If anyone has had or know someone with shingles....?

Question

Hi, yesterday I was told I had shingles (I'm only sixteen, how lucky am I : ( ) It's in a very tender area, all over my neck and shoulder. The pain meds they gave me only put me to sleep and I still wake up with the pain. I know it's all they can do for me medically, but do you know of any home fixes that might help me out a little? It's almost impossible to sleep because of where it's at, and when I can I wake up all stiff from staying in the same position, lol viscious cycle. It's not the rash and whatnot that bothers me, it's the extreme muscle pain. Will heat help? Ice? what, please if you have anything I would be soooooo appreciative! Thank you very much for your time
Kay

Answer 1

It is not something you will have your whole life,(if people don't know what they are talking about don't give advise!!).Unfortunatly this pain last up to two weeks and you can try taking ibuprophen inbetween your pain meds.Do not go out and get some sun on it as it is a contagious virus and when you do go out keep that area covered with bandages.As long as your rash is draining it is very contagious. You could try ice but if the pain meds are not really helping not much else will.The virus can return it may not be for another year or 50yrs,or not at all.Be patient the pain will subside.Good luck.

Answer 2

Get some sun on it if you can. Also, aspirin might help with the muscle aches, but since you're on pain medication, ask the doc about that first.

EDIT: The anonymous person at the bottom got some stuff wrong ...

Yes, they're contagious ... but if you have some opportunity to get some sun (just a little is fine) on the infected spots, go ahead and do it if it helps you feel better AND if you're not going to infect anyone else in the process. If you don't want to get sun on the spots for whatever reason, go ahead and take a pass on the sun.

And yes you DO have the virus lurking in your body for the rest of your life, even if you never again have an outbreak. In that respect it's similar to the genital herpes virus. However, because the shingles virus is tied to your nervous system, if you had the shingles on only one side of your body, you'll only get them on that same side unless the other side gets infected independently. Take it from someone who KNOWS what he's talking about!

Answer 3

I know this might sound a bit strange but you might want to ask the doctor about a nerve pill I would think since shingles affect the never endings that a never pill might help or a anti inflammatory med of some sort. I have seen people with his but have no idea on what they used to treat the pain and yes they are very painful. Hope you feel better soon.

Answer 4

The doctor should have given you an antiviral medication to shorten the duration of the outbreak. Just take the pain medication for when you are going to sleep. Take over the counter pain meds during the day like Motrin or Aleve. You can try either heat or cold packs to see if they help you get some relief. It will be over in a couple of weeks hopefully. I understand the pain having had it, it is nerve pain and bad. Hope you get well soon!

Answer 5

Shingles are horrible! My sister had them on her side, and they were so painful! She was also given pain medication which made her sleepy. Try to get all the sleep you can and be so careful because shingels is a virus that is contagious!
Also check out your local health food store, there are lots of herbs homeopatic medicine that helps with shingles. Good luck.....hope you are feeling better soon

Answer 6

the out break runs in cycles---you just have to bear it---this is something that you will have your whole life, but as you get older it will few and far between out breaks..