Oy. Shingles.

[Quantum Windbag]

(quote is from Wikipedia)

Yes, but just how much should I worry about it? I never even thought about or considered the possibility of betting chickenpox until within the last year. Didn't even know it was a possibility. Seemed to get along just fine in life without worrying about chickenpox!

I've recently been exposed to two people with shingles and didn't get chickenpox. Maybe I did have it as a kid...I just don't know for sure.

As for the shingles vaccine...they recommend it for people 60 and over. Yet my boss and my other coworker who got shingles were both younger than 50! What ya gonna do!

Be happy, don't worry! : )

Chicken Pox/Shingles is only contagious for a short period of time, and simply being around a person with it does not mean you will catch it.

Okay, but just to clarify...chicken pox is contagious...shingles is not. You can get chicken pox from someone with shingles, but you can't get shingles from them.

Of course, I'm not an MD, so I'm probably wrong about that!

(not)

Just to clarify, Shingles is contagious, they just call it chicken pox if you get it from a person with shingles. I have no idea why there are different names since it is the same virus and the symptoms are identical, but that is the way they describe it.

 

[Mad Scientist]

I thought a skeeter zapped me 13 times in one sitting and the bites got infected. Um. No. Got back from docs office awhile ago. He said "Shingles, dear".

Thrill. Joy. Not.

Oh you poor thing! You have my sympathies.

We've all seen that TV Commercial where the say "If you've had ChickenPox, you already have the Shingles virus (or whatever) in your body".

I've had the Pox as a kid and as an adult when I was 30, so I guess my Shingles are gonna' be double bad!

I am trying to get a jump on and possibly reduce the severity of many Old Age diseases by adhering to good nutritional practices now.

 

[JakeStarkey]

I got my shingles vac last year for free from the VA. Slight reaction for about 12 hours, very flush, very warm. Several of my neighbors over the years had shingles. No one wants it: described as burning coals on the skin.

The recommended earliest age is 50.

 

[Katzndogz]

I had chicken pox. A shingles vac is almost $300 and government insurance won't pay for it so I'm saving.

 

[Kooshdakhaa]

Chicken Pox/Shingles is only contagious for a short period of time, and simply being around a person with it does not mean you will catch it.

Okay, but just to clarify...chicken pox is contagious...shingles is not. You can get chicken pox from someone with shingles, but you can't get shingles from them.

Of course, I'm not an MD, so I'm probably wrong about that!

(not)

Just to clarify, Shingles is contagious, they just call it chicken pox if you get it from a person with shingles. I have no idea why there are different names since it is the same virus and the symptoms are identical, but that is the way they describe it.

No, shingles and chickenpox are NOT the same thing. They are caused by the same virus, the symptoms are similar, NOT identical.

Chicken pox are all over your body...shingles are not.

You have no idea why there are different names??? Because they're different conditions, that's why. Sheesh, just go Google it, don't take my word for it. But check it out before you insist that you are right.

 

[Gracie]

Shingles is still contagious. And it is a form of herpes..just appears different AFTER chicken pox. Once the virus is in ya...it stays there and shows up wherever it wants. Sometimes small areas like mine...some all over the body following the nerve lines. Doc told me...and the nurses and everyone else I have talked to since getting it, said I was contagious while the wounds were still...um...juicy. Leaking. Once they scabbed over, I was no longer contagious. I never really got big huge wounds. They looked and acted just like skeeter bites..which is why I was surprised at the prognosis.

Anywho...I have other doc appts with different ones next week, plus a visit to the dentist. I called them all and told them I was battling shingles and did they want to reschedule later on when I am well and they all said I was "no longer contagious, the appts can stand as they are, but THANK YOU for telling them".

 

[Quantum Windbag]

Okay, but just to clarify...chicken pox is contagious...shingles is not. You can get chicken pox from someone with shingles, but you can't get shingles from them.

Of course, I'm not an MD, so I'm probably wrong about that!

(not)

Just to clarify, Shingles is contagious, they just call it chicken pox if you get it from a person with shingles. I have no idea why there are different names since it is the same virus and the symptoms are identical, but that is the way they describe it.

No, shingles and chickenpox are NOT the same thing. They are caused by the same virus, the symptoms are similar, NOT identical.

Chicken pox are all over your body...shingles are not.

You have no idea why there are different names??? Because they're different conditions, that's why. Sheesh, just go Google it, don't take my word for it. But check it out before you insist that you are right.

When I had chicken pox it was confined to the left side of my face, when I got shingles it was confined to the left side of my face. The virus travels down the nerve and remains dormant for years, then it travels back up the nerve to come out in the same place you had chicken pox.

 

[Gracie]

Just to clarify, Shingles is contagious, they just call it chicken pox if you get it from a person with shingles. I have no idea why there are different names since it is the same virus and the symptoms are identical, but that is the way they describe it.

