So I have poison ivy. Again (had it this past fall right before I got married). I’m very allergic and when I get it, it’s systemic. My skin is bright red and I look like a burn victim. My face is covered and my arms are covered and it’s starting on my neck and my legs. Ugh! So frustrating!

What makes it worse is that it started Saturday after I got bumped in the face on Friday by my horse. Next day, itch on my face. By Monday morning, a good amount of poison ivy was on the one side of my face. I called the dermatologist’s office and got an appointment for that morning with a different doctor than I’ve seen before, but an appointment nonetheless. See, I’m very allergic to poison ivy and while it doesn’t get bad right away, it will get bad. Saw doctor who told me it didn’t look bad and that he’d give me ointment but no prednisone. I told him it was going to spread, he told me with the ointment it wouldn’t, lectured me that prednisone was only for bad cases and my case wasn’t going to be bad. I was told to call back in 2 days if it got worse, but that it wasn’t going to get worse.

Wednesday rolls around and it’s over my arms, face, and hands. Still not terrible, but definitely spreading like crazy. Got a followup appointment with idiot doctor just because it was the easiest thing and his nurse set it up (if I had called to set up my own appointment, I’d have asked for someone else). So I drive back to dermatologist’s, people in the office are shocked at how much worse it looks… I see the doctor who makes a flip comment along the lines of “what’s wrong this time? Not feeling better?” I tell him (like he can’t see) that it’s spread, I’m itching like crazy, and the stupid ointment isn’t doing anything. He then says “I guess we’ll put you on prednisone, that’s what you want, are you happy now?” Um. No. Why would I be happy? I don’t like prednisone, but I need it. If I had gotten it Monday, I would have already been on track to beat this thing. Now I’m covered, my skin is killing me, I itch, and I’m miserable. To make matters worse, I leave in the morning for a 5 day business trip.

I hate poison ivy!!!! I’m sitting around with ice packs on my skin to cool the burning and itching. So miserable!!!

I’ll update on the other happenings at some other point.