017 [3 favorites]

Wash your dogs.
posted by fshgrl at 6:32 PM on October 20, 2017 [7 favorites]

It's too late for Technu - the oils you're reacting to are long gone. The best thing you can do now is to keep that skin most and healthy. Make sure you wash anything you were wearing in hot soapy water.
posted by Dashy at 6:36 PM on October 20, 2017 [1 favorite]

The oils are not necessarily long gone, they are persistent and hard to break down. But this is almost a week later so... yeah they are at least mostly gone from your skin, though plenty may still reside in dog coats, clothing, bedding, furniture, etc. These could also be sources of continued exposure.

My frontline defense after exposure is to shower with plain laundry detergent. Effective at reducing total damage and irritation at least up to 72 hours later in my experience, bonus points for being cheap and almost always on hand.

Low effort to try, may still help prevent spread/re-irritation.
posted by SaltySalticid at 6:53 PM on October 20, 2017

Response by poster: Thanks everyone so far. The dogs aren't mine, so I haven't been exposed to them since Sunday.

I changed my sheets and put everything I had been wearing in the laundry. I have an aloe plant so I'll put aloe on the breakouts. I also made a nice oatmeal and warm water paste, which took care of the itching. I just wish I could get rid of the redness!
posted by silverstatue at 7:06 PM on October 20, 2017

Cortisone cream if you have it in a medicine cabinet. Otherwise oatmeal or aloe for the itching. I find calamine next to useless.
posted by bumpkin at 9:11 PM on October 20, 2017

My daughter was playing in leaves and was diagnosed with scabies. They’re little burrowing mites and they move around. Better get checked out.
posted by raisingsand at 10:34 PM on October 20, 2017

Based on the placement of your rash there is a chance you could have shingles. Ask me how I know. I would recommend a doctor visit, it is no joke.
posted by mai at 5:26 AM on October 21, 2017 [1 favorite]

Mod note: One deleted. Let's skip the more gruesome / likely dangerous home remedies. thanks.
posted by taz (staff) at 7:03 AM on October 21, 2017 [2 favorites]

Response by poster: i just looked at so many gross pictures! From what I read, it doesnt sound like shingles in that it's not painful at all, its on both sides of my body, and it hasnt formed blisters. It also doesnt sound like scabies in that there are no tracks (borrowing signs).

I dont know...maybe it's just a mysterious rash then? it barely itches now. I just want the redness to go away. I guess if it doest go away in a few more days, I'll go to Urgent Care.
posted by silverstatue at 7:47 AM on October 21, 2017

I've had poison oak (same poison, slightly different plant) many times, sometimes quite badly. The best fix I've found for the itching is a very, very hot shower. The water has to be near unbearably hot but it relieves the itch/pain for a number of hours better than anything else you might have around the house. Of course, if it's not poison oak then this may not be useful.
posted by anadem at 12:01 PM on October 21, 2017 [1 favorite]

calamine (?) lotion
posted by patnok at 12:12 PM on October 21, 2017

Are you sure it's poison ivy and not the result of a tick bite? Poison Ivy usually itches.

Mom shares horrifying photo of legs after trip to pumpkin patch
posted by La Gata at 12:21 PM on October 21, 2017

That sure looks like PI; the non-itching nature of the rash is what's puzzling. It is possible that you got one direct contact (the patch), then were re-exposed when you wore the clothes after washing them (or others that they were washed with). That would explain the random dots appearing in other areas. I hope that you continue to dodge the itch, but if you don't, anadem's hot water treatment is what has worked for me.
posted by bullatony at 12:35 PM on October 21, 2017

Urushiol rash doesn't spread. And generally would not appear as little dots scattered apart from each other.

Some places the urushiol oil from poison ivy can stick around that you might not have thought to clean -- shoes, any hard to launder outerwear, anything you sat on while wearing the clothing like a car seat or sofa, things you might have handled with urushiol on your hands or gloves like a backpack or purse.

It's possible that you've been touching your thighs with something that got the oil on it. You'll have to think about what has been touching the skin in that area.

I suspect it's a rash from something else though. I've never, ever heard someone ask for tips to make a urushiol rash look better before -- the itching, the horrible horrible itching is pretty much always the top problem people want to go away. That, and that it's spreading.
posted by yohko at 1:16 PM on October 21, 2017

It's not a home remedy, but the sure-fix is prednisone, appropriately used (scaled to the extent and severity of rash, and tapered down quickly). Most other remedies are mostly useless in my experience.

But if there is no itching and no development of small pustules you don't have poison ivy/oak -- like yohko says.
posted by lathrop at 2:01 PM on October 22, 2017

Response by poster: I don't know, guys. I sent pictures to my sister who is a landscaper and basically a poison ivy expert and she's says it's not that. I guess it's just some allergic reaction? Def not a tick bite since A. there was no bullseye and B. I meticulously do a tick-check every night when I'm upstate. Since I also had a head cold this week, maybe because my immune system was already so low/taxed, my skin just had a little freak out. Regardless, it's finally starting to calm down now. Hopefully it'll clear up completely in another week or so. Thanks for the advice anyway, for if I ever get poison ivy in the future!
posted by silverstatue at 6:05 PM on October 22, 2017