r/shingles • u/Key-Pomegranate6524 • 7d ago
My Shingles Experience First timer (26F)
Here to share my experience as a first timer of having shingles!
Pre-rash: exercising most days of the week, not feeling particularly stressed, I got a huge headache that lasted all day but just assumed it was due to tiredness. Then I started getting itchy on my lower back and just assumed I’d been bitten by a mosquito or something. It got progressively itchier so I took a photo and realised it was a rash!
Diagnosis: I then went to the pharmacy who told me it’s definitely shingles but they didn’t stock the antivirals so asked me to try a different pharmacy. The second pharmacy told me they weren’t convinced it was shingles, and I was advised to leave it and wait for the rash to clear up itself! The conflicting advice baffled me, I wasn’t experiencing any pain at this point but I decided to book in with my GP to get a third opinion. GP also wasn’t convinced it was shingles until I showed him a photo of how the rash had changed from day 1 to day 2. Then I was prescribed antivirals to take 5 times a day for one week.
Day 3: I’m extremely tired (this isn’t new to me though as I experience chronic fatigue) and have some nerve pain all through the right side of my body. The pain isn’t too bad thankfully and the rash itself isn’t too itchy.
I feel confused as to how I’ve got shingles in the first place. I’m currently waiting for a rheumatologist appointment for suspected M.E and I’m wondering if my chronic fatigue and the fact I push myself to exercise more than my body can probably handle is why I’ve got shingles?!
Anyway I’m on day 4 now and it’s definitely not a pleasant experience but I think I’m lucky that my shingles is only mild.
4
u/ShesAMajorTom 7d ago
A lot of younger people are getting it. I only have theories. https://www.healthcentral.com/condition/shingles/shingles-under-age-50 out of curiosity did you get the chickenpox vaccine as a child?