IvyIQ™

For as long as I can remember, poison ivy has been my nemesis — not the mild, annoying kind, but the kind that would take me out for weeks. I've had blistering reactions, burning skin, and more sleepless nights than I can count. Eventually, frustration turned into determination.

I tried everything over the years: calamine lotion, jewelweed, cold plunges in Maine lakes, overpriced creams that promised miracles and delivered nothing. The itch always came back stronger.

The breaking point? The day I accidentally rubbed urushiol oil (the rash-causing oil found on poison ivy) into my eyes and landed in the emergency room. After getting a steroid prescription and breaking down from sleeplessness, I realized something: reacting wasn't enough. I needed to understand this plant. I needed to get educated.

Two people helped me change everything.

Tucker — one of my best friends from high school that oversees more than 300 acres of poison ivy rich fields and woods in Southern Maryland — showed me how to actually strip urushiol oil off the skin with the right materials, water temperature, and technique.

And Peter — my longtime "nature mentor" — taught me that prevention starts with knowledge. You'll never win against poison ivy if you can't identify it in every season.

So I started learning. I studied the leaves, stems, roots, growth patterns, seasonal changes, and the chemistry of urushiol oil. When I combined that knowledge with Tucker's decontamination method, my entire experience with poison ivy changed.

By being able to identify the plant, I was able to reduce my exposure drastically. The next time I got exposed, I went straight to a sink and followed Tucker's method precisely. For the first time in my life, the rash wasn't angry and irritated. It also didn't spread like before. No anxiety about the coming days. Just control.

That was over a decade ago — and I haven't had a serious case since.

I founded IvyIQ™ to help people get that same control. Because the truth is this: there is no magic cure. The only real cure is knowing exactly how to avoid the plant — and using the right process when exposure happens.

Our upcoming product is built around that philosophy. It gives you:

• •A proven decontamination technique that removes urushiol oil effectively
• •A method that delivers real relief
• •A maintenance plan anyone can follow
• •A digital learning platform that trains you to identify poison ivy with confidence, season after season

It's the product I wish I had decades ago — and one I believe can help a lot of people.

— Mark Wells
Founder & CEO, IvyIQ™