It sounds normal to me. Ringworm can "explode" like that in a kitten. The dip is preferred for kittens, because it's a 1-time external treatment. Adult cats are less susceptible than kittens, for some reason. And humans aren't the preferred host for that fungus, so it's possible you and your son may escape infection. Vacuum thoroughly, toss the bag, run your bedding through the dryer on HOT and hang any area rugs out in the sun. A temp of 125 for 10 minutes kills the spores. I went through the same thing last month,

It's an excellent question, for which, alas, I have no answer. I've collected seeds from wild S. carduacea with no problem. But they are very prickly, and I can see how little bits could cause prolonged irritation. Recently I've had odd, unexplained allergic reactions to something in the native plant community, and I've wondered if I'm allergic to the sap of the S. clevelandii I've been propagating. It's not the leaves that cause the problem, but I pruned off the central stems, and it was around then that the mysterious rashes started. That process is over, and the rashes have subsided. It's just a hypothesis. Several decades ago, long before I even knew of the existence of Salvia clevelandii, I suffered strong reactions to something in the chaparral that caused swelling, inflamation and flaking skin around my eyes. It wasn't poison-oak (Toxicodendron diversilobum), to which I'm certainly allergic, but with different symptoms.

johnmari: I've bookmarked the link to the resin-free sheets in case DD does not improve. Hopefully it may help the OP as well. I am finding this thread so fascinating with all of the different ideas, solutions and options--much more helpful than a visit to the dermatologist and getting an Rx for meds! In my history of dealing with various allergies (mine were mostly rhinitis whereas DD is eczema) one thing stands out that my allergist said to me years ago. That is that we spend 1/3 of our time/day in our bed and bedroom and if we can just get one thing under control, it's the bed. That should be the easiest to control--since there are so many other aspects of our lives when we go out of the home, eat foods out, etc. that are almost impossible. He also gave an analogy to think of allergies as having a glass of water. When you fill it up, it overflows. One solution to that is to get a bigger glass and another is to fill with less water. The "bigger glass" is everything we can do to enhance/improve our immune system and tolerance for allergens in our environment. For me this was a combination of years of immuniotherapy or allergy shots and more recently accupuncture and as of today I no longer require meds or shots to control my symptoms. For DD I have not got a complete handle on this though we've been doing Vit-B, probiotics, Omega3's, accupunture and more recently homeopathy. The second part "fill with less water" is to reduce the allergens we are exposed to. The home is where we have the most control and of this, controlling the bed and bedroom can have a huge impact so that we have more reserves to deal with the outside world.

To throw more wood on the fire, I am one of those that can't tolerate strong fragrances either. They make me want to gag, eyes water, choke, cough, etc. Consequently, I don't wear cologne, aftershave, or scented deodorants. Being in an elevator with someone who has perfume on..is awful. I don't usually consider that the same as allergies, but they did come on about the same time for me (some thirty years ago). And a lot of personal care products break me out too. I first noticed when I was a youngster and mother slathered me with some kind of sunscreen. My face was burning like acid in just a few minutes...and being oily and in the middle of the lake, couldn't get it off.