| I bought a house 4 years ago in rural Vermont. Until then, I had not had poison ivy for probably 25 years. Since then, I've gotten it every spring/summer -- sometimes from doing yardwork, and sometimes from my cat's fur after he's been out in the woods. This year, my reaction was so intense I had to go on prednizone for a week. I'm on my second outbreak right now. Coincidentally, I hurt my back at about the same time I started with this second round on my arms. It occurred to me that many of the over-the-counter poison ivy "remedies" contain things like camphor and menthol. I have been using Extra Strength Bengay on my back and saw that the ingredients are very similar to the poison ivy anti-itch meds, so decided to try it on the blisters. It is, by far, the best thing I've found to stop the itching. And believe me, I've tried just about everything. For the first time, I don't have oozing blisters because I'm not scratching them. They are there, for sure, but by not scratching them I'm not opening the skin and creating scars in the process. I highly recommend trying this! |
