Just diagnosed with Shingles. Anyone else out there?

[Chalco]

This is awfully painful. I've got it in the face, head and throat. Shooting pain all the time. Doc put me on neurontin which takes the edge off it, but still aware of it 24/7.

Are there any alternatives other than drugs? I'm going to stay on the pain meds but was wondering about acupunture or anything else.

Anyone else got a story???

[Warpy]

1. Letterman got MORPHINE

when he had shingles. That condition HURTS! Anybody who had chicken pox as a kid will likely see at least one outbreak when they get older and the immune system weakens enough to allow the virus to reappear.

Here's one information page: http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/shingles/shingles.htm

A more thorough discussion of treatment options is at http://www.fda.gov/fdac/features/2001/301_pox.html

Good luck and I hope you feel better soon.

[Chalco]

2. Morphine!!! That's what I want. nt

[Chalco]

3. My shingles is getting worse and worse. Any advice?

I've got facial shingles. The pain appears to be escalating despite neurontine. I started going to acupuncture a couple of days ago. After the first visit I felt better than I had in a couple of weeks. After the second one, I feel worse than ever. I'm going back, but frankly I'm beside myself with pain.

[Ms. Toad]

4. My spouse is dealing with it now...

Make sure your doc gets you on an anti-viral, and watches for vision problems if it is near an eye. I have heard that St. John's Wort oil (hypericum) is good for the pain and itching - but I haven't gotten my spouse to try it yet.

[Chalco]

5. Where does your husband have shingles?

I'm interested in how he's doing.

Mine is definitely not in the eye itself but is in my eyelid so my right eye tears a lot.

Mine started about March 30th. I neglected to get to the doc for a week and so I didn't start on the right dose of antiviral until then which was too late. My head and face pain was so bad it took 9 gabapentin, 8 tramadol and 8 tylenol a day to make life bearable. I also did acupuncture for 10 days straight. (My insurance pays for acupuncture until July 1.) The acupuncture was very helpful. I think it cut the pain in half. So now I'm reducing the pain meds. I'm now on 6 gabapentin, 4 tramadol and 4 tylenol.

Acupuncture was interesting. He stuck needles in my feet, hands, neck, side of head, and top of head. About 15 needles each time. When he inserted pins in the top of my head it felt like blood letting. The needles in my head and face hurt unbelievably and kept on hurting for about 15 minutes. I meditated during this time and eventually I fell asleep and he woke me up after 45 minutes. He then took the needles out and told me to go home and sleep for an hour which I did. These session relaxed me so much. I am very grateful for having had this experience. My acupuncturist is truly a genius.

So it's been 8 weeks. I'm still on some meds but feel wonderful and am coping fine.

[Ms. Toad]

6. Right around the bra line on the right side

front to back. (My spouse is female) A week of complete incapacitation, a week of much better, and now a week of big ups and downs. More tests on Monday to make sure there is nothing internal going on.

I'm surprised about the tylenol - the recommendations I have seen are for NSAIDS (ibuprofen, aspirin, naprosen).

If my spouse won't even try a homeopathic ointment, I doubt accupuncture is in the near future....

Interesting thing is that her brother, who had chicken pox the same time as a child, came down with shingles a month ago. Since it's not supposed to be dependent on length of time since the original stage, it is odd that their second stage comes at the same time.

[I_Make_Mistakes]

15. That is the most common 58% get the bra line

[Liberty Belle]

Vision loss from shingles is often reversible.

My daughter had shingles at 13, which is very unusual. Her vision was fuzzy in one eye for several months, but eventually went back to normal. Still, it's important to get treatment from an eye doctor right away if your vision is affected.

[Liberty Belle]

11. Vision loss from shingles is often reversible.

My daughter had shingles at 13, which is very unusual. Her vision was fuzzy in one eye for several months, but eventually went back to normal. Still, it's important to get treatment from an eye doctor right away if your vision is affected.

[mopinko]

7. valtrex

i took it for a while, because we thought the early symptoms of my lupus might have been related to the cold sores that i get. it didn't help with the fatigue, etc., but did keep the cold sores at bay. i stopped taking it, and the cold sores returned, somewhat worse. i just started taking it to treat outbreaks, one dose at the first tingle, and a second 12 hours later. it did work.
a friend of mine is taking it now for shingles and her only problem is paying for it.

