34 with mild Shingles, no pain, weird?
Posted , 56 users are following.
SO happy I found this community! I've been treated like a leper by 2 doctors when I was diagnosed with Shingles. Apparently it's "unheard" of in young people (I'm 34) unless we're immune compromised, but reading other young, healthy people on here who have had Shingles is a big relief!
My outbreak was kind of strange.. on my upper butocks, a small, isolated area with maybe a dozen blisters. Mild itching, almost zero pain, scabbed over and healed in less than two weeks. If I didn't get it checked out I would have assumed it was just an allergic reaction or bug bites. I had a lesion swab that came out positive for herpes zoster and was put on the valacyclovir beforehand, about 5 days after the rash showed up. Either the meds did the trick or I just healed naturally. So I guess my questions are:
1. Why did I get it at my young (and presumably healthy) age?
2. Why was it such a mild case? The pain-free seems to be unheard of.
Thanks!
8 likes, 77 replies
jenny1111 Shingles34
Posted
There is no limit on age with this virus. People as early as 8 years of age can break out with it. I am having my first time case and I am 43 and very healthy. I work out, eat healthy, take Probiotics daily and and haven't been sick in over 7 years. This virus sees no age limit. If you have had the chicken pox you will automatically carry this herpes voster for the rest of your life. It could stay dormant and never show or did what did with you or I. Stress is a huge factor on how it is triggered. Anyone who has never had chicken pox or pregnant people are more susceptible in getting it if in contact with an infected area. juat keep the area cool and dry and wash your hands often. meds from the doctor should work I am in valtrax and nerve meds..including steroids for a week. mine was a small area as well. good luck
suzkpa jenny1111
Posted
I have read shingles referred to as a healthy woman's illness. I had everything tested and in every other respect I am healthy. Need to lose some weight is all.
thinsport suzkpa
Posted
I have read the same thing, so I appreciate the validation of you saying that. I have also read...Shingles is much more common in women than men. Some doctors believe there may be a hormonal component. More women than men also have autoimmune disorders. Some doctors believe that is also because of hormonal fluctuations.
I feel that doctors (and myself) are so ignorant when it comes to knowing why shingles does what it does. It would be so comforting, validating, and nice if physicians would just say something like..."Healthy individuals no matter what their age have a small percentage of having reoccurring shingles and we don't know why but we can treat it and help you with your symptoms". Instead I feel like most physicians treat individuals that are "otherwise healthy" and have recurring shingles like they have "leprosy" or that there has to be something terribly wrong with them like... they have an auto immune disorder (which some do that have reoccurring shingles), have cancer (I read a medical journal study that confirmed people that have reoccurring shingles are not more likely to develop cancer), then there's the obvious diseases and treatments that we can we can weaken your immune system ensuring that you are probably or statistically more likely to have shingles. For example, Medications that weakens your new system for like medication for arthritis. Cancer treatments also weaken your immune system. Having and autoimmune disease or having a disease like Aids also increases your probability of shingles. Unfortunately, most doctors or physicians find out there patient has reoccurring shingles and they have confirmed they're otherwise healthy, like they still have "leprosy". Instead of doing research and due diligence there manner of dealing with the situation only ensures to create "fear and anxiety" in the patient making the situation worse! Ignorance and behavior about shingles creates a lot of anxiety. Which is one reason I am grateful for this discussion forums so that we can provide each other with information and knowledge we find. Hopefully, providing each other with some much needed reassurance and hope.
tony23263 Shingles34
Posted
Crossing my fingers that this is me too (the lack of pain part at least). I noticed the weird tingling 6 days ago, a spot or 2 showed up 4 days ago, went in today and got on the anti-virals. Just missed the 72 hr mark but the Dr. still thought it had a good chance of reducing the severity.
I know results may vary & all but how long after the anti-virals did new sores continue to form? I fortunates only have a few (unfortunately they're on my face) but they're only slightly painful and the itching is only mildly irritating. Just wondering if the real fun is coming down the pipe still or if catching pretty early seems to really do the job for most people?
Still being optomistic...
TheUrbanNanna tony23263
Posted
Hi Tony,
How did you go with your bout of shingles?
I'm in a similar position to you, in that I had a small cluster of blisters appear, which are mildly itchy as they are healing, but generally don't hurt unless I prod them, and I've been on antiviral meds since the second day of symptoms.
