Ooh, I itch!

[mysid]

Poison ivy has invaded my backyard, and being the good(ish) mom that I am, I decided that I really ought to get rid of as much as I could before my kids accidentally encountered it. I donned long plants and long rubber gloves and journeyed forth to do battle. I ripped out as much as I could find, stuffed it in a plastic garbage bag, and then immediately went inside to take a shower. (My clothes went straight into the washing machine.)

The next day, a few spots of rash appeared here and there on my arms just above where the gloves had protected. "Not too bad," I thought, and I dosed the rash with anti-itch gel when it began to bother me. The rash got worse as the days went by, but my handy anti-itch stuff always did the trick.

Today--days later--I awoke to find the tops/insides of my thighs covered with the distinctive blistery rash of poison ivy. How the hell did it get there? I was wearing long pants! And now my left breast is getting itchy too. I swear--I haven't had sex outdoors in years!

All that I can think is that when I showered that day, my washcloth spread the poison ivy oil from my arms to other areas of my body. [Grumble]
.

Comments

[mysid.livejournal.com]

Thank you. I'm on my way to the store to buy real Benadryl. It got me through the night last night, but it was the last dose in the bottle. [Turned bottle upside down and shook out last drop.]

(You'll love this one: My son with multiple allergies can't take Benadryl allergy medicine because he's allergic to one of the ingredients.)

[fantomeq.livejournal.com]

I like the liquid Benedryl a lot better than the pills for working fast. But then I feel like a zombie all day, but it's usually worth it.

Oh, poor kid! That *is* an off-beat allergy! We have to get dye-free Benedryl here. (Heaven help me if Elizabeth needs antibiotics again. The pink ones come up faster than they go down.)

[mysid.livejournal.com]

It could very well be the dye in it that he's allergic to. I haven't found the dye-free kind to try it yet.

[fantomeq.livejournal.com]

Does he get a rash or something else? (Elizabeth throws up.) I get all my dye-free meds from Walgreens. They have Benedryl and ibuprofen (the generic's corn free, which is great for us). Or I use adult capsules--I crack them open and give Elizabeth the powder or pellets inside (estimating the dosage. She takes 3/4 of a Prevacid each day for her reflux). Alternately you have to meds things made at a hospital pharmacy, which is a royal pain and expensive. The great thing is that there are more choices out there than Benedryl now. Didn't have too many to choose from when I was a drugged-up allergy kid. I used to sleep all summer!

Probably your guy's allergic to something other than the dye though, because it's Red 40, which is in practically everything processed, even white frosting! I hate that stuff. It's good encouragement for our family to eat fresh things though.