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Previously
As
an aside,
I've had a poison ivy rash that will match or surpass anything you'll
see in this gallery.
My Doc put me on 2 weeks of steroids a few days ago. (May 28)
It morphed into contact dermatitis, which sounds a lot
more benign than it feels. Sumbitch moved to my first dance
partner (left palm) on Friday. By yesterday was so swollen I could not close my fist. Hurt like a sob. Right arm throbbed enough that I had to take some Percocet. MoSup
drove me to the ER. They had to cut my wedding ring off —to
which I quipped, to nobody's apparent amusement, "I can go the singes bar again!."
Last night I slept for 6 hours (my Fit Bit logs
sleep/restlessness). That's the most night sleep I've had in a
month. Been averaging 2-3 hours. Took a three hour nap already
too.
Moral: None
that I can think of, off-hand; sht happens. Thanks for the well
wishing. |
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For God's sake make sure MoSup handles your dick for you. Unless you need some swelling down there. ;{D
ReplyDeleteThey say an oatmeal bath soothes... thought it would appeal to your cheffy side.
ReplyDeleteCasca
I've always been glad that I have a great immune system; I'm not affected by that stuff, but feel for those that are. On the other hand, setting up camp in a big ol' patch of poison ivy or poison oak gives great peace of mind.
ReplyDeleteOne of my favorite hot springs in the Columbia Gorge can only be reached (by humans) by hiking through a bunch of poison oak. I've never had anybody using the area, though I was once bombarded when a Merganzer hen decided it was time for the ducklings to learn how to swim. Apparently, the nest was in a nearby doug fir; I ended up tossing half a dozen ducklings out of the springs and into the main river near the mom.
That sounds totally awful, so sorry. I know this isn't your first rodeo with poison ivy and that it's not something that gets better with practice. Continue hanging in there and praise God your MoSup is used to nursing folks. :)
ReplyDeleteHorry Clap! As I've heard some people say.
ReplyDeleteYup, I recently suffered a bout of poison ivy. My eyes were practically swollen shut, one ear swelled up and, um, other areas had the itch and inflammation, but all that ran its course rather quickly. Not so the cellulitis that made my arm swell, caused by scratching with dirty fingernails. I was gonna tough it out, but it's a good thing I saw a doctor!
ReplyDelete"You're gonna need an ocean
Of Calamine lotion
You'll be scratchin' like a hound
The minute you start to mess around.
Poison Ivy, Poison ivy
Late at night while you're sleepin'
Poison ivy comes a creepin' around!"
Anyone who has ever attended a Safety Stand Down at NAS Jax between 1975 and 2005 probably has encountered retired Master Chief Maynard Cox. Maynard is/was (not sure if he is still with us) the "Founder and Director of The World Wide Poison Bite Information Center." Maynard single handedly persuaded the BSA and the American Red Cross to change the old "cut and suck" method of snakebite treatment to "treat for shock and transport to and ER" in all of their literature. In his "Little Red Book", "Protocol For ER Prodedures and Hospital Management of Snakebites" he has a chapter on first aid for stings. If you are still with me I said all that to say this. His method works and here it is.
ReplyDeleteIf it creeps, crawls, swims, flys, or grows on a bush and stings you the recommended first aid is:
Step One: Wash the sting area with copious amounts of warm soapy water.
Step Two: Scrub liquid Campho-phenique into the sting site.
Step Three: Make a solution of ammonia, baking soda, and meat tenderizer.
1. One cup household ammonia
2. One teaspoon of baking soda
3. One teaspoon meat tenderizer
Scrub the bitten area vigourously in order to get the solution under the skin flap and into the poison. Repeat steps One, Two and Three as necessary.
Step Four: If lesions persist mix 1 heaping teaspoon of Epsom Salt with 1 quart of very warm water and soak the area for 20 minutes four times a day.
I'm sure this is copy-righted but don't think Maynard would mind me sharing it.
