Hi - anyone else suffered with awful vertigo post shingles? Literally having panic attacks at night as feel out of control when dark / lights off so sleeping with a small light now to give me focus. It’s horrible!

Hi all,

My 76 year old father was diagnosed with shingles on 8th July on his right arm, armpit, chest and back. His doctor initially gave him a low dosage of Zovirax tablets. The rash and blisters have thankfully gone but he is in extreme pain. His doctor started him on a dosage of 100mg of lyrica on the 20th August and has since increased this to 125mg per day since the 26th. He is still in extreme pain, he is taking painkillers alongside the lyrica but doesn't find any relief. His doctor will probably up his dosage again this week but I am just looking for some advice on what he can do with the pain in his right arm and armpit. At times, he seems to lose power in his right arm. Any advice is appreciated, thanks.

P.s to add to this, he is losing his appetite and is quite low in mood as it is impacting normal life for him. He has restricted some of his diet as he believes some foods are aggravating the pain.

Hi there, has anyone else been getting psycological symptoms? Since it started I have had a couple of episodes of sever existential doom, which can only be described as very bad fear, like I have never experienced.

I read that this can be down to your nervous system mis-interpreting signals as fight/flight, but it is quite scary. Has anyone else had this? At first I thought it was the medication, now am not so sure.

Second time posting here. My first post was more about the disease itself, now I’m going to vent a little and just ask if anyone has been through similar experiences. Just share, if you feel like it.

I recently developed shingles. About 10 days ago, I had a fight with my boyfriend and decided to leave. I gathered my things while he was out. I couldn't stay away for more than 24 hours though, we made up and I came back home.

The first symptom was a small rash, a really tiny one. I thought it was an insect bite, since I’d spent a lot of time on the couch at that other place, which is pretty old. I didn't pay much attention to it. Almost five days later, a second rash appeared at the same level but on my back, followed by small clusters of lesions that looked like pimples. I saw a doctor that same day and I was diagnosed with shingles and started treatment immediately.

Now, four days later, the rash remains practically unchanged. But something else is going on. My boyfriend seems kind of... indifferent? I don't know if I'm overanalyzing the situation, I am also notoriously anxious, but that's the feeling I get.

Maybe it's because I cleaned the apartment this weekend, or because I'm sleeping normally, but... I am feeling itchiness, a little pain and stuff, but I wasn’t completely immobilized yk.

I turned down his advances to have sex (I’m not feeling sexy or comfortable), complained when he touched the skin where the sores are, and declined invitations to go out because I'm worried about the risk of contagion. I also asked him a couple times to take the dog out by himself when he was busy cooking for example, because I am not comfortable walking around.

At first, I tried to explain that it's a tricky illness and that the pain comes and goes, and it might eventually get worst even without the rashes . Also the fact that he hasn't looked anything up about it? Like, I think he might believe that since I've started treatment, I'll be fine soon and that I'm just being lazy. But what makes me anxious is thinking that I would have looked it up myself if he was saying he felt bad.

And today he told me it could be worse. Now I have the feeling that not only am I unlucky to develop an uncommon disease related to the stress I was feeling, that I shouldn’t bother other people with it and keep it to myself, since he won’t believe me if it eventually gets worst.

Hi everyone, I am 23 and got diagnosed with lupus this feb. I have been on immunosuppressants—methotrexate and prednisolone—since then. I recently got shingles; my doctor said that it's because of the drugs, of course, and anxiety as well. Overall, my rash was pretty mild compared to the pictures I saw online. The rashes were on the left side of my ribs; it was very uncomfortable for like a week and then it was manageable. The pain wasnt severe; maybe it felt mild because I have been through extreme arthritic pain during my lupus flare. I was quarantined for like 10 days or so, now its all back to normal but I have been prescribed to take 4 vaccine shots in order to prevent infections - HPV, PCV, Flu shot and Shingrix.

