This includes shoes and boots. If you do develop a rash, you can help relieve the itching by sponging the affected areas with alcohol, applying a paste of baking soda, using calamine lotion, or soaking in a tub of warm water with a handful of baking soda thrown in. Take an antihistamine like Benadryl. This will help the itching and the swelling. If the itching becomes unbearable, ask your physician to recommend something.
Some people are highly allergic to poison ivy and experience extreme reactions.
In severe cases, the person's eyes may swell shut, they may develop a fever and intense pain, swollen lymph nodes in the neck, armpits or groin, and have difficulty breathing. If any these symptoms occur, it is important to seek a doctor's help immediately. An infection this severe will have to be treated with an antibiotic. A poison ivy irritation is extremely uncomfortable and far too easy to develop, but you don't have to be a victim. The plant's appearance varies in different areas of the country.