Yeah I’m walking a very fine line here. On the one hand, the gabapentin only helped so much, and it’s gone. On the other hand, I live in a part of the country with a ridonkulous opiate addiction problem, and doctors are loath to prescribe opiates, particularly when patients ask for them specifically. On the other other hand, because I’m so familiar with how bad the drug problem here is, I’d like to try to treat with cannabis as much as possible, although to be fair I also treat No Problem At All, I Just Like Being High with cannabis as well.
My sister had shingles in her late 20s – unusual – but it was a mild case, probably because she was young. She worked in a hospital and was “quarantined” at home. She didn’t feel that bad, but they sure didn’t want her walking around the hospital.
I have had both versions of the shingles shot, and the second one gave me the worse reaction. But as mentioned many times above, a day or two of feeling crummy is vastly better than the likely extreme pain of shingles would be.
Really, the shots themselves? I thought they hurt slightly more than the Covid shots, but the shot itself is over in a second. Some people get varying degrees of after-effects of the shots, is that what you’re talking about?
I remember my mother having shingles and it was very unpleasant.
I had a shingles shot last year and had no significant reaction.
Get the shot, folks.
Following up on a couple of mentions in the thread with my own anecdote.
About 4 years ago in my mid 40s, I went and got a comprehensive work up on my various shots. Since I’d been back to school as an adult, I’d had updated MMR and similar goodness. But chickenpox had previously been an uncertain point. I hadn’t had a over case as a child, but had been staying in the same room / car / bed with my younger brother who HAD an over case when he was 4 and I was 6. So my folks had assumed that I had had it earlier, just in a non acute form.
My workup showed that no, I hadn’t. For that matter, neither had my wife. So we took advantage of modern medicine and were vaccinated against ChickenPox (Varivax).
Minor bother (it’s a 2 shot series, 4 weeks seperated) but far less of a bother than the common consequences of having CP as an adult, and a very minor chance of ever developing shingles.
If you don’t know, and have healthy insurance get it checked, generally for nearly free as preventative care.
Another possible reason to get the shingles vaccine: Causal evidence that herpes zoster vaccination prevents a proportion of dementia cases.
Yep. They burn. Over fairly quickly, but painful while you are getting it.
I’ve had every stage of Covid shots - never felt a one of them.
I had the first of the two shingles shots last month. My only reaction was a very slight soreness at the site, which lasted less than a day.
Not that this is how it goes for everyone, but it’s worth mentioning to indicate that the shot itself is a problem for some but not for all.
I don’t remember the Shingrix shots being painful. There was a requirement that the two shots be given a month (or two; can’ remember) apart, so that meant a return trip to the clinic.
2 to 6months apart for Shingrix. I was more than 6 months later for my second because of….covid but the pharmacist deemed that was ok.
I’m of an age where I first got the earlier, not as good Zostavax vaccine but then got to do it all over again when Shingrix came out because it was so much better protection. Still beats shingles hands down.
I am so sorry this happened to you and I hope you start feeling better soonist.
I agree that the current “no drugs for anyone” thing that doctors have adopted nowadays is pretty ridiculous, what ever happened to “Do No Harm”? Denying a patient in paid relief will not help them heal, their bodies will be all clenched up and they won’t be able to sleep which certainly won’t do anything good.
Pot doesn’t stop the pain, it just makes me not care for a while. That is perfect for someone like you, the shingles are going to go away in time, you just need to endure until then.
Back when I was young (1960’s), we got penicillin shots for almost everything. Those were hard shots. The Shingrix shots were hard like that.
I got the pox before vaccines were available, but got jabbed for it when I was in Basic Training. Years later, someone I was sleeping with came down with shingles and it was horrible. Just the air blowing across his bare skin was painful. And then he got the itchies so ended up night scratching himself bloody.
Ditto.
I can’t recall any unusual pain from my Shingrix injections. Maybe I just forgot? But I’m a big baby when it comes to shots, so if it was bad, it wasn’t that bad.
Yeah, for me, the shot was unusually painful, but over in a moment. 1st shot (which I had with my flu vaccine and a COVID booster all in the same day) didn’t do much after. 2nd shot knocked me on my ass for a day/day and a half. Fever, chills, achy. Not fun, but nothing like shingles.
I had no systemic side effects from being vaccinated with Shingrix, other than perhaps a little fatigue (and that’s so common anyway, that it’s hard to blame it on a shot).
But my arm felt like I’d been hit with a brick. Hard! It hurt for about three days. And I’m someone who almost never gets pain from an IM injection. I concluded that it must be the med.
Fast forward to the next Shingrix shot, and there was very little pain. I don’t know why. Maybe it wasn’t the med after all on that first occasion.
I found the shot a little painful. Not like the mRNA covid shots which were totally painless. But it wasn’t bad.
I felt tired and achy for a day after each shingrix shot, but it wasn’t horrible. I think reactions vary a lot.
I had Guillain-Barre syndrome ten years ago (basically your immune system attacks the nerves in the body…fortunately it got sorted out after a few weeks in the hospital and a colossal bill…luckily I had good insurance). No one is certain what causes it but one theory is vaccines may be a culprit. I once went for a free vaccine in my office building and they handed me a piece of paper with two check-boxes. One question was whether you ever had Guillain-Barre. I did and they refused me the shot (I forget what the other question was).
I have had COVID vaccines without any problem but my doctor has been on the fence about me getting other vaccines like a yearly flu shot and even moreso a shingles vaccine. There are no good answers for this so I think he is just covering his ass (understandable).
So, I have not gotten the shingles vaccine yet at 57 years old. I really, really do not want shingles but I also really, really do not want to do Guillain-Barre again (but, that is only a chance and not a given).
I’m sorry this has happened to you. I watched shingles bring my sister to her knees with pain. She was a tough cookie and seeing her in tears and in so much pain was very distressing. This happened years ago when she was still fairly young and before there was a vaccine for it that was so widely recommended.
I hope you mend quickly.
I assumed I had chicken pox because all of us kids born in the 50s got all those “childhood diseases” eventually. My mom claims I never had it. No matter - I’ve gotten the shots. I’ll take whatever medical science can give me to keep me from getting sick.
I hope you’re right that it’s mild and that the meds were able to reduce its severity. When I had it 4 years ago, it was during the beginning of COVID, so I avoided seeing the dermatologist over a minor-seeming itchy pimple on my back. By the time it started spreading (and I knew what it was), I saw the doctor, but it was too late and the pills didn’t work. So I got full version, and it was painful and unrelenting for a good 5 weeks. Of course, when it was over, I saw the doctor and he said “at least you’re done”, meaning that I don’t have to worry about getting it again. Others here have disavowed me of that notion, and apparently you can get it twice. I still haven’t gotten vaxxed, but need to.
annnnnnnnnd, whathavewelearned?! 