I got diagnosed today . i’m a single parent t under lots of stress in australia financially and basically doing it very tough . since feb of 2023 i have been fighting some kind of psoriasis in my feet toes fingers and scalp it has crossed over to other skin conditions such as one called lichen simplex chronicus. Anyway i have tried different biologics to no avail , these biologics suppress the immune system they u have taken . yes, i was warned but i have no idea why i wasnt offered the shingles vaccine if I was going to be taking these biologic medication injections . in australia the vaccine for shingles is only free for 64 and over . otherwise its very expensive , probably looked at me and thought i could t afford it . Here i am battling severe skin issues and to have shingles on top of it i have been battling skin issues for three and a half years when prior to that u had no know skin problems This is really brutal and to be honest i needed to have the vaccine . I have headaches stabbing pain across my back and stomach the rash and i feel sometimes like i’m going to vomit . i’m off my food and sleep is so bad anyway it’s gotten even worse . i have a son to bring up on my own . there’s so little support . i’m not surprised this has happened but how do i get through this . I’m hanging on by a thread . Any advice i can’t lie on my right side . everything hurts ! i will take any little bit of positive advice . My soul is aching .. i feel flattened . And to top it all off the biologic medications have FAILED . All three of them !😩

Hi everyone, I’m looking for some advice from people who have experienced shingles.
My mother is a chronic liver patient with cirrhosis, and she recently underwent surgery for gallbladder stones. Shortly before/around the time of her surgery, she developed shingles around her right chest and underarm area.
The rash is now starting to dry/turn darker, but the pain is extremely severe, especially in the chest and underarm. Sometimes it gets so bad that she can barely tolerate it.
She has already started antiviral medication and is also taking pain medication, but we are not seeing much improvement in the pain. The pain can become severe again after a few hours, and recently it seems to be getting worse rather than better.
Has anyone experienced shingles pain this severe?
How long did it take before the pain started improving, and what helped you the most?
Because of her liver condition and recent surgery, we are being very careful with medications and will follow her doctor’s advice.
Any experiences or advice would be greatly appreciated. 🙏

I was diagnosed late last month and started Valtrex. I mostly had a lot of itching. The area started itching again after a few weeks and looked like it was activating but it faded quickly. PCP said it was just residual itching. Yesterday, a few weeks later, I noticed more bumps and itching in a different area (along the same dermatome band) and got myself back to the doctor. They said it looks like shingles again (more mild) and put me on acyclovir. A swab was done but the results take a few weeks.

I thought it was going away and now I’m worrying about it again.

I’m on week four. Luckily, I hadn’t had any itching until now, but the spots where the blisters are drying up have started itching like crazy. Has anyone else experienced this?

Hi, I’m looking for some advice and support. Sorry for the length of the post.

I had chickenpox and shingles as a young child before I was able to get fully vaccinated. It was on my torso and I just know it’s crazy how young I was with it. I don’t remember it.

I’m now 23 and started noticing something weird with my eye Wednesday night. It felt like there were little tiny balls on my eye lid but everything looked normal. Thursday was about the same, but I thought I was getting a stye (I get them). I noticed a small patch of a rash on the side of my face but thought it was acne. By Friday night my eye was starting to look weird and I noticed two other small patches on my face, all between my eye and ear. I thought it was some kind of allergic reaction and took Benadryl and did warm compresses. Saturday my eye just kept getting puffier. I woke up Sunday (yesterday) and my eyelid had doubled in size. I went to urgent care and was told shingles. I then was told to seek an eye doctor immediately but none were open so I went to the ER. Throughout the day Sunday my eye progressively felt worse. Sharp stinging pains and it’s super swollen. The patches on my face honestly haven’t even bothered me, they are just a little itchy.

The doctor at the ER seemed super concerned about my eye and sent photos to the on call ophthalmologist and sent me home with a next day appointment. He told me to come back if I had any headaches or neck pain, which I have not. They prescribed me valacyclovir and trifluridine eyedrops, as well as tramadol for pain.