[Eurobabe]

23. Ditto, VALTREX

This stops the varicella-zoster virus from shedding, and it stops the pain. It works wonders for Herpes, and the varicella is from the same family. There is also a vaccine, Zostavax, but I don't know if it provides any relief once you are infected.

Valtrex is a life saver against any of the herpes viruses. Check on google, and good luck, feel better. :hug:

[MsConduct]

8. I've had shingle outbreaks since 1996. They are painful,

fer sure! I just tried to learn to live with them, but it truly ain't living....I also have fibromyalgia. About five months ago a friend of mine introduced me to 'colloidal silver'. He made me a machine so I can make my own. Within a week, the shingles started calming down and within 10 days the pain from the fibro had dissipated quite a bit. Too learn more about the benefits, check out this link:
http://www.all-natural.com/silver-1.html
This is NOT an advertisement, it's informational.

Good luck!

[Sgent]

9. Couple of options

Valtrex -- since shingles is a resurgence of the chickenpox virus, an antiviral may help reduce its course.

Can't remember the name, but there is a transdermal patch out there with lidocaine. very effective at pain control (but you couldn't use it on the eye). rx required

Pain meds. Make sure that you take them constantly (as perscribed). It takes a lot more pain meds to get over the "hump" than to maintain. There are options out there other than narcotics (Torodol, Ultram, etc) if you wish to avoid those. They may or maynot be as effective for you.

[sam sarrha]

10. any of the HERPIES 2 perscriptions work well , stopped my mothers

[Redstone]

12. Shingles is one of those conditions that need a different name.

I mean, "Shingles." Doesn't sound too bad, does it? But from what Iunderstand, it's horribly painful.

Another one is "Restless Leg." That sounds pretty benign and minor, but I know two women who have it, and it's just about ruined their lives.

I hope you find some treatment to help you feel better.

Redstone

[Chalco]

13. Yes, I'm one of those rare ones whose symptoms keep

on giving. Although the pain dissipated substantially after about 4 months, I still have some residual itchiness and pain on contact. So I'm down from 25 pills a day to 2 at nite to help me sleep.

In my opinion the best treatment I received was acupuncture.

[eek]

14. my shingles have no rash

pain, itch but no visible signs. adds to the "you're making it up" thing that those of us with autoimmune disorders like fibromyalgia, CF, MCC, Gulf War Syndrome et al suffer ffrom.

feh.

[I_Make_Mistakes]

16. Chalco, the face is the most painful and potentially damaging

area to get them. I had the bra line (I had one ulcer on the breast back the back hurt like hell). I also, at 30 bounced back in 2 weeks, thought you are certainly not in a minority. The scary thing is that it can re occur.

I don't think that an external ulcer, is necessarily a requirement. I would check it out, because I was diagnosed in the ER for viral pericarditis (inflammation of the lining of the heart), and I told them it hurt like the shingles, so they did check for a rash.

[alfredo]

17. I have it on my back, side and front, from my solar plexis to my hip.

Hurts bad but I am coping. I am taking Acyclovir to knock it down. I will be taking the vaccine next year.

[yasmina27]

18. I was just diagnosed today!

Like I need this on top of back surgery a month ago (which is probably what activated it)! Fortunately (?) mine is only in a small area near my groin. My doc put me on Valtrex and Lyrica. Am already taking Vicodin and Flexeril for the back.

I noticed the pain starting about 5-6 days ago. Thought it was just referred pain from the surgery - everyone I talked to who'd had fusion surgery complained of groin pain, and since my pain is on the same side as all my other pain, I just assumed.....well, you know what they say when you assume something!

[alfredo]

19. You might as well have it now while you are already miserable

with your surgery.



I haven't found what triggered the outbreak.

I'm taking Acyclovir.

[yasmina27]

20. I guess that's one way of looking at it

:)

I've read that stress can do it. If you've experienced alot of stress in your life recently, that could be the cause.

Good luck! I hope yours goes away soon too!

[alfredo]

22. Using that advice helped me stop smoking. It could have been the

increase in property tax, that completely wiped out my homestead exemption. Having to find another $200 was stressful.

[Lurking Dem]

21. My Chinese doc

says she can treat it with acupuncture and, I think, herbs. But she has to catch it very early.