A Day In the Life of Me: Poison Frickin' Ivy

Okay, so most of you know by now my struggles with Poison Ivy this last couple months... Well, in case you didn't know or were wondering... it's still not over!

It all began on September 6th at 10:20am when I took my daughter to the outdoor Outlet Mall here in Leesburg, VA. I was only planning on being there 30 min! I had a $10 off coupon for Carter's to get a dress for my daughter. An easy in and out! Well, on my way to the store we passed one of those machines the kids like to rid for quarters. Well I'd used up all my quarters the previous week for her and had none this time. So, to distract her, I gave her my keys to hold on to... I know, I know- that was my first mistake! Well, somewhere between the car and the Carter's store (only about 200 yards) Hailey lost my keys and I didn't notice. It wasn't until we got back to the car to leave that I realized they were gone! You can all probably relate to the "sinking gut" feeling and the tangible rise in blood pressure as you run through all the places you'd seen it last and realizing that you have NO CLUE where it is! Yea... that was me. I literally RAN back to the spot where I gave Hailey my keys and spent the next 5 hours searching up and down the walk ways between that spot and Carters.

There are three walkways at the mall and they are separated by manicured bushes, flowers, plants, and grass. I practically dug through all these plants in search for my keys. I never found them... we had to have our car towed and re-keyed ($300!!!.. ridiculous!) But I did come home with something unexpected! Poison Ivy. All over my arms and face. But wouldn't you know it- I am HIGHLY allergic to poison ivy! I always have been, and I avoid it like the plague! So I avoid touching anything green. But while I was at the mall there was a gardener there pruning and manicuring, so I felt comfortable sticking my arms in their bushes. Mistake #2. Never trust anything green!

less than 24 hours from the time I came into contact at the mall withe poison ivy

swollen eye

puss pocket

eye and forehead

so gross

puke.

I went to the doctor as soon as I could and they said it was the worst case of Poison Ivy they'd seen in a long time! My arms became a large bubbling sack of poison and puss. It was disgusting and extremely painful and itchy all at once. The doctor put me on Prednizone and the poison ivy cleared up in about a week and a half (thankfully), but not without some major scarring! As soon as the prednizone dose was over, I broke out into what I thought was Hives... turns out it's an acute dermatitis that is a systemic reaction to the poison ivy. Apparently poison ivy is a toxin that can sit in your system for quite some time. So they put me back on prednizone to clear up the rash. Well once again, as soon as the dose was over, the rash came back!

So this time they gave me a steroid shot and another dose of prednizone, but I reacted poorly to the shot and went into vasodilation and almost passed out in the office! It was horrible! It took me 2 hours to get back to normal and finally get out of the doctors office! And again, once the dose was over, the rash came back! So it was all for nothing. Now, here I am almost 2 months later- still covered in rash and scars and tired of being on Prednizone. I may have to just wait this out and let my body do it's work... thoughts?

Well I sent a complaint to the mall and they sent my claim on to the lawn care company who has since said that it's not their fault and they refuse my claim.... Not sure that's fair considering they allowed the poison ivy to grow- maybe not on purpose, but nonetheless. And I've spent over $500 in medical bills, prescriptions, and bandages and lotions/creams etc. And it's STILL not over! Shouldn't they be responsible for these costs they have cost me?

Do I pursue? I don't even know how to go on from here... or do we just drop it and cut our HUGE losses? Ugg. Meanwhile I am trying to live stress-free to allow my immune system to do it's job. Lots of napping and oatmeal bathing! :) We'll see how long I can keep it up before I have to go back to the doctors.