Aha! All well and good, but the insidious nature of poison ivy is that, unlike a sting or bite, you don't know you've been exposed until later, and your first reaction to the itch is to scratch rather than to mix up a recipe to scrub with (or even to wash with soap and water).
ReplyDeleteWhen the itch is at its worst, one might be tempted, instead of mixing ammonia, baking soda and papain, to just mix ammonia and bleach and inhale deeply! [Just kidding!]
I live in Southeastern pa on 2.5 acres. I have NEVER seen the amount of poison ivy I've seen this year.. There are dozens of little plants sprouting up everywhere.. I've been going on a search and destroy walk around every couple of days.
ReplyDeleteAnd by special request, this goes out to Rodge.
ReplyDeleteolds-mo-william
Thank goodness I live in the desert. Everything here is dangerous, but at least you can see it coming.
ReplyDeleteWhen I lived in New England a student who worked in construction was seriously allergic to it. Right through his jeans, on both legs, up on his side, rear end, and lower back. He was in the hospital for at least a week, I saw him after another week, it was at the weeping stage and looked like old hamburger.
Sounds like what you've got.
Devil's Weed.
ReplyDeleteMy heart goes out to ya, Rodgie.
*shudder*
e~C
OMG,that's downright tragic.
ReplyDeleteWhat were you doing out in the weeds?
Bless your heart, as we say down here.
ReplyDeleteRodg,
ReplyDeleteMy heart goes out to you, I'm allergic to that bastard weed and when I break out after an encounter it's like watching a monster crawl up my legs, arms, neck, and back - and it lasts a month. I've spent half of the summers of my youth covered in calamine, eyes swollen shut and peeing on the floor because I wouldn't touch my dinger to gain control like the BSA manual said I should.
Don't scratch!
Mark in NJ
Hmmmm, folks of "a certain age" will recall another version of the Poison Ivy ditty:
ReplyDeleteThe Saigon girls are pretty,
Their hair is long and black.
And if you don’t watch it,
They’ll knife you in the back,
In Viet Nam, Viet Nam,
Oh, at night while you’re sleepin, Charlie Cong will come a creepin,
All arouunnd.
Get well Rodger.
Sir H the Comet
Stu, the concoction will work even after you scratch it for a while. Maynard recommended that you mix the stuff ahead of time and store in a glass container, never plastic.
ReplyDeleteAnd yet you arise from your bed of pain to inform and amuse us.
ReplyDeleteTalk about above and beyond!
Take care of Roger and the rest of us will bear a hand on the crank to keep the world spinning.
BLM Employee here, i swear by this stuff.
ReplyDeleteGive it a go...
http://www.teclabsinc.com/products/poison-oak-ivy/tecnu
I pray you are healing.
ReplyDeleteThree step program: Step #1- Procure 750ml bottle of Bulleit Rye. Step #2- Pour healthy quantity into Mason jar. Step #3- Apply internally as needed. Do not operate heavy machinery or operate motor vehicle while under medication. Lather, rinse, repeat.
ReplyDeleteHope You feel better Boss ; ( > SMIBSID
ReplyDeleteHere's hopin' you're sleepin'.
ReplyDelete; >
e~C
Oh lordy, you must be really bad off. Just the palm side view of your hands is to painful to consider. Good grief, hope you are at least improving and not continuing to worsen.
ReplyDelete"I've always been glad that I have a great immune system; I'm not affected by that stuff, " Bullshit...Zona, lupus, poison ivy over-reaction are all CAUSED by an overactive immune system who is attacking what it is supposed to defend like the police in a socialist country...
ReplyDeleteYou must be going through a Godawful time my friend. Going through withdrawals here Boss. Hope you heal well and come back to us soon. All my very best Rodger.
ReplyDeleteI MISS YOU! Hope your ordeal is nearly over.
ReplyDeleteCan't begin to know what you are experiencing, but those palms of yours sure do look painful. Hope you're healing well and not worsening. Prayer for you and MoSup.
ReplyDelete