poison ivy question

[Anonymous]

So I'm wondering if anyone with some experience can help me out....I have poison ivy (or at least that's what my NP says it is) for the first time in my life. I'm not sure how I got it, she says you can get it even if you don't touch the plant. It started out 8 days ago, I probably started treating it about 3 days in with steroid cream ( although sparingly because I"m pregnant). It is now day 8 and it is continuing to spread...is this normal? THe original patch does seem a bit better but the subsequent patches are still itching like crazy and making me nuts! Anyone have any good tips?


FWIW, so far I've been using two diff steroid creams, zanfel scrub, and calamine lotion. Thanks!

[Anonymous]

Unfortunately, I have a lot of experience with this.

Since it still seems to be spreading and itching, you are probably having a systemic reaction and need oral steroids. The cream is just not enough. Call your doctor back and get a prescription. The steroid packs start with a bunch of pills for the first few days, then slowly taper off for a total of 10-14 days. You will almost complete itch relief within 24 hours.

For temporary relief, take a really hot shower and let the hottest water you can stand run onto the affected areas. (I start with hot water then slowly increase the temp as my skin tolerates it.) This will help your skin sweat out the histamines, which are causing the itching. Do this especially before bed. It will ease the symptoms for a couple of hours.

As to how you got it, the urushiol oil (which is what our skin reacts to) can last on surfaces forever if it's not washed off, so if you had some on tools from the previous summer that had contact with poison ivy, you could get it from touching them. Ditto with clothing, garden gloves, etc. The oil also stays in the dirt, so if you kill and/or dig up poison ivy plants one summer, you can still get poison ivy from the dirt when you plant something there two years later. It is an evil plant!

You can't spread poison ivy by scratching an itchy spot and then touching your skin elsewhere. If it does seem to spread this way, you've either got a system reaction or else the plant oil hasn't been washed off your skin, clothes, etc.

I had it when I was five months pregnant and it slowly spread over almost my whole body over the course of a couple of weeks. I was reluctant to treat it b/c I was pregnant but the OB approved a steroid pack and the relief was so wonderful. During the first trimester, you shouldn't use steroids, and an oral steroid pack is strongly contraindicated.

[Anonymous]

thanks for your reply...i thought oral steroids were totally out of the question so it's nice to know that might be an option. I'm at the end of the first trimester, so i guess i will have to wait a bit longer. did your OB treat it?

[Anonymous]

The Washington Post had an interesting article this past August about Poison Ivy www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/30/A

The doctor they interviewed recommended applying ice or cold water to the area.

I had a horrible case that only improved with a steriod injection followed by 2 weeks of oral steriods. It was horrible. Good-luck.

[Anonymous]

I swear it helps to run a hot hair dryer on the affected area.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:thanks for your reply...i thought oral steroids were totally out of the question so it's nice to know that might be an option. I'm at the end of the first trimester, so i guess i will have to wait a bit longer. did your OB treat it?

My OB told me to go to my dermatologist and have the derm call her first before writing my prescription. I was about 20 weeks pregnant at the time. This was about six years ago. About three years ago I got poison ivy again. When I was getting my prescription filled that time, the pharmacist told me that the prescribed steroid pack was a new drug and really terrific, and she asked if I was pregnant. I said no. Turns out, I was pregnant but it was too early to know. I had a miscarriage around 7-9 weeks. Could've been a coincidence as I was 40 at the time, but I've always wondered.

I hope you find some relief. That first time, I waited so long to get help that I was really run down-- I basically was awake half the night for a few weeks because the itching was so intense. I ended getting a terrible ear virus that lasted for two months. So take good care of yourself in the meantime!

[Anonymous]

OP, the long poster again:

When I first posted, I didn't notice that you said you're pregnant, so I suggested an oral pack without realizing that. Sorry. (I just happened to mention my own pregnancy experience. Anyway, hope my second post clarified my experience/advice!

[Anonymous]

WIll your doc let you take antihistimines? You might be too far along in a systemic reaction to do this, but when I'm exposed, I take a Claritin in the morning and a Benadryl at night every day. It kills the reaction before it spreads to my entire system. Last summer, I had a systemic reaction and needed oral steroids. It really helped.

[Anonymous]

Your derm. should've told you to cover the poison ivy with guaze - enough to help dry it up, but also enough to keep it from spreading. Plus, covering it up will also discourage you from itching.