Banana peels helped rash

Q: My wife and I recently moved into our new house. I spent an entire day pulling out what I thought was just ivy. However, it turned out that it was poison ivy.

Over the next few days, my arms and shins were covered with an itchy rash.

I tried the normal stuff to treat the symptoms: Benadryl tabs at night and Ivy-Dry spray in the morning. I noticed that the spray wore off around 11 a.m. I did a few searches on poison ivy remedies and found that some people reported using banana peels to relieve poison ivy.

Immediately after I rubbed the peels on the affected area, the skin turned red, and the itch subsided a few minutes later. The relief lasted about three hours.

A: You are not the first person to share success with banana peel for poison ivy or oak rash. As far as we can tell, dermatologists have not studied this remedy. They are more likely to prescribe a corticosteroid cream. Bad cases may require oral steroids.

It is always wise to wash thoroughly with soap and water whenever you may have been exposed to poison ivy or poison oak.

Q: I was on Cymbalta for about a year to treat pain in my shoulder and neck. When it was diagnosed as a torn rotator cuff, the doctor said I could get off the drug. He gave me 30 mg for a week and said I would be fine. I had been on 60 mg. Once I finished that week of 30 mg doses, I was pretty sick. I’m wondering how long this withdrawal will take.

A: Duloxetine (Cymbalta) is prescribed for pain as well as depression. Doctors have a name for the symptoms you describe: discontinuation syndrome. It can be extremely challenging. Medications like duloxetine should be tapered very gradually. This may take months instead of weeks.