Last Saturday I went on a hike to Stewart Falls with family. It was a gorgeous hike, and despite all the other people on the trail, I really enjoyed myself. While we were enjoying ourselves at the river, I very clumsily tripped on some roots and took a dive, left side first, into a lovely patch of stinging nettle. I didn't even realize it at first, and my nephew, who I shall call Intrepid Explorer, or IE, gave me a hand up. (It was good that he is big enough to do this, or he would have ended up "nettled" as well!) I was brushing off the dirt and I felt a stinging sensation on my left 
knee. I thought that I must have scratched it, but when I checked it out, there was nothing there. SE was giving me grief about my gracefulness when the stinging sensation intensified like nothing I have ever felt before. (Did I mention this was my first time being attacked by stinging nettle?) I ran down to the river and started splashing cold water on my leg, and then my arm started burning, too. I furiously started splashing river water on it, too. In the meantime, SE was helpfully taking pictures of the welts and offering to pee on them. Since the river water was marvelously cold and gave me some relief, I did not feel the need to take him up on his offer. He said he thought he had something that would help in his pack (he is the Survival Expert, after all), but the best he could come up with was a benedryl or a bandaid. I gratefully took the benedryl, but secretly was plotting to stop at the first pharmacy or grocery store I could find on the way back so I could get some real relief, which may or may not have included chocolate.
knee. I thought that I must have scratched it, but when I checked it out, there was nothing there. SE was giving me grief about my gracefulness when the stinging sensation intensified like nothing I have ever felt before. (Did I mention this was my first time being attacked by stinging nettle?) I ran down to the river and started splashing cold water on my leg, and then my arm started burning, too. I furiously started splashing river water on it, too. In the meantime, SE was helpfully taking pictures of the welts and offering to pee on them. Since the river water was marvelously cold and gave me some relief, I did not feel the need to take him up on his offer. He said he thought he had something that would help in his pack (he is the Survival Expert, after all), but the best he could come up with was a benedryl or a bandaid. I gratefully took the benedryl, but secretly was plotting to stop at the first pharmacy or grocery store I could find on the way back so I could get some real relief, which may or may not have included chocolate.
For those of you who are worried about me still being in the throes of elephantitus, the welts stopped hurting shortly after I returned home and most of the swelling had gone. Then began the itching phase. In all seriousness, I'd rather deal with pain than itchiness, but since I don't get to choose...
Anyway, the itchiness is pretty much gone this morning. FINALLY! Surprisingly, my favorite cure was not the topical benedryl, but the Bactine, because it had lidocaine and numbed whatever that dumb nettle was trying to throw at me.
For those of you who might be worried, the camera is just fine, since my skin took the brunt of the fall.
As a parting shot, here is SE checking out the offending vegetation. I didn't think of this then, but now I'm wishing that maybe I might have kind of sort of just a little bit given him a push...
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