Oatmeal & Poison Ivy

Although I do know better, I was working in the garden this past weekend without gloves.

Sitting at my desk on Monday morning, I noticed little bumps on my arm. Sunburn, I thought and ignored it. By Tuesday it was a case of poison ivy. No need to panic as I know oatmeal is the solution.

So today I sit at my desk with a nice-looking bandage on my arm, covered by my jacket sleeve of course so my colleagues don't think I'm contagious. Underneath is a paste made of colloidal oatmeal. Just add water to the oatmeal and create a paste. A band-aid can hold it in place for hours, relieving itching and hopefully speeding up the healing process.

You can buy these in packets at a pharmacy and other stores as well. Just add the oatmeal flakes to a bath to relieve itchiness from not only poison ivy, but also eczema, hives, sunburns and even chicken pox.

Another holistic remedy for poison ivy is to use homeopathic remedies. These are the little pills you place under your tongue. You can find these in any health stores and even some grocery stores. And now these remedies have the names of the ailment right on the bottle. These work great.