Eye doctor today said my actual eyeball looks fine with no concerns right now (besides my extremely swollen eyelid). He seemed unconcerned and thinks it’ll get better.

Although I’ve had shingles as a child, to me this feels like the first time. I’m super nervous about it. I know eye and face shingles is serious. I’m also an elementary teacher and was told to take off this entire week, but what if it isn’t better by next week? The eye doctor said because I’m young and healthy I should be able to fight it off easier than older people. But why did I even get it in the first place if I’m young and healthy? My eye is the only part that bothers me right now, will the patches on my face get worse before they get better?

Today I’ve had so much nausea (no vomiting) and two times where I felt super lightheaded. I don’t know if that’s concerning or just a symptom of the meds.

I’m overall just looking for any advice or warning signs I should look for or anything. I just don’t have anyone to talk to who has experience with face/eye shingles.

Hey anyone developed shingles with milk bleb?

I wonder if there is any link between these 2.

I have been having a big milk bleb for over 2 months. And I started to have pain on my arm and armpit on the same side, followed by shingles rash.

I have shingles, on day 6, I got acyclovir but I stopped it after 3 days because I couldn't cope with the side effects which for me was intense agitation and a sense of impending doom. Like, had to get a friend to come over because I thought I was going to die, I also had hives rash. So am raw dogging it and hoping it will be ok. Am 40.

I got the Shingrix vaccine about 5 years ago, and 9 days ago started having nerve pain in a band on the left side of my torso almost immediately after experiencing a bout of brief, but acute stress. I went to the doctor after 5 days, and was told I don’t have shingles because I’d been vaccinated, and had no rash/lesions. Then I read about ZSH and immediately demanded Valacyclovir, which he finally prescribed 7 days after my symptoms started. I’m a couple days into the pills and have a couple questions: 1) Can I reasonably expect any improvement from the Valacyclovir, despite how late it was prescribed? 2) does having had the vaccine mean there’s a chance for a shortened timeline? 3) just how rare is it to get ZSH after having the vaccine?

I’m not immunocompromised at all, otherwise in reasonably good health.

It’s been one week since my shingles rash appeared on my low back, hip, buttocks, groin and top of my thigh - all left sided. I’ve told my PCP that the skin all along my left flank up to my arm pit feels burnt & tender. It feels like it should have a rash, but it doesn’t. She said it’s all referred pain. Any one else experience this much referred pain? Does it sound like the area of referred pain may progress to post postherpetic** **neuralgia?

Flairs

Ackkk!! I’m in week five of shingles if the face/scalp. I keep thinking I’m turning a corner and then it gets bad again. I can barely sleep at night, It’s so itchy. Everything I try to put on it (like baking soda or calamine lotion or even shingles cream) just makes it feel like it caught fire and burns intensely. What sort of topical relief have people found for the itching and burning? This is some kind of living hell for sure.

I had disseminated shingles (extensive in multiple dermatones and crossed midline slightly) a few months ago. I am young and immunocompetent. I was a bit late getting treatment as they thought it must be something else until swab confirmed.

The lesions have been healed for 2 months now but the skin is still hyper-sensitive all the way down the affected leg and lower back. Sometimes it is very difficult to even pull trousers up, other times it’s only a mild tingle. It varies greatly by day.

How long did you experience the pain/hypersensitivity? What worked for you?

Last Saturday I went hiking in a poison ivy dense spot, which led me to believe the rash I had gotten on sunday was poison ivy. The rash is on the left side of my body, and a spot going around to my back. Its painful.

This Friday at 10 pm the headache started and it is awful

Sunday( today) the fever started. I did teledoc and they said its most likely shingles.

The pain of the rash is uncomfortable but I can handle it. But the headache... is unbearable. Please share your experiences with me.

