<p>Can you get shingles more than once? D2 had a bad case of chicken pox in kindergarten and then shingles at the end of her Jr year of high school. (I thought it was poison ivy and told her to suck it up and go to school-not one of my better parenting moments). If you can get it more than once, should I get her vaccinated at the ripe old age of 18?</p>
<p>nocashfored, I’m fairly sure the answer to your first question is yes because the shingles vaccine is available for people who have already had shingles.</p>
<p>The youngest age Zostavax is approved for is age 50. It is uncertain if a booster is needed, since the original approved age was 62. Follow-up is being done to determine if a booster is needed. As of right now, only 1 immunization per lifetime is approved. </p>
<p>Remember with Varivax, (chicken pox) only one immunization was initially approved. A few years later, they changed the recommendation to two immunizations.</p>
<p>Also, it is recommended you replace one of you Td (tetanus and diphtheria) boosters with TdaP (tetanus, diphtheria, and acellular pertussis). Pertussis does sometime wear off.</p>
<p>Well here’s a kicker. I started this thread because my husband had what we thought were hives and I began researching skin rashes. I came upon a few shingles sites and started wondering about the shingles vaccine. Now today my H finally went to the doctor, diagnosis shingles. He had his blood tested 15 years ago and was told he had never had chicken pox, so he received 2 doses of the Varivax vaccine from Merck. So the question is, did his shingles come from the Varivax vaccine, which is a “weakened” virus, or did he actually have chicken pox as a child (even though the antibody test was negative)? I reported the story to Merck, so it goes in to a database of potential adverse events. If the outbreak he has now is originally from exposure to the Varivax vaccine, that means our kids who have been immunized will NOT necessarily be free of the risk of shingles. Only way to know is if my H’s Dr. sends a virus sample to Merck for DNA analysis. Not only will I not get H back to a Dr’s office, but I doubt our large HMO will cooperate in this quest. Moral of the story is to make sure our kids keep up with their booster shots and get the shingles vaccine (zostavax) as soon as it is available to them as adults.</p>
<p>So sorry, ick to shingles…have him do the bland healthy diet thing…cant hurt and it helped my daughter with the pain</p>
<p>I have had excruciating right sided abdominal, back and rib pain for about 6 days. I was beginning to think the hardware from my neck fusion surgery was causing problems in the thoracic vertebrae, causing radiating pain around my upper back and even into my abdomen. It almost felt like I was having a gallbladder attack that radiated into my back, but I don’t have a gallbladder. Tonight, in great pain, I decided to take a hot bath to see if it would help. When I undressed, I noticed the beginnings of a telltale rash and drove myself to the ER at 1:30 am. </p>
<p>Diagnosis: Shingles! I didn’t see this coming, and wish to goodness I had gotten the vaccine when I had the chance in September. </p>
<p>I really hope the strong anti viral medicine they gave me will prevent the postherpetic pain syndrome some people live with for the rest of their lives. I also got some pretty strong pain medicine.</p>
<p>I encourage anyone over 50 to get the vaccine, because I don’t know when I’ve been so miserable, and I am someone who has had decades of back and neck pain issues.</p>
<p>Yes, I had the vaccine even tho my insurer is fighting whether I get reimbursed for it. My D & H had it. Both had so much pain they had trouble sleeping. H needed Rx meds to sleep finally. D was just utterly miserable. They both diagnosed it in me when I had just 3 little bumps. They got me to see a dermatologist THAT DAY & she agreed & started me on the anti-viral. Never got another bump and was grateful I never had the pain they did.</p>
<p>Will see if my insurer will reimburse, since it’s mostly recommended for folks 60+. My brother had it as well but since he’s <60, he didn’t even try to get insurer to pay. I’m appealing denial by insurer.</p>
<p>^^^^HiMom (or anyone with personal experience with shingles), how long was your daughter miserable? Did pain medicine help? I’ve got stronger pain medicine than I came home with after neck surgery, and I can’t say it has really relieved the pain all that well. I’m wondering how long I’m going to have to endure this. You are so lucky that they caught your rash early!</p>
<p>Had an annoying rash (a little itchy, not really painful, slight ooze) once. Eventually went to the doctor who said it was a herpes infection, probably shingles (the rash was in one of the typical shingles sites on the face). Got valacyclovir prescription.</p>
<p>If you have severe back pain on one side, be suspicious that you might be coming down with shingles. That’s what happened to me a few months ago - I’m 56. The pain once the rash appeared was bout three weeks with anti viral medicine. However a few months later I started getting the achy back symptoms again and immediately started anti virals and didn’t get the rash this time… pain went away in a few days. I was under a lot of stress at that time.</p>
