I was pretty lucky, in that my outbreak was a couple places on my upper torso. It was definitely painful for a few days at its peak (Tylenol and ice packs), but from what I've heard from some friends and family who had it on their head and/or face, I get the impression that was significantly worse.Ruby296 said:I read that the vaccine is targeted for those 60 and older. My parents have both had it and didn't experience any reactions. If you're at risk for shingles I would suggest you get it if you can. You don't want shingles, believe me...I'm just getting over it and it was very painful at times. I was lucky to get diagnosed quickly and started the anti-viral within 48 hrs of first rash appearance.
My relatives who have had it have all been miserable while fighting it. My sister developed a case of shingles while literally on her deathbed. Of course, we were concerned enough with trying to keep her comfortable that those of us who cared for her didn't even think about the rash that she had being shingles. I don't know why the hospice people didn't figure it out. They came to the house every day, but didn't find the cause of the rash. (It may be that we didn't ask them about it. There were so many other things on our minds during the last two weeks of my sister's life that the cause of the rash wasn't a big deal. Sure am glad that I didn't get shingles, though. I hated that she had to deal with that, but she was on lots of pain meds, so apparently the shingles weren't horrible for her. Compared to cancer, I don't know how shingles could be any worse.)NogDog said:I was pretty lucky, in that my outbreak was a couple places on my upper torso. It was definitely painful for a few days at its peak (Tylenol and ice packs), but from what I've heard from some friends and family who had it on their head and/or face, I get the impression that was significantly worse.
But it can happen. My son had it when he was 12. (It's often not as bad in kids and teens as it is in older people, I've been told.) By the time we figured out what it was, it was too late for the meds. But he was a trooper.Marguerite said:If you have already had shingles, then you probably can't get it again. Just FYI.