Has anyone ever suffered with Shingles...

larussa

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For over a week I had terrible pain in my right arm and was wondering what was causing it, I was blaming it on everything from moving to opening tough windows. Finally I saw a bunch of ugly welts on my back and right shoulder, went to the Dr. the same day and walla....I have shingles. I am now on a very strong med that I need to take daily for 14 days. The pain and itch are really horrible and I have taken pain pills but they are not helping. I heard that once the welts go away you can still have pain, geez I hope not. Would like to hear of your bout with shingles and how long it lasted.
 

snake_lady

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omgosh....how horrible


I've never had shingles myself.... but just thought I'd throw out some suggestions for the itching...

- oatmeal baths (you can buy things like Aveeno, or you can make your own... if you have oatmeal in the house, the oats type...not instant oatmeal... throw it in a blender, and make a powder out of it...use about 2cups in your warm bath)
- baths with baking soda. (1/2 to 1cup or so)
- calamine lotion

I don't want to say it, but better prepared than not. My grampa had shingles and unfortunately he felt pain for about 4months
But keep in mind, he was older.....

I'm assuming that the med is an anti-viral? If so, I did find this:
Anti-viral drugs work best if started within three days of developing the shingles rash. This will minimize the extent and spread of the rash and minimize the pain associated with it. Blisters will also crust over and heal faster. Anti-viral drugs may also help to reduce the risk of developing chronic pain from shingles
from: http://health.lifestyle.yahoo.ca/cha...ation_id=23002

If you believe in treating it naturally:

http://www.bodybuildingforyou.com/ar...-treatment.htm

http://altmedicine.about.com/od/heal...a/shingles.htm

(mainly in regards to diet...helping your body's immune system stay strong via foods/vitamins/etc.)

I hope you heal well and quickly.
 

mbjerkness

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I had shingles on my back. It was a long time ago. I remember it hurt a lot. I was given cream to put on. Of course it is very hard to put cream between your shoulder blades
. It went away I haven't had any pain since. the medication works for you.
 

strange_wings

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I haven't had them, but I had chicken pox naturally and with my wonky health it won't surprise me if I do get them when I older.


If you are left with nerve pain from this there are drugs to specifically help with pain that comes from nerve damage/neuropathy instead of trying to mask it with painkillers that aren't helping. Don't be afraid to look into and try these if you really need the relief.


That they go away soon and there's no lasting damage.
 

pookie-poo

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My father had shingles around his waist, and he was absolutely miserable. Pain medication did little to relieve his discomfort. It lasted for a couple of months. This was before any of the anti-virals came on the market, so besides narcotic pain medication, there wasn't many other options for treatment. Fortunately, he hasn't had them recur. Good luck, and get well soon!
 

lil maggie

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Originally Posted by Pookie-poo

My father had shingles around his waist, and he was absolutely miserable. Pain medication did little to relieve his discomfort. It lasted for a couple of months. This was before any of the anti-virals came on the market, so besides narcotic pain medication, there wasn't many other options for treatment. Fortunately, he hasn't had them recur. Good luck, and get well soon!
My dad had them too, on the left side of his face years ago. I remember he was in a lot of pain and all they could do is relieve just a little of the pain at that time.
that you heal quick!
 

libby74

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I've never had shingles, but heard this story from my Grandmother. She had a bad case of shingles around her waist. Her old country doctor (she lived in the hills of Kentucky) told her to bathe the shingles with whiskey. Grandma was a tea-totaler, so wasn't real keen on the idea. Grandpa (also a tea-totatler) thought it was worth a try and managed to find her a bottle of whiskey (no easy feat, because they lived n a dry county). Grandma always claimed the whiskey not only eased the pain and itch, but also cleared up the shingles and she never had a re-occurence.
 
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larussa

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Thank you all so much for your good vibes and suggestions. I started the meds the very first day I saw the horrible bumps and rash so I was right on it. Luckily my Dr. took me in the very same day. I am still in lots of pain as we speak, this is only my 2nd day on the meds so I know I have a long haul yet.
 

lil maggie

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Originally Posted by LaRussa

Thank you all so much for your good vibes and suggestions. I started the meds the very first day I saw the horrible bumps and rash so I was right on it. Luckily my Dr. took me in the very same day. I am still in lots of pain as we speak, this is only my 2nd day on the meds so I know I have a long haul yet.
Glad to hear that you got into the docs ASAP for it. I know it's painful even to be in contact with fabric
Hope it goes away quickly! I thought I heard that it's contagious to someone who has had chicken pox??
 