I, too, am wondering if I've been incredibly lucky, or if I have a world of pain heading my way, so I'd love to hear how your story ended.
Cheers,
Anna
suzkpa tony23263
Posted
Wondering if you've had any recurrence of the shingles?
tony23263 Shingles34
Posted
Yeah, mine went very smoothly. I didn't get on the anti-virals til a couple days later but went through a 10 day course. Juat a handful of sores that stopped forming soon after goping on the meds and stopped itching by the time I was done with them. Very little sign of anything at 30 days. (Had I not squeeezed the hell out of the first ones, thinking they were some sort of acne at the beginning, I'm sure there'd be no sign at all now). Judging by this forum, it seems like I got really lucky though I suppose it's fair to assume that people with the cases that go easy aren't usually the ones reaching out for help. Still, it's probably good for newly diagnosed patients that it's not necessarily going to be awful.
TheUrbanNanna tony23263
Posted
Oh I'm glad to hear that Tony!
And thanks for your reply: it's very reassuring.
It's interesting that you mention the blisters that you interacted with being the ones that still have impact on you: I initially had 8 spots of varying size, only two of which were blistered. I scratched one, then the doctor scraped the other to take a swab sample for testing (confirmed shingles 3 days later via test cultures), and those two are the ones which give me pain if I touch them.
It's now 6 days since the first signs of shingles (mine started with weird twinges at the site I got those 8 spots, about 2 hours of extreme acheiness, but no other symptoms til the day AFTER the spots appeared), and I've had no other spots or rash appear, even though I've had extreme skin sensitivity (but I wouldn't call it 'pain' as such) over two dermatome belts on my left side. I went on antiviral medication within 48 hours of the first symptoms I registered, and I can only surmise that this rapid treatment along with the avoidance of scratching has helped the virus do its thing with relatively low impact.
As you say, it feels like I got lucky, but I'd also say the take-home message for me is: get to the doctor quickly, and don't meddle with the skin, and it may go easier on you in the long run.
Best of luck matey, and may you never have cause to write on a forum like this again! 😄
jane45928 Shingles34
Posted
I guess I was just fortunate to not experience the horrible pain.
Stinging itching and burning though.
jane45928
Posted
Small patch on my back.
Rhonda3824 Shingles34
Posted
I'm 59 and I had severe fatigue, headache, achiness, and fever, and an itchy rash on my right side under my ribs. It looks like 8-10 bug bites. I also had 1 bug bite looking bump on my right forearm. I went to the doctor and she diagnosed me as having shingles. By the time I got home, it looked like I had 10 or 12 little bug bites on my arm. My tummy area did not change and both areas itched. I have been in bed for four days with fever, achiness, and flu like symptoms. I have been on the antiviral drug which must have kept my rash from becoming worse. On the fourth day some of the bumps appeared to become filled with some fluid. if anything, it itches and is a bit prickly feeling. I have not had pain, just the discomfort of feeling like I have had a bad case of the flu. Glad to see this thread of others blessed to have mild cases of Shingles. I will not play around though-once I'm well, I will request the vaccine.
thinsport Rhonda3824
Posted
I just want to say that the current vaccine is not 100% effective it's only 51% effective. I have reoccurring shingles and was told the vaccine would help and it did for nine months. Nine months after I had the vaccine I had the worst case of shingles that I've ever had!
richard96162 Shingles34
Posted
mickers Shingles34
Posted
I have a weird case. I thought I had a sore bruise on my buttcheek that wouldn't go away. It is purplish in color and about an inch and a half long. There are smaller purplish dots under my cheek. This has been here for almost 3 months and continues to be sore. I had a fall a few years ago where I got knocked down playing sports and landed on this very area where it left a very large bruise and has been tender ever since. The dermatologist told me I had an "aborted" case of the shingles since there were no blisters and it didn't spread..just a painful, purple patch. The pain is still present and I have to wonder if it is related to damage from the hip/butt area where I fell. I have started to retreat the area with Dermablast and calamine lotion...I don't l ike meds.
suzkpa mickers
Posted
thinsport mickers
Posted
I have already posted this information several times so I did not want to bore other people with this information. So if you have already read or seen this information please forgive me, I hope that I am not irritating you. I just think that this information could be very helpful (comforting and reassuring) to other people that have not seen it. I also have some links to some of the studies and other studies regarding reoccurring shingles. If anyone would like any extra links please feel free to send me a private message. In the private message account you're able to send links, I have found that when I try to put links on the "discussions forums" they are rejected / not posted in the discussions.