My wife currently has shingles and has been on gabapentin, 6 capsules a day. We’ve seen a lot of advice on how to start cutting back on the gabapentin, but not much on when to do so.

The lesions, rash and sharp stabbing pain is gone, but she still has some minor burning sensation, like a sunburn. Could she start a slow reduction in her dosage now, or should she wait until the burning sensation is gone entirely? She’s not happy with the side effects, so stopping sooner is better - but not if it risks a return to the severe pain. Thanks.

As the title states, I am almost exactly 31 days post diagnosis and I did two rounds of valtrex to take care of the shingles. I have fibromyalgia and Crohn’s and I’m on an immunosuppressant, but I have had headaches almost every day that come on and then go away and come back. I was freaking out about possible meningitis but the headaches aren’t consistent enough for my doctor to think it’s that. I’m wondering how many of you had headaches/neck pain weeks after your diagnosis.

I am having the worst recovery from shingles. Can anyone share their experience or any advice? I'm so miserable living like this.

I was diagnosed by my doctor with shingles the other day. Due to red bumps on the back of my arms I've had for about a week and soreness in my right shouklderblade I've had for about a month. I'm a late forties male.

Doc proscribed me Valacyclovir 1000mg that I am supposed to take 3 times a day for ten days. Problem is, I can't. My anxiety is really bad. So bad I only eat the same thing every day for the last six years. I don't take any medications at all except for Folic Acid and B12 pills that I crush into a drink in order to trick my brain into thinking I'm not taking anything.

Phramacist told me I could crush these and take them but should drink it within an hour or two. But the pills are huge and taste terrble. No way to trick my brain. I took a slight swallow yesterday and my anxiety spiked big time. I couldn't take anymore.

What am I suppsoed to do? I'm not having any major pain. Just what feels like muscle soreness in my back and a slight burn on the back of my arm where the red bumnps are but only when they run up against something. Not too bad. I just don't think I can take these meds.

So yeah, a lot of things contributed to where I find myself. I almost broke up with my living partner about a week ago, then I went to a separate apartment and tried to sleep in an old couch.

One day later, this small rash popped up in my chest. Very discreet, but very much like an expected spider bite, perhaps one that lives in an old couch, right? Tried to squeeze a little and nothing came out. Left it alone.

Two days later, a rash appears by the same height, but on the back. I give accusatory looks to my dog, that sleeps with me and happens to be itching himself around as well. Could it be fleas?

Nope, I thoroughly examine his fur and only find evidence of his dandruff. Cause for itching explained, the dog walks free.

Then I turn to my mattress, but BF has no symptoms and this is starting to get weird, I never hear about bed bugs in my country, I don’t think they are common here.

So yeah, now six days later, woke up with a lot more small rashes. Thankfully we have public healthcare online in my city, and it took me about twenty minutes to talk to a doctor through video and get a diagnosis and prescription, then more ten minutes to get them for free in the health centers pharmacy. Gotta love my country sometimes (proteja o SUS 🙏)

I’m a bit scared, not gonna lie. My grandmother had herpes zoster and she suffered a LOT from it. I remember her saying that four childbirths didn’t come close to the pain she felt from it.

But anyway, my rashes are not even that painful, they are just a little sensitive to touch, like a proper bug bite. What concerns me is the long time it took for me to even consider what it could be. So I guess I’ll update this through the treatment and another person that feels scared as I do can feel a little better.

The antiviral is acyclovir and pain med is dipirona.

I'm still recovering from my 4th episode, 2nd just this yr. I'm just curious cause everything online siggest recurrence could mean you're immunodeficiency. I honestly don't think I've felt the same since my second outbreak in 2019. Yet every time I grt treated for it it's shrugged off or this last time he didn't even think it was shingles. I'd like to do something to limit this from happening as it also reallt effects my mental health esp when it lingers for weeks. I'm too young for the vaccine so a workup that could have my insurance cover the vaccine is something I'd like to push for.