clpeters23

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I had shingles about 3 years ago and it was horrible. My skin felt like one big nerve-ending; I couldn't sleep for a week. I went to the doctor and got a topical cream to deaden the pain and some pain pills, which worked well. The scabs went away eventually. You have my sympathy!
 

pushylady

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Originally Posted by strange_wings

I haven't had them, but I had chicken pox naturally and with my wonky health it won't surprise me if I do get them when I older.
Yep, that's what happened to me. Anyone who has had chicken pox can get shingles.
I got them quite a while ago on my chest and back. it was so painful and scary at first until we found out what it was. Breathing was painful, and the sores were very itchy. I still have scars from the sores, but I scar easily so that's no surprise. Do your utmost to NOT SCRATCH!!!
Gentle
for the pain. It will go away in a couple of weeks and you'll be fine.
I found calming lotions did not help at all, and I didn't get a prescription painkiller, just ibruprofen, which only helped a little. It is really painful as it's a nerve pain, so you need some good prescription painkillers.
 

natalie_ca

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Originally Posted by LaRussa

For over a week I had terrible pain in my right arm and was wondering what was causing it, I was blaming it on everything from moving to opening tough windows. Finally I saw a bunch of ugly welts on my back and right shoulder, went to the Dr. the same day and walla....I have shingles. I am now on a very strong med that I need to take daily for 14 days. The pain and itch are really horrible and I have taken pain pills but they are not helping. I heard that once the welts go away you can still have pain, geez I hope not. Would like to hear of your bout with shingles and how long it lasted.
Yes, I have had shingles! It isn't fun. Mine were on my stomach and left side!

The medication you are on is an antiviral medication. The earlier you start on it the better. Unfortunately if you delay getting on an antiviral you can be left with nerve pain for the rest of your life
Being on an antiviral doesn't guaranty that you won't be left with nerve pain, but it significantly reduces the chance. Does "over a week" make a difference? It could. The only way to know is to keep taking the medication as prescribed and hope for the best.

By the way, Shingles itself is not contagious. But if you are in contact with someone who has not had Chicken Pox, they can get Chicken Pox. Also, once you have shingles, you can still get it again in your life because the Chicken Pox virus stays in your spine and can be reactivated like it was now. Usually increased stress and being run down play a factor in triggering a Shingles flare up.
 

cattybird

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Yep, another one who's had shingles. I got them about twenty-one years ago shortly after we moved to Wilmington. I blamed it on the fact that I was mad because Martina Navatolova(SP)? bet Chris Evert at Wimbledon! LOL.
 

catnurse22

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Yes!!

I had shingles back in November and it was absolutely awful. I was in terrible pain for 2 weeks and lost my job because I missed so much work. It was misdiagnosed as a pulled back muscle and a rash from a therma care heat wrap at first, so I didn't start anti virals until I had already had it for about a week. Thanks to that, I still have nerve pain occasionally. It's getting less frequent though. And now I have a lovely scar on my back to show for it!

I'm so sorry you're going through this! Honestly, I don't even have any advice. Nothing helped me,
. Just lots of good wishes coming your way!
 

gailc

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My husband had shingls around his waist. The key again is not to itch as the welts will ooze open. He wore a shirt to bed. He also picked up a pepper based cream from the drugstore-Zostrix I think it was called. It was a rough couple of weeks!
 

deedeemay

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I've never had Shingles...well not yet! (Fingers crossed!)

I've treated two patients in the past with Shingles, and I felt their pain. We spent a lot of money on gloves and aprons during the time we treated them, they were long processes. Barrier nursing was vital then, and still is.

I'm sending you some vibes!
 

mrblanche

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I believe there is a vaccine against shingles, but you have to have reached a certain age for it to be approved. I'll need to get it; I had chicken pox (and everything else) when I was young.
 

-_aj_-

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ive never had them but my parnter has he actually had them before he caught chicken pox (hes really not normal) he had them on his back he was a kid at the time and he was quite poorly with them he had to put camomile lotion on i think
 

strange_wings

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Originally Posted by DeeDeeMay

I've never had Shingles...well not yet! (Fingers crossed!)

I've treated two patients in the past with Shingles, and I felt their pain. We spent a lot of money on gloves and aprons during the time we treated them, they were long processes. Barrier nursing was vital then, and still is.
As crazy as it sounds, if you've naturally had chicken pox, exposure to the virus later in life is one way to prevent shingles.
It's one of the things they worry about with vaccinating children now for it, that there won't be enough of the wild virus to keep boosting our immune systems.
 
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