Shingles should not always associated with having a poor immune system or being immunocompromised. That kind of ignorance is what makes having chronic shingles (I have chronic shingles or reoccurring shingles) so embarrassing. I'm not a doctor but my sister is and she confirms all this information.Shingles and reoccurring shingles is prevalent in the immunocompetent population I have probably had shingles at least 30 times starting at the age of 12. Also, during both my pregnancies. As I get older I seem to have it more frequently unfortunately. I have also had the shingles vaccine which only worked for about nine months then I had a case of shingles that was the worst I've ever had! Other than have a reoccurring shingles there is nothing else wrong with me. I'm very fit and healthy otherwise. I just want to let you know that you're not alone if you're having / experiencing shingles or have reoccurring shingles. Here is the information that you might find helpful my apologies that is so long but shingles is a very complicated thing...
For decades, medical wisdom about shingles has been that it's a once-in-a-lifetime experience. The commonly-held belief is that patients are protected from a recurrence of the herpes zoster virus, which causes shingles, after one episode. But according to recent research and/or studies about shingles they have found that this is not true. For example, a study published in the February 2011 issue of the Mayo Clinic Proceedings shows that recurrences of shingles may be significantly more common than doctors have suspected. New Medical Studies have found and prove that recurrences of shingles are prevalent in the immunocompetent population. "It's been thought that recurrences were limited to people with compromised immune systems, for instance from chemotherapy or bloodborne malignancies, but this is not the case," "Recurrence was prevalent in the immunocompetent population. We were very surprised by the results." Unfortunately, alot of doctors are not up-to-date on the most recent research about shingles. There is still so much that the medical community needs to learn about shingles. "Shingles has a mind of its own and does what it wants to do".The bottom line is No One Knows exactly what causes a reactivation of the virus! If they knew exactly what caused it there probably wouldn't be this forum. You could have a good immune system and get it. You may also have a poor immune system and get it. It is also common to have reoccurring shingles if you have an auto immune disorder for example, lupus or MS. Some of the other speculations / research published in medical journals suggest these things may contribute to reactivation of the virus but like I said before they do not know for sure...1). Having experienced injuries or nerve damage also seems to raise the risk for shingles, since within the nerves is where the virus lays dormant. 2). Some research suggests that traumatic stimulation of the nerves in the dorsal root ganglion can trigger the virus to reactive. 3). Some people also seem to be genetically predisposed to the development of herpes zoster to some extent, with research showing that changes in the gene for interleukin-10 (an immune-system mediator) are associated with an increased incidence of herpes zoster, as is a family history of the virus. 4). Finally, the impact of high amounts of stress and poor gut health shouldn’t be overlooked. Psychological stress, chronic stress, or dramatic life events seem to contribute to VZV reactivation, with studies showing an association between physical, emotional and sexual abuse and higher incidence of shingles. According to a report published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases, contributing psychological factors for shingles development include financial stress, inability to work, decreased independence and an inadequate social-support environment.
thinsport suzkpa
Posted
Suzkpa,
I hope this finds you well,
Number 1 and 2 are exactly what I think you're talking about. I think that I have a damage nerves and that contributes to my reoccurring shingles...
1). Having experienced injuries or nerve damage also seems to raise the risk for shingles, since within the nerves is where the virus lays dormant. 2). Some research suggests that traumatic stimulation of the nerves in the dorsal root ganglion can trigger the virus to reactive. 3). Some people also seem to be genetically predisposed to the development of herpes zoster to some extent, with research showing that changes in the gene for interleukin-10 (an immune-system mediator) are associated with an increased incidence of herpes zoster, as is a family history of the virus. 4). Finally, the impact of high amounts of stress and poor gut health shouldn’t be overlooked. Psychological stress, chronic stress, or dramatic life events seem to contribute to VZV reactivation, with studies showing an association between physical, emotional and sexual abuse and higher incidence of shingles. According to a report published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases, contributing psychological factors for shingles development include financial stress, inability to work, decreased independence and an inadequate social-support environment.0 Report this