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Re: [billcoe_] Poison Oak and Ivy issues reliefs cures:
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duckbuster_13
Jun 22, 2007, 7:54 PM
Views: 8277
Registered: Nov 10, 2004
Posts: 154
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if you live in an area that happens to have an amish or menenite (sp?) population, buy some of their soap and wash with it immediately after exposure and again the rest of the day. if you get some itching the next day, wash again and you're probably good after that.
Why?
Most soap that you find in stores does not have the same ingredients as the home made stuff. It's usually more mild and dermatologically sensitive.
The home made stuff contains a lot of lye, which is a strong alkaline and seems to have a hand in somehow altering the oil from poison ivy. While theoretically any soap with a high lye content should work.... we actually purchased some that is specifically designed to treat/prevent outbreaks of poison ivy/oak and even get rid of chiggers. (again, purchased from the local amish folks) I'm honestly not sure what the difference is from normal home-made soap, but it noticeably tries out your skin... even your hands and DEFINITELY prevents outbreaks from occurring.
Case Study:
last year and the year before, it was required that i go to the emergency room once, and on at least 4 other separate occasions receive a corticosteroid injection/prescription to prevent parts of my body from swelling and aching.
This year, we acquired some of this soap.
on one occassion, we were scouting a new climbing spot that has very little traffic and since it was an impromptu trip, i had on only shorts and low cut hiking shoes. There were several areas at the base of the cliff where it was unavoidable to walk through PI. I tried stepping ON it mostly, but saw/felt leaves brushing on my legs.
I went home and washed with the soap. not even a tingle the next day. never got an itch.
on another occasion in another spot, I had leaves brush my arms several times and even stepped on a plant while walking barefoot after taking off my climbing shoes. Went home and washed with the soap.
The itching started anyway the next day... i thought for sure I was screwed.... i washed again. within an hour the itching stopped and never came back.
Incidentally, my buddy that was with me went home and washed with normal soap... he's not as allergic as I am so he doesn't invest in "special" soap... but he got at least a little bit both times... so i guess that makes him the "control" of our inadvertent experiment.
(This post was edited by duckbuster_13 on Jun 22, 2007, 7:57 PM)
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Edit Log:
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Post edited by duckbuster_13
() on Jun 22, 2007, 7:57 PM
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