PSA - Shingles Vaccine

[LakeMartinGal]

BUMP

I just got diagnosed with shingles yesterday, and I am 48. The Dr. put me on meds for 7 days. I first noticed the area on my middle back on Friday night. I touched the area and felt a bump. Showed it to DH and he said it was a bug bite. I thought it was odd since I didn't see any bugs around. Anyway, I had him take the a picture of the area with my cell phone. FF to yesterday, I had him take another picture and it was much larger than from Fri. so I made a Dr appt. I was only concerned since it was larger and had it been a bug bite, I would think it would not have gotten worse. Shingles did cross my mind, but I wasn't sure. What is odd is that I am not experiencing any pain, which I hope continues to be the case. I know it might get worse, but I am keeping my fingers crossed. Fortunately it's not in a visible area and is the size of a silver dollar for now.

I'm not sure about across the board vaccines for everyone, but will say that if you notice a spot that is odd on your body, it is important to see a Dr. asap. Sometimes it IS something and should not be left untreated. I hope I am one of the lucky ones and this is the worse it gets, but I feel for those who have and are suffering with it.

Ach! I'm so sorry you have this -- and SO glad you went to the doctor right away. I hope you have an easy time, with no lasting damage!

[Anne]

I hope you caught it early enough to avoid some of the itchies. When DH got it I thought he had gotten into poison ivy - which we do not have up here. The clue-in was that it stopped mid-spine and did not cross to the other side. It sounds like shingles can take several aspects when it manifests. His were clear, small, fluid filled bumps that sometimes merged to 'super' bumps. He got meds from the Dr. but still had to use benedril to control some of the symptoms. His debate - itch at your desk or snooze at your desk.

[funniegrrl]

So sorry! I'm still struggling with mine. Even though I caught it really early and got treatment right away, I'm still having trouble with the neuropathy. Skin has almost cleared up, though. Went to the doc today and got my umpteenth pain med prescription. We'll see ...

[Angelina]

BUMP

I just got diagnosed with shingles yesterday, and I am 48. The Dr. put me on meds for 7 days. I first noticed the area on my middle back on Friday night. I touched the area and felt a bump. Showed it to DH and he said it was a bug bite. I thought it was odd since I didn't see any bugs around. Anyway, I had him take the a picture of the area with my cell phone. FF to yesterday, I had him take another picture and it was much larger than from Fri. so I made a Dr appt. I was only concerned since it was larger and had it been a bug bite, I would think it would not have gotten worse. Shingles did cross my mind, but I wasn't sure. What is odd is that I am not experiencing any pain, which I hope continues to be the case. I know it might get worse, but I am keeping my fingers crossed. Fortunately it's not in a visible area and is the size of a silver dollar for now.

I'm not sure about across the board vaccines for everyone, but will say that if you notice a spot that is odd on your body, it is important to see a Dr. asap. Sometimes it IS something and should not be left untreated. I hope I am one of the lucky ones and this is the worse it gets, but I feel for those who have and are suffering with it.

I had it exactly like yours, last year at 43. It was just a few bumps and I thought they were bug bites, but like you, no bugs. Since I went to the doctor a couple of days after they showed up, and I was not in any pain, she told me to keep an eye on them and she did not prescribe me anything.

They just disappeared on their own and other than a bit of soreness (nothing bad at all, it just felt like a tired muscle sometimes), I did not get any pain or itching...I hope yours works out like mine.

[Cafe Latte]

So sorry! I'm still struggling with mine. Even though I caught it really early and got treatment right away, I'm still having trouble with the neuropathy. Skin has almost cleared up, though. Went to the doc today and got my umpteenth pain med prescription. We'll see ...

Sorry to hear about the neuropathy. So far I have been fortunate. Keeping my fingers crossed.

I had it exactly like yours, last year at 43. It was just a few bumps and I thought they were bug bites, but like you, no bugs. Since I went to the doctor a couple of days after they showed up, and I was not in any pain, she told me to keep an eye on them and she did not prescribe me anything.

