Guess I jinxed myself...yesterday I noticed what looked like a mosquito bite on my forehead at the hairline. Didn't think much of it. Last night when I looked in the mirror, there was a rash from the middle of my forehead to right above my ear. Looks like I probably brushed my hair out of my face with my glove.

Oh, no! Guess you didn't treat that area with Tecnu, huh? I don't have any very severe reactions to PI, but still...I don't enjoy the rash, so I try hard avoid it. My fenced yard is safe, but there's some on my property. Darn stuff is SO hard to get rid of!

Never even thought about it. Didn't think I had touch PI on my face. I could have easily washed my face with the tecnu. Next time.....Ill swim in it.

Today my forehead looks like it was set on fire and someone put it out with an ice pick..... Can't wait to see what tomorrow will bring!

Oh my! Is it burning and itching too?

Itching, weeping....no burning....
Are you still coming to Austin this weekend?

Yes! I think Saturday may be better. We should be in around noon and maybe we can meet a little later in the afternoon. I will call you.

looking forward to it....

Anna, sending you a c-mail......have some more plants you may be interested in, but they'll have to be cuttings this late.

I wound up at the "doc in a box" Wed. morning. Eye looked like it was hit by a golf ball. Came home with a Z-Pac, cortizone cream, and some knock out cough medicine. Much better today, but I still look like a pirate.....ahrrrrrrr.

I forgot completely about your PI ! How rude of me! You looked terrific.Your meds worked well.

Well, not so well...I wound up at doctor's again today. PI is on, and under, my arms, behind my knees, all the way around mid section, and my ankles....so far... That "cough'' may have something to do with PI too. Both eyelids were swollen when you were here. I had glasses on so it wasn't as evident, but they were not normal! Now on Prednisone and Patanase. Doctor thought somehow I may be re-infecting myself...but I threw away everything I was wearing.

So glad you came to visit! Hope you'll come again. I'm sure there's something else you need that I can dig!!!

So sorry that this is infecting you for so long.
You are so sweet and so generous! You will have to get something from me before you start digging! I forgot the name of the plant in the pot (not the rose of sharon) I can post the pic if you have forgotten.

Probably Firespike....Odontonema strictum...?

SO sorry you're suffering so much, Sandi! Sounds like you're miserable. I have had a bad allergy to something, but it's apparently something I've only had contact with very few times...and the anaphylactic reaction, although scary, has so far faded away within a few hours.

Gee, Linda...that sounds scary! Did you have to take something for it? Was it something in your yard? Have you ever reacted to anything like that before?

This morning DH asked me if I had cleaned my Felcos after the "PI mess." No, I hadn't,.... nor the shovels, or worse...the leather case for the clippers. And I've used all those since..... I wiped 'em down with Mineral Spirits, figuring it was the first ingredient in the Tecnu. 'Going to clean them one more time....can't just toss them!

I had twice taken Benadryl for lack of anything else I had on hand until I got to a doctor, but the reaction would start fading before I'd get there (I'm quite a procrastinator). For the last few years, I have kept an EpiPen at home, which has to be injected before you head to the ER. It has Epinephrine, probably the same thing they use in the ER. I have no clue what it was. I am sure it was a delayed reaction to something (kind of like your PI thing was), either something I ate earlier or maybe something I'm not usually in contact with. My sister has a very bad anaphylactic reaction to any place that's had rats around, so that's something I might get checked for eventually. I've been checked for the common type of allergens and had 3 mild pollen allergies, but nothing strong enough to cause an anaphylactic reaction showed up.

Note to yourself.....get another epipen and put it somewhere you'll see it often! Do they have an expiration date on 'em? I'd tape one to the inside of a kitchen cabinet.....

Yes, there is an expiration date. It has to be replaced after expired. They have two in a pack. Not a bad idea about putting one inside a kitchen cabinet...with a note on the outside of cabinet. Of course, I hope I'll never have to use them again. And I keep hoping to discover what causes the reaction.

Can you put the other one in your purse, or glove compartment in the car, unless epi's heat sensitive? It's scary enough if you know what causes the reaction....but not knowing would be a constant worry. Hope you plan to get tested soon.

I'm afraid it is....unfortunately. It can't be kept in any temperature extremes. I just keep it at home. When I leave home, I'm usually going to San Antonio, which has enough ER's and those urgent care clinics...not to mention the EMS system is pretty good. So far I haven't had a really severe attack like my sister had. Although...it's pretty scary if it gets to the point where the breathing is affected, but it shouldn't if the EpiPen is available. It has happened only very rarely...so I don't think about it much.