Girl’s Face Swells After Getting Poison Ivy in Her Eyes

#1

Emily Petrozza is a 21-year-old who loves to fish and takes care of feral cats, one day she noticed she had a rash from poison ivy on her arm and thought nothing of it.

A few days later she noticed little red bumps around her eyes, at this point she probably should have gone to a clinic. The next day she woke up and could barely open her eyes wide enough to see, as soon as she saw her swollen face in the mirror she broke down and started crying.

#2 “I didn’t recognize myself,” she said. “I could see a little bit but my eyes were so swollen that it hurt to keep them open.”

She got a ride to the clinic from a friend, by the time she got there she was is much higher spirits. She was able to take pictures to send to her sister Lauren, who then posted them on her Twitter where she got almost 49,000 likes and more than 27,000 retweets.

#3 “When I got that picture, I just started dying laughing,” Lauren said. “I just thought it was hilarious.”

#4

But rest assured it was only the area around her eyes affected, she didn't get any in her actual eyes. Commenting on the internet sensation Dr. Jeff Pettey of the American Academy of Ophthalmology said "The only way poison ivy, poison oak, or any other oil-based irritant can get inside of the eyeball is if there is an injury to the eye that creates an opening. The oils may cause burning and blurred vision from excessive watering as the eye tries to flush out the irritation. If do you get poison ivy oils in your eye, see an ophthalmologist right away for treatment."

#5

After a day and a lot of medication Emily's swelling has gone down to manageable levels. She says he eyes still itch but it's a lot better than it was before. "It hurt a lot more yesterday because there was so much pressure on my face," she said. "It's just uncomfortable when I'm sleeping."

Glad to see that this little hilarious mishap didn't leave any permanent damage, it's great to be able to look back and laugh about the whole thing.

#6 Watch Emily be embarrassed in the video below: