Getting poison ivy always makes me wax nostalgic. Growing up in Storrs, Connecticut we were always close to the woods and there was plenty of poison ivy around. In the summer, I'd go traipsing through the low ground cover and disappear in the cool woods. I'd see huge ferns growing on the carcasses of fallen trees, fed by the dimpled sunlight filtering in through the canopy of leaves above. I'd note fungi growing on moist limbs and from moss gathered on a rock buried like an iceberg, a comparatively small surface the stone exposed. And during those excursions I'd inevitably rub my legs or clothes on the oily leaves of the ivy plant.
At that age - 10, 11, 12 - I wasn't paying attention to, well, much. And I certainly wasn't practicing any preventative measures like washing hands or clothes after parading through the grass. I got poison ivy multiple times a summer. Everywhere. Not washing up meant my hands were covered with the ivy oils. I'd touch my face, my eyes, go to the bathroom (yup, got it there, too).
One time I went to sleep with a small case of it and woke up in the morning with my eyes literally swelled shut from the allergic reaction. That was scary. We went to our family practitioner who prescribed some Benadryl pills. Benadryl can cause drowsiness.
The next day, my mom went to work and I was home alone. She called the house to check on me, but there was no answer. She called again and again no answer. She worried and called a neighbor. Unaware of any of this, I was surprised to find the mother of my neighborhood friend in my bedroom rousing me out of bed. With little explanation that I can recall, I was put in a car - still in my pajamas - and brought the the doctor's office, where my mom met us. The doctor checked my pulse, blood pressure, and temperature. He shined a bright light into my eyes and asked me if I knew who the President of the United States was (Reagan). I was declared fine other than extremely groggy and was sent home.
Scratching the top of my pink-dotted foot reminds me of those idle summer days, exploring woods that seemed as infinite as my youth.
Stay tuned.
1 comment:
Putting witch hazel on it helps and so does meat tenderizer, although I can HIGHLY recommend against combine the two together and applying the mixure directly to "the bits" (it was an act of final desperation). They seem to have sort of a vice grip effect, been there done that.. ONCE!!
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