No, shingles and chickenpox are NOT the same thing. They are caused by the same virus, the symptoms are similar, NOT identical.

Chicken pox are all over your body...shingles are not.

You have no idea why there are different names??? Because they're different conditions, that's why. Sheesh, just go Google it, don't take my word for it. But check it out before you insist that you are right.

When I had chicken pox it was confined to the left side of my face, when I got shingles it was confined to the left side of my face. The virus travels down the nerve and remains dormant for years, then it travels back up the nerve to come out in the same place you had chicken pox.

Now THAT I didn't know. Thanks for the info!
Mine was on my lower back, my sister said. Light case of CP. So when it showed back up, I guess it decided to settle in my knee instead of my lower back area.

 

[Quantum Windbag]

No, shingles and chickenpox are NOT the same thing. They are caused by the same virus, the symptoms are similar, NOT identical.

Chicken pox are all over your body...shingles are not.

You have no idea why there are different names??? Because they're different conditions, that's why. Sheesh, just go Google it, don't take my word for it. But check it out before you insist that you are right.

When I had chicken pox it was confined to the left side of my face, when I got shingles it was confined to the left side of my face. The virus travels down the nerve and remains dormant for years, then it travels back up the nerve to come out in the same place you had chicken pox.

Now THAT I didn't know. Thanks for the info!
Mine was on my lower back, my sister said. Light case of CP. So when it showed back up, I guess it decided to settle in my knee instead of my lower back area.

Your doctor said that there is a nerve that runs form the back to the knee, which is one reason I would pay attention to any twinges in that area if I were you. It is possible that the knee was the area that first got infected, and no one noticed it until it spread to your back.

I became a self taught expert on shingles when I had it. I had a lot of time to ask doctors that specialized in it a lot of questions, a case like mine is extremely rare.

 

[Political Junky]

So sorry to hear about this, Gracie. Hope it clears quickly. It must be really awful.
I read about the vaccine and asked my doctor for it, thank God.

 

[Sunshine]

There are other illnesses which are different but caused by the same germ. I'm retired, so I don't want to have to think about it. But here is one example:

It is important to remember it’s the germ, not the disease, which is contagious. Often the same germ can cause several diseases, and the same disease can be caused by different germs. For example, the same germ that is causing a pneumonia in one person might only cause an ear infection in the next. This is a matter of where in the body the germ "settles", and that’s a matter of luck, not contagion.

Childrens Medical Office - *of North Andover, P.C.

 

[Kooshdakhaa]

Shingles is still contagious. And it is a form of herpes..just appears different AFTER chicken pox. Once the virus is in ya...it stays there and shows up wherever it wants. Sometimes small areas like mine...some all over the body following the nerve lines. Doc told me...and the nurses and everyone else I have talked to since getting it, said I was contagious while the wounds were still...um...juicy. Leaking. Once they scabbed over, I was no longer contagious. I never really got big huge wounds. They looked and acted just like skeeter bites..which is why I was surprised at the prognosis.

Anywho...I have other doc appts with different ones next week, plus a visit to the dentist. I called them all and told them I was battling shingles and did they want to reschedule later on when I am well and they all said I was "no longer contagious, the appts can stand as they are, but THANK YOU for telling them".

When you have shingles and they say you're contagious, it's because someone could catch chickenpox from you. If they've already had chickenpox, or the vaccine, then I guess they won't.

But NOBODY will catch shingles from you. Shingles is not contagious in the sense that other people will catch shingles from you.

No one can ever say, "I caught shingles from my friend." It's not possible. Just go Google it, like I said, don't take my word for it. But I AM correct.

Now, someone who's never had chickenpox might get chickenpox from you when you have shingles. And then later on in life they might have shingles because they've had chickenpox. But the DO NOT catch shingles from you.

 

[Kooshdakhaa]

So sorry to hear about this, Gracie. Hope it clears quickly. It must be really awful.
I read about the vaccine and asked my doctor for it, thank God.

I wouldn't be thanking God too quickly. Did your doctor bother to tell you that the vaccine is only about 50% effective?

 

[Kooshdakhaa]

Damn, some of you people are hard-headed!

Shingles is less contagious than chicken pox and cannot be passed from person to person. However, the varicella zoster virus can be spread from a person with shingles to someone who has never had chicken pox. The unfortunate recipient might develop chicken pox, but not shingles.

Read more: Chicken Pox and Shingles: 5 Things We Should Know About the Infections | TIME.com

Herpes zoster (or simply zoster), commonly known as shingles and also known as zona, is a viral disease characterized by a painful skin rash with blisters in a limited area on one side of the body (left or right), often in a stripe. The initial infection with varicella zoster virus (VZV) causes the acute (short-lived) illness chickenpox which generally occurs in children and young adults. Once an episode of chickenpox has resolved, the virus is not eliminated from the body but can go on to cause shingles — an illness with very different symptoms — often many years after the initial infection.

