XPOST: [PathOfHealth] Poisonwood / Poison Oak / Poison Ivy / Poison Sumac

[Guest guest]

Hi Annette,

 

First my apology for taking such a long time to respond to your inquiry. I

had taken some time for myself and placed certain posts in my queue for

later response.

 

Second, you write:

 

I thought that, being raw, I would have a stronger immune system to

fight off poisons.

That is obviously not true and I seem to be more " allergic " than a

lot of people.

 

I do not know how long you have been consuming a RF diet, nor any details

about that diet. Nor do I know anything about the rest of your lifestyle ...

rest, activity, etc. However, the widespread teaching that eating RF somehow

confers a measure of " immunity " upon us is misguided. What actually occurs

is that our capacity to respond is heightened. As a result, we may

experience faster, less noticeable recovery from some conditions and

seemingly sharper, more acute responses to others. And we have the

opportunity to choose gratitude that our systems possess the capacity to

respond aggressively.

 

General Discussion

 

When we rub up against poisonwood/ivy/oak/sumac, the oil on the leaves

transfers onto our skin. This oil contains a strong acidic irritant, which

our body must safely dilute and neutralize. During this process, the body

must replace most of the skin cells affected by the oil.

 

The body creates fluid-filled blisters in the skin, separating the affected

outer layer, which is to be discarded, from the new layer being constructed,

and diluting whatever oil collects between the layers. The doctor you quote,

below, is partially correct. The oil does indeed leak through the damaged,

acid-affected outer layer.The fluid between is produced to dilute this acid

and to protect the emerging new skin layer ... it is a form of safety

insulation, in effect. So attempts to " dry the rash " , while popular, are not

constructive. Such attempts reflect our having been trained to " do

something " in response to symptoms, but they do not accelerate production of

the new layer of outer skin. If anything, removal of the intervening fluid

may actually lead to irritation of the newly forming skin cells, cause some

of them to be sloughed off, and delay the overall process of resolving the

problem

 

The body retains the old outer layer until construction of the new outer

layer progresses to a point where those new cells can safely be brought to

the surface. In other words, the body needs whatever time it needs, in order

to construct this new outer layer.

 

Fasting might accelerate the process of constructing the new outer layer of

skin in the affected areas, but probably not by a large margin unless a

significant portion of your body is affected. Also, your body would

interpret fasting as a systemic rest and might choose different priorities

than you seek.

 

To my knowledge, the best thing to do is nothing--allow your body to replace

the affected skin at its own pace. Exposure to sunlight/daylight is helpful

.... but perspiration in the affected area is probably not helpful.

 

Best,

Elchanan

_____

 

From a private message:

 

Greetings, Elchanan ~

 

Quoting from one of your posts: " The symptoms are the messenger -- they

announce to your conscious mind what the body needs now, if you only you

will listen, and allow your body to complete its work. " I am curious about

what my body is saying it needs with the oozing angry itching rash that I

have as a result of being in poison oak. I have the weeping lesions on my

arms, back, midriff, groin, and behind my knees.

 

I am not able to stay in bed and fast, though I have been eating very

lightly (mostly watermelon) and drinking water. Yesterday I was covering my

skin with a poultice of activated charcoal hoping to dry up the rash a bit

and calm the itching since I'm not able to get any rest. I'm guessing now

that this is " treating the symptom " and not what I should be doing. What do

you suggest I do? I definitely don't want to retrace this " illness " later!

It is WAY too crazy-making.

 

Thank you!

Annette

______

PathOfHealth [PathOfHealth ] On

Behalf Of Annette

Wednesday, May 23, 2007 6:29 PM

PathOfHealth

[PathOfHealth] Poison Oak

 

Hi ~

 

I am wondering if you have any suggestions of how I can better deal with my

severe case of poison oak while staying raw and away from allopathic meds.

I thought that, being raw, I would have a stronger immune system to fight

off poisons. That is obviously not true and I seem to be more " allergic "

than a lot of people. I've had the breakout since Friday and it appears to

be spreading.

 

Someone told me to stay in bed and fast. Anyone who would suggest this has

obviously never dealt with poison oak's exquisite itchability which leaves

one feeling rather maniacal.

 

I read that a doctor said, " I'm surprised it hasn't been used as a nonlethal

chemical warfare weapon. " Let me say that it would be superb in that role.

 

" In poison ivy and poison oak, the blood vessels develop gaps that leak

fluid through the skin, causing blisters and oozing. " I am a mess! I have

the red oozing blisters on my arms, midriff, back, breasts, groin, and

behind my knees. Tonight my ears and face are itching. Not a good sign!

 

It's difficult to go about my daily routine with fluid literally dripping

out of my body. Nevermind that I need to not touch anything that someone

may touch after me.

 

I have tried a poultice of activated charcoal and a poultice of bentonite

clay, as well as an oatmeal bath, Tea Tree Oil and fresh aloe. All to no

avail.

 

I know all about going after the cause instead of chasing symptoms. I just

really don't know how to do that in this case. In order to be able to get

some rest, I finally succumbed to pressure and took some Benadryl. Ahhhhh,

what relief!

 

Obviously, if there is something I can do other than continue with the

Benadryl, I would like to.

 

Please help if you can!

 

Thank you, Annette