Sun poisoning calls for more aggressive care than a regular sunburn. If you’re dealing with blisters, fever, nausea, or dizziness on top of painful red skin, you need to get out of the sun immediately, start cooling your skin, and push fluids hard for the next two to three days. Most cases can be managed at home, but knowing exactly what to do at each stage makes a real difference in how quickly you recover.
How to Tell It’s Sun Poisoning
A standard sunburn gives you red, hot, painful skin. Sun poisoning does all of that plus triggers symptoms that go deeper than the skin itself. The key signs that push a burn into sun poisoning territory include blisters, severe itching or pain, headache, nausea and vomiting, fever and chills, dizziness, dehydration, fatigue, and a rapid heartbeat. If you’re experiencing any combination of these whole-body symptoms alongside a bad burn, you’re dealing with sun poisoning rather than a simple sunburn.
There’s also a separate condition worth knowing about: some people develop dense clusters of small bumps, raised rough patches, and intense itching within 30 minutes to several hours of sun exposure. This is a sun allergy (called polymorphous light eruption), not a burn. It looks different from blistering sunburn skin and requires a different approach, so if your rash appears as tightly packed bumps rather than the classic burn-then-blister pattern, it’s worth getting evaluated.
Immediate Steps to Take
Get indoors or into full shade right away. Your skin is already damaged, and any additional UV exposure will deepen the injury. Once you’re out of the sun, start cooling your skin with cool (not ice-cold) compresses or a lukewarm shower. Ice directly on burned skin can cause further tissue damage, so keep it gentle.
Next, start drinking water or an electrolyte drink. Severe sunburns pull fluid toward the skin’s surface and away from the rest of your body, which is why you feel dizzy, nauseous, and exhausted. You’ll need to keep up extra fluid intake for the next two to three days, not just the first afternoon. Sip steadily rather than gulping large amounts at once, especially if you’re feeling nauseous.
Over-the-counter pain relievers with anti-inflammatory properties can help with both the pain and the swelling. Aloe vera gel (kept in the fridge for extra cooling) soothes the surface, and a fragrance-free moisturizer helps prevent the tight, cracking feeling as your skin starts to heal. Avoid anything with alcohol, benzocaine, or lidocaine on blistered skin, as these can irritate or trap heat.
How to Handle Blisters
Do not pop them. This is the single most important thing to know about sun poisoning blisters. The fluid-filled layer protects the raw, healing skin underneath, and breaking it open introduces infection risk. Leave the blister intact and let it heal on its own.
If a blister ruptures on its own, gently clean the area with mild soap and water. Don’t peel away the loose skin flap unless it tears, gets dirty, or you see pus forming underneath. That flap still serves as a natural bandage. Cover a ruptured blister loosely with a bandage, and apply a thin layer of petroleum jelly to the bandage first so it doesn’t stick to the raw skin when you change it.
Managing Fever, Nausea, and Chills
The whole-body symptoms of sun poisoning are essentially your immune system responding to widespread skin damage. Fever and chills can feel alarming, but they typically track with the severity of the burn itself. Rest in a cool room, keep hydrating, and use a light sheet rather than heavy blankets even if you feel chilly. Your body needs to release heat, not trap it.
If nausea is making it hard to keep fluids down, try small, frequent sips of water or a diluted electrolyte drink rather than full glasses. Lying down in a cool, dark room also helps with both the nausea and the headache that often comes with it. Severe cases where you can’t keep any fluids down, where your fever climbs above 103°F, or where you feel confused or faint may need IV fluid replacement at an urgent care or emergency department.
What Recovery Looks Like
Mild to moderate sunburn symptoms, the redness, pain, and hot-to-the-touch feeling, generally start fading after about three days. Sun poisoning symptoms last longer and hit harder. Expect the acute phase (pain, swelling, blisters, and systemic symptoms like fever) to stretch beyond that three-day window, sometimes lasting a full week or more depending on severity.
Peeling typically follows the acute phase. Your skin is shedding its damaged outer layers, and while it looks rough, it’s actually a sign of healing. Resist the urge to pick or pull at peeling skin. Keep the area moisturized and let the dead skin come off naturally. Underneath, the new skin will be pink, tender, and extremely sensitive to UV light.
That new skin needs serious protection. The general guideline is to avoid exposing burn-injured skin to any direct sunlight until all the red color has completely faded. For a severe sun poisoning episode, that could mean weeks of diligent sun avoidance and high-SPF sunscreen on the affected areas. This isn’t just about comfort. Newly healed skin burns faster and more easily than normal skin, setting you up for a cycle of repeated damage.
When Prescription Treatment Helps
Most sun poisoning resolves with the home care steps above. But if your burn covers a large area of your body, produces extensive blistering, or triggers symptoms you can’t manage on your own, a doctor may prescribe a topical steroid cream to reduce inflammation. These range from mild formulations like hydrocortisone 1% to more potent options for severe reactions, and your doctor will match the strength to the location and severity of your burn. Steroid creams aren’t something to self-prescribe from the pharmacy for blistered skin, since using the wrong strength in the wrong place can thin the skin or slow healing.
For the most severe cases, particularly those involving second-degree burns with deep blistering, medical treatment may include professional wound care and aggressive fluid replacement to compensate for what your damaged skin can no longer hold in. These situations are uncommon but worth knowing about: if your blisters are large, cover a significant portion of your body, or your skin looks white or waxy rather than red, that warrants immediate medical attention.
Protecting Yourself During Recovery
While your skin heals, wear loose, soft clothing over burned areas. Tight fabrics create friction on blisters and raw skin, and synthetic materials can trap heat. Lightweight cotton or linen works best. If you need to be outdoors, cover the burned skin completely with clothing rather than relying on sunscreen alone, since sunscreen ingredients can sting badly on compromised skin.
Keep your environment cool. Sleep in a cool room, avoid hot showers (lukewarm is fine), and continue drinking extra water beyond what you’d normally consume. Your skin is your body’s largest organ, and when a significant portion of it is damaged, your entire system works harder to repair it. Rest, hydration, and gentle skin care are the three things that speed that process along the most.