They just disappeared on their own and other than a bit of soreness (nothing bad at all, it just felt like a tired muscle sometimes), I did not get any pain or itching...I hope yours works out like mine.

That's good to hear. I hope so too.

[Lauren]

Thank you all for sharing your stories. I was thinking of getting the vaccine, but will definitely do it now!

[Cafe Latte]

I just noticed a commercial for the vaccine on TV last night. I don't know if it is new, or I am just noticing it for the first time, but it's timely.

I'm still not feeling pain, but I felt really wiped out last night around dinner time. I was told I could feel like I had flu-like symptoms so I wasn't worried. I feel better this morning, but still a bit lethargic. Like I said earlier, swallowing those huge pills has really been the worst thing so far for me.

[aggie94]

Does anyone know if you can get shingles if you never had chickenpox? I never had chickenpox but did recently have the chickenpox vaccine when my daughter got the vaccine.

I know I'm late to this thread, but my understanding is that if you have never had chicken pox, you can get chicken pox from exposure to someone with shingles. We were going to visit my FIL awhile back, and at the time of the visit, he was recovering from shingles. I have never had chicken pox (and never been vaccinated - the vaccine did not exist during my childhood, and it was just not something I thought about as an adult), and my DD at the time was too young for the chicken pox vaccine. I did end up getting the chicken pox vaccine (which required two separate shots, a month or so apart), but it was not covered by my insurance. Fortunately, neither of us ended up getting chicken pox from my FIL's shingles.

[funniegrrl]

Yes you CAN get chicken pox from someone with shingles when they are in the blistery stage -- my doctor warned me to stay away from kids especially until the blisters had healed.

You can't get shingles from someone with shingles though, and you can't get shingles if you've never had chicken pox.

[BucknellAlum]

I know I'm late to this thread, but my understanding is that if you have never had chicken pox, you can get chicken pox from exposure to someone with shingles. We were going to visit my FIL awhile back, and at the time of the visit, he was recovering from shingles. I have never had chicken pox (and never been vaccinated - the vaccine did not exist during my childhood, and it was just not something I thought about as an adult), and my DD at the time was too young for the chicken pox vaccine. I did end up getting the chicken pox vaccine (which required two separate shots, a month or so apart), but it was not covered by my insurance. Fortunately, neither of us ended up getting chicken pox from my FIL's shingles.

Yes you CAN get chicken pox from someone with shingles when they are in the blistery stage -- my doctor warned me to stay away from kids especially until the blisters had healed.

You can't get shingles from someone with shingles though, and you can't get shingles if you've never had chicken pox.

funniegrrl - that is what I was wondering. I know you can get chicken pox from someone with shingles because my peds told me to keep my kids away from FIL when he had it. I know you can still get chicken pox even if you're vaccinated but hopefully it would just be a mild case.

However, I am hoping that not having had true chicken pox (just the vaccine) means that I can never get shingles? That almost sounds too good to be true. I will have to ask my doc next time I have a check up.

[JHaris]

DH and I just got the shingles shot 3 days ago at a CVS. We had to answer some routine medical questions and sign the document. We received a copy of it and a flyer about shingles and the vaccine. The flyer stated that even though you get a shingles shot, there is still a chance you could get shingles... i.e., it would be a milder case of it. At least we are now semi protected. I got the chicken pox from DD when she was in pre-kindergarten, but fortunately I had a very mild case.

[Cafe Latte]

I was told that direct contact with the sores is how the virus can be passed on to someone who has never had chicken pox. However, it's best to not hold newborn babies, and not have close contact with anyone who may have recently undergone chemo or have HIV. Being in the room with anyone else does not post a risk factor.

[ClaraB]

I was told that direct contact with the sores is how the virus can be passed on to someone who has never had chicken pox. However, it's best to not hold newborn babies, and not have close contact with anyone who may have recently undergone chemo or have HIV. Being in the room with anyone else does not post a risk factor.

My two DSs and I were exposed to my MILs shingles and never got chickenpox from it, but my youngest DS and I sure got chickenpox from my oldest DS when he came home from school with it. It's my understanding that chickenpox is far more contagious than shingles.