Hello all; I hope this is the right subforum for this. I've been working myself into a complete panic over the last few days due to some potential exposure to poison ivy (first time!). I currently have no symptoms or issues after my foray into the yard & didn't touch the leaves or vines directly, but I was cutting down tree branches very close to the ivy and wasn't wearing gloves, so my brain is stuck on the idea that the tree branches could've dragged over the ivy & been contaminated. Just the potential has sent my anxiety utterly over the edge, with special triggers of the repetitive washing compulsions of my OCD. Unfortunately, this is setting off my ezcema, which resembles early poison ivy rash...and thus the cycle of panic continues.

I think my issue is largely because everything I've read seems to stress over & over just how little of the urushiol is needed to cause the rash - and more importantly, I can't find ANYTHING to reassure me about what is proper washing procedure for my clothing or anything I could've touched. Additionally, nothing I've read says anything about whether urushiol is visible or not. I don't remember seeing a single thing on me when I came inside that day, but...should I have to scrub the floor with alcohol or Tecnu? How many times must I wash my clothing? Must I decontaminate the washing machine afterwards, and how do I do this correctly? If I could find anything that gave me reasonable instructions, I feel like I might be a bit calmer abut this.

BLAH. Thanks for letting me unload. And if anyone can advise, I'd be most appreciative.