I am 26 and have never been allergic to Poison Ivy. My roomate is EXTREMLY allergic, so I volunteer to tear out all of the Poison Ivy that surrounds our house. I have been doing this for five months now, never with an ourbreak. Last time I did it was a massive project that involved chainsawing some major major old hairy vines (it likes to hide/camoflauge with our grapevines...), it was Sept 10th. I went tubin' this weekend (Sept 18th) and woke up in the middle of the night itching uncontrollably. I now have red welts along my waistline, all over my forearms and in spots on my legs. I assumed it was mosquito bites at first. Then Monday at work, Chiggers. Chiggers don't spread... My roomate thinks I have poison ivy.
I messed with poison ivy nearly a week before, and I do nothave any on my hands, or feet or face, all of which were exposed just as much, or more than the other places. It is not in lines where I brushed against it, but individual welt (that look like bites) all over. However, I no longer think it can be bites, becasue bites don't spread... I still refuse to believe I am allergic to PI, but perhaps I came across some Poison Oak.
My questions are:
Is it possible to be allergic (reactant) to one and not the other? Do they both contain the same oil (irritant)? or do they have different oils?
If I am using products geared towards PI and it turns out to be something else, is this more harmful in the long run?
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