About 3 years ago, I had the shingles vaccine.. I was told that the vaccine won't prevent me from getting shingles, but if I do get it, it will be a very mild case of it... Well, guess what …..…… yup...….. I just developed shingles... I have it from my belly button on the right side of my waist to the back.. Not up the back and not all around, just that area.. I saw my doctor and was put on a pill that Is supposed to stop the spread of the lesions and another pill to help with the pain which is for the nerves .. Pain from shingles is a nerve pain as well as a surface burning itch.. So far, what can I say about the pain.. It isn't that bad but still there is lots of uncomfortness (if there is such a word).. Hopefully this won't last very long or get any worse.. I also have some painkillers that I take only when the pain gets totally out of control.. They are Oxycontin.. The main problem I have is with my pants.. The waistband is just over the lesions and that isn't a good thing..
@Steve North .. Bless your heart. That is painful. My youngest daughter had shingles at about age ten on her back. My mother had it on her knee in late sixties. Hopeful that the expensive shot helps in curbing passing and length of time. In house hang out in your undies or loose yoga pants.
Gloria.... Please don't laugh but I am in the house with a ……. caftan.... It is just about the only thing that doesn't rub against the lesions.. When I go out, I have a very loose pair of long shorts that I can wear without any problem.. I still do the food shopping and I can't go in a caftan... Looks too weird...
@Steve North, i feel for you even for a mild case of the shingles. I had a full blown case of it on my upper left side on the arm, armpit, shoulder and back. Talk about misery being an understatement. I don't know which was worse the nerve pain or any thing touching me.
Hang in there, Steve. I have also had shingles on my left shoulder and following the nerve path down my arm to the base of my thumb. No fun at all. My symptoms lasted about a month; the itching and occasional nerve pain persist after the rash is healed.
Steve hope you are better now and it never returns. One of my wife family came down with a bad attack he gets it every few years. I gave him some colloidal silver mixed with DMSO he sprayed it on and got re leaf and found it seem to go away faster than other times. Have no idea if it might help but it is easy to make and cheap. Best of luck.
I haven't yet, but a shingles vaccine is one that I am considering getting. I had an aunt who had shingles and she was in a lot of pain from it.
Even though I had the vaccine, it doesn't mean I won't get shingles... It only means that if I did get it, it will be a milder case.. I am on 2 different medications.. One stops tomorrow as it was for only one week and the other is for the nerve pain which I will most likely be on for some time yet... The lesions are only from my belly button to the right to the middle back.. That's all.. Some have turned into very small blisters but the blisters broke on their own.. The pain is something else as I said, but with the nerve pill and some of my Oxycontin, it is quite bearable.. I still do all the cooking in the house.. I will be doing the food shopping later this week.. That means wearing jeans which I am not looking forward to.. If it is hot, maybe shorts which would be a bit easier on the waist.. I wear my T shirt inside the pants to make a cushion between the belt and the lesions.. So far, I seem to be coping but we will see how long that will last... thank-you everyone for the lovely response to my situation... PS...… Ken…….... Don't be a fool and go get the vaccine... You won't be sorry.. If you ever get shingles, you will be glad you had the protection and get a very mild case..... if you get it...
The only thing about the current vaccine is that it is a 2-shot dose. You get the second shot in the range of 2-6 months after the first one. The stuff has been constrained, so you would be well-advised to see how certain you are to have access to the second dose before getting the first one and painting yourself into a corner. I was not aware of this and was sweating bullets that I would be able to get that second shot in time (I was.) But it was on me to stop by the drug store (administered by a pharmacist, not your doctor) every so often to see if they happen to have the stuff on hand...there is no process to call you when it's in stock so you get that second shot in time. The manufacturer says that if you miss that 2-6 month window to get the second dose "as soon as possible." But there have been no studies on how effective it will (or won't) be if you don't get it within the prescribed time frame. They really don't know.