<p>So my advice is - if you’re over 50 and can afford it, get the shot. Wish I had. I’ll get it next time it’s available, most likely in the fall - although don’t know how much good it will do since I have already had shingles.</p>
<p>From start to finish, DH’s rash & pain lasted 2 weeks. The pain mostly bothered him at night, and aspirin seemed to help a little bit. He began the antiviral medicine about one week after the rash appeared, so not sure if it helped or not. He had headaches while taking the medication, not sure if that is a known side effect. </p>
<p>The shingles vaccine manufacturer now recommends the shot for anyone over 50. My HMO Dr. approved it, no questions asked. I just need to get in there and get the shot, and the comments here are good incentive!</p>
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<p>My prodromal symptoms before the rash appeared were also worse at night. By last night, I couldn’t keep still for the pain. I was basically rocking back and forth in the bed, just like I did when I had my final horrific gallbladder attack. Aleve helped earlier in the week, but by yesterday I began to fear I was going to give myself a stomach ulcer, I was taking so much of it to no avail.</p>
<p>The literature says you must take the antivirals within 24-72 hours after the rash appears to have any effectiveness.</p>
<p>I got my shingles shot three days ago. No side effects except slight inflammation at the injection site. I feel fine.</p>
<p>Someone mentioned earlier that doctors have trouble billing insurance for this shot. My doctor wrote a script and sent me to a pharmacy. If your doctor is dragging his heels (like my brother’s doctor was), suggest the pharmacy route to your doctor. Under this procedure the pharmacy bills insurance. In my case, my insurance had to approve the shot, but after a couple day’s delay, they did approve it. And, they paid the whole thing. I didn’t get charged a dime.</p>
<p>I encourage people to get this shot (and I, too, am a cancer survivor with missing lymph nodes) because shingles is so awful.</p>
<p>I got the shot just a few months after I turned 60. I’ve had herpes infections of the eye which are pretty darn horrible, so I didn’t want to take any chances with another member of the herpes family.</p>
<p>H & D were miserable for many weeks. H needed narcotics to sleep at all & was utterly miserable. D would cry out in pain, just sitting down at her computer. She didn’t get much sleep at all when she had shingles for weeks. She did get scarring on her legs as well.</p>
<p>I got my shingles shot at Costco, which had it in stock & was the lowest price. Am now having to fight with insurer because I am over 50 but under 60. They normally DON’T cover for patients under 60, but my specialist recommended I get it, especially since I had already had it once (you can get it multiple times), and H & D had also had it & been miserable. H had it as well.</p>
<p>^^^^^I’ve been up half the night for a week now. </p>
<p>Just took a pain pill (Vicodin) to try to take the edge off.</p>
<p>As soon as I am eligible to get the vaccine for this, I’m doing it. I don’t ever want to go through this again.</p>
<p>So sorry to read this, Nrdsb4, and hope it will abate quickly for you!</p>
<p>My 19 y.o. came down with shingles last fall - first week of classes:( - and it followed the nerve path from the top of his head along one side of his face. He was diagnosed as soon as rash appeared and we had the anti-viral in him within an hour, but it still progressed and was pretty horrific to look at. Even with meds, his pain was so severe that he was hospitalized for 3 days and was given morphine. He was back to hydrocodone after but still had a lot of misery for a few months. We were concerned about narcotic effects and kept trying other solutions. For him, lidocaine cream seemed to be the most helpful for the lingering pain and he felt better, mentally and physically, once he started taking a product called Isotonix OPC-3 as a supplement (doc and pharmacist approved).</p>
<p>Good luck…hang in there!</p>
<p>^^^^^Oh, your poor son! I always try to find a positive in a bad situation, and when reading about shingles, I saw some photos of people who had it on their face/near their eyes (at risk for blindness), so I told myself I was lucky to have mine at the T2-T3 dermatome, where at least it’s not visible.</p>
<p>I hope your son never has to deal with it again!</p>
<p>I had shingles on the face and in my hair last fall. I was uncomfortable and my face was swollen but I would not describe the pain as debilitating. Benadryl helped me sleep. Maybe I was lucky this time or maybe the pain varies with the location of the outbreak.
I am under 60 and my insurance company won’t cover the vaccine. I am still debating paying the $225+ cost and getting the shot because I (and my doctor) have yet to find a scientific study or recommendation that indicates the vaccine truly helps prevent additional outbreaks in people who have already experienced their first shingles bout.</p>
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<p>I don’t know if the pain varies with location, but I do know that it can vary from person to person, and in people with multiple incidents, it can vary from past experiences. It’s similar to how one person can get a horrific case of chicken pox, yet another may only get a few lesions.</p>