What to do in order to keep from spreading poison ivy rash?

Jewelweed is a plant that grows near poison ivy fairly often, and happens to help stop it. Crush some of the leaves and stem up and rub them vigorously with water. It’ll make a sudsy solution; rub that on the afflicted area.

That or rubbing alcohol. Or strong soap.

I live in poison oak land over here. haha
My property is clear, but, there is the worlds biggest P.O. bush right across the road from me on some vacant woodland.

First…wash everything you came into contact with thoroughly!
Clothes, shoes, sandals, anything you touched after your exposure.

It is a myth that scratching and the serum in the blisters ‘spreads’ the rash.

You will break out ONLY where the oils have made contact.

BUT…any touching before you stripped and showered will spread the oils even further.

Once the rash has erupted it will not spread unless you re-contaminate yourslef by handling contaminated and unwashed clothing etc.

Studies have shown that the leaves can remain viable for TEN YEARS sealed in a baggy. haha

The poison oak around here is turning red and yellow now, easy to spot.

Otherwise you just have to tough it out, rubbing with a washcloth under hot water will release the histamines and stop the itching for hours, but, it is an intense experience. lol

It works though.

You can also take an antihistimine and apply some OTC products such as cortisone cream and antibiotic ointment if the ruptured blisters seem to be getting infected.

Oooh, I feel your misery!

Be very careful with the clothes you were wearing as they can be the gift that keeps on giving. Wash them separately from other clothes and do a load of rags or something you dont wear or dry off with after as the oils that cause the rash can still be in the washer. Heck….take them to the Laundromat!

I heard vinegar works to soothe the itch.

Actually, if you can afford to, get rid of the clothes you were wearing. The oils can remain on cloth for up to one year, even with heavy duty washings.

My heart goes out to you, as I’ve experienced both poison ivy rashes all of my life and sunburn due to being on an antibiotic. Coloma is correct in saying to wash your body as well as the clothes.

The best way I’ve found to immediately stop the itching and help the rash dry up is Band-Aid’s Rhuli Gel.

@ all thank you so much! I think I may have done something really, really not smart. So I’m gross (you’ll see why) and may have been stupid enough to blow my nose on something contaminated in my laundry. I just grabbed something and blew my nose. I’m sure no normal people do that. However, it’s about the only thing I can think of because this has spread all over my face! My dr said to go to the urgent care. I had no clue it was that serious. I am so mad at myself for doing this. I could have totally just thrown away all the old navy $4 tank tops or just bought Kleenex. Thanks again everyone for all the helpful advise and insight. I’m going to hit the urgent care before it closes. I’ll post back with an update.

*advice sry the mobile messes up when I try to edit and I hate typos

Update – must take another oral steroid like I did with the spider. Thanks again for the help. I’d asked because it was already spreading and I had no clue why and wanted to prevent it from getting worse. Also, @Pied Pfeffer – that gel works so much better than the caladryl lotion. Thank you.

@Coloma had good advice. You won’t spread the rash from yourself to yourself, but as you have already found, you can spread the rash if you the oil spreads from clothing or any other source to previously unaffected skin.

When I’ve had poison ivy exposures, the thing that has given me the most (temporary) relief is very hot baths – as hot as I can stand it – and hot compresses on small areas. The heat seems to make the itch “boil” like crazy for about five seconds, and then it goes away for up to a half-hour or so. I don’t know what the mechanism is, but it’s almost like how you can shake up a carbonated drink to make it fizz, and then it goes flat because you did that. That’s how I describe what heat does for my poison ivy exposures.

One thing you’ll definitely want to do now is learn to recognize the plant – and anticipate where you might find it. Here is a good place to start learning.

go swimming in a chlorinated pool as much as possible.

@Coloma nailed it. Follow her advice to the letter.