From Wikipedia

Shingles occurs when the virus, which has been inactive for some time, becomes active again. Severe pain and numbness along nerve pathways, commonly on the trunk or on the face, are present. Clusters of blisters appear 1 to 5 days later. The blisters are usually on one side of the body and closer together than in chickenpox. Shingles does not spread as shingles from one person to another. If people who have never had chickenpox have contact with the fluid from the shingles blisters, they can develop chickenpox.

Varicella-Zoster Virus (Chickenpox and Shingles) & Communicable Diseases | Health & Senior Services

How many more sources do you want me to provide????

Shingles is not the same disease as chickenpox. You can't catch shingles from someone with shingles. But if you've never had chickenpox, you might get that from someone with shingles.

 

[Kooshdakhaa]

OMG! My younger sister just called me and told me she has shingles!!!

Bummer. This means that we DID have chickenpox as kids...I didn't think we had.

So now the question becomes...do I get the 50% effective vaccine, or not? Probably not. It hasn't been around long enough and they haven't done enough studies on it for my liking.

It sounds like my sister caught it early, she is on those antiviral "horsepills" Gracie refers to, and although she is somewhat uncomfortable, the pain is not horrible or constant. It comes and goes.

Now I keep imagining that my skin is itching.

Gracie, how are you doing? Has it run its course yet?

 

[Gracie]

OMG! My younger sister just called me and told me she has shingles!!!

Bummer. This means tha we DID have chickenpox as kids...I didn't think we had.

So now the question becomes...do I get the 50% effective vaccine, or not? Probably not.

It sounds like my sister caught it early, she is on those "horsepills" Gracie refers to, and although she is somewhat uncomfortable, the pain is not horrible or constant. It comes and goes.

Now I keep imagining that my skin is itching.

I'm so sorry your sister has them! Sounds like she got a mild case like I did. Mine are almost gone..and no more pain. But itch? Oh man. I make sure I keep the area covered with a huge bandaid so I don't scratch in my sleep. I had 13 dots of a rash..craters, actually. Small ones, though. I have now and they are the size of a period.

Friend of mine is against the vaccine. She said she is afraid of it cuz pharmacuticles (sp?) are pushing it and it still is not clear if it even works...or activates it, so more drugs can be given and they get more money.
I doubt I will ever get the shot. no need now. I already got them. I just hope they don't come back.

 

[Gracie]

[MENTION=31092]Kooshdakhaa[/MENTION]
Oh, and tell your sis she will notice the horse pills working within a day. I did.
They are HUGE pills....so I cut mine in 4ths, and ate applesauce with it, 3 times a day. They work great! No side effects either, although the pharmacist said I might get a mild headache. I never did. Probably because I did as he said....I ate something with the pill.

 

[Political Junky]

[MENTION=31092]Kooshdakhaa[/MENTION]
Oh, and tell your sis she will notice the horse pills working within a day. I did.
They are HUGE pills....so I cut mine in 4ths, and ate applesauce with it, 3 times a day. They work great! No side effects either, although the pharmacist said I might get a mild headache. I never did. Probably because I did as he said....I ate something with the pill.

So glad to hear you got relief.

 

[depotoo]

OMG! My younger sister just called me and told me she has shingles!!!

Bummer. This means tha we DID have chickenpox as kids...I didn't think we had.

So now the question becomes...do I get the 50% effective vaccine, or not? Probably not.

It sounds like my sister caught it early, she is on those "horsepills" Gracie refers to, and although she is somewhat uncomfortable, the pain is not horrible or constant. It comes and goes.

Now I keep imagining that my skin is itching.

I'm so sorry your sister has them! Sounds like she got a mild case like I did. Mine are almost gone..and no more pain. But itch? Oh man. I make sure I keep the area covered with a huge bandaid so I don't scratch in my sleep. I had 13 dots of a rash..craters, actually. Small ones, though. I have now and they are the size of a period.

Friend of mine is against the vaccine. She said she is afraid of it cuz pharmacuticles (sp?) are pushing it and it still is not clear if it even works...or activates it, so more drugs can be given and they get more money.
I doubt I will ever get the shot. no need now. I already got them. I just hope they don't come back.

Glad to her you are better!

My sis got them so bad, she couldn't WAIT until she could get the vaccine! She still had a painful scalp over 6 months later.

 

[Kooshdakhaa]

Now my head is itching.

Grace, I will send my sister an email and let her know what you said about the pills taking effect. And also the tip about taking the pills with food. Thanks. : )