Itching for answers?
In reference to publisher Gary Dickson”s article about the misery of poison oak on Sept. 18, as a fellow sufferer of poison oak, I would like to share one remedy that works quickly and is easily accessible: the hottest long shower you can stand.
If a rash has developed, use plenty of soap to quickly dry it out. Warning: During the shower the itching may be intense, but afterward there is a half-day of blessed relief. If the exposure is bad, it may be necessary to take two or three showers a day for a couple of days, but if caught early, one shower is usually enough.
Before I learned to read the beginning symptoms and treat them with the long, hot shower (or just hot water and soap over my arm if that is where the exposure is), I remember having to strap sanitary pads to my legs in order to contain the miserable, itchy, weepy mess; that did not contain it.
Now I know that if I”m scratching an itch that doesn”t go away for a couple of days, and there is no initial rash, watch it. I immediately treat it and there are no more symptoms.
