Exhaustion/brain fog/numbness and tingling in face.
Posted , 5 users are following.
Hi friends! Hope everyone is doing well! Had shingles back in July of last years with a very small rash. Luckily I have not had much pain but oh my I am tired to the bone and the brain fog and numbness in my face is very scary. I just feel so yuck!!! I started out on famvir, early with the rash. Then stayed a maintenance dose. The burning headache returned so we upped it again for a few weeks. Then the brain fog and numbness started. So we changed my med to valtrex. I guess we will see.
Has anyone had this unrelenting fatigue, brain fog, and facial symptoms? I am almost at the Year mark and just want to feel better!
😃
Teresa
1 like, 7 replies
r._f._09034 teresa83432
Posted
Hi Teresa. I started having shingles about 8 years ago. After the shingles started in my face and eye, the docs put me on different meds to ease the pain and MOST of those meds kept my brain in a fog. I don't take any of those anymore. As for myself, i don't just take antiviral at time of outbreak. I take 3000 mg of antiviral Acyclovir, (genetic Valtrex) a day every day, all year round. When I first started taking the antiviral, I did feel sluggish and blah but the shingles made me feel lethargic and run down/ flu like, all on their own, so it was a double dose of bad. The antiviral don't bother me like they did and I don't take pain meds until an outbreak, except for what I take at night for nerve damage pain, which is Amitriptyline 10 mg and Clonazapam 10 mg for mioclonic seizures caused from prolonged shingles. These are small dosages, so i dont feel sluggish the day after. Of course, for an outbreak, it's Dilaudid and higher dose of Amitriptyline. Whether I'm having outbreak or not, at night, I find a heating pad helps to soothe the head pain. Also, in between hot wash clothes (moist heat), put dry rice in a sock and heat it in your microwave. Not too hot and it holds heat for a long while and safer than heating pad if you are going to sleep. I have three rice socks and they stay close by for re-use. Put them on your forehead, face and back of your neck for relief. Cold doesn't work at all for me but I've heard cold works for others. Hope you feel better friend.
teresa83432 r._f._09034
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r._f._09034 teresa83432
Posted
Aweeeee :- ) Don't think you are ever complaining, friend. Always feel free to reach out to one or all of us any time. This site helped me to not feel so alone at one of my darkest times of pain. Many kind caring people on here. As for the brain fog, that whole there but not there feeling, is a royal pain by itself. Extended pain and lack of sleep is debilitating all on its own, especially when it's happening while the rest of the world, YOUR world, is sleeping. Hope the rice sock helps you. Its saved me on more times than I can count and can sometimes save your liver and kidneys from having another pill to process, which is always a good thing. Hope you feel better friend
shona53538 teresa83432
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teresa83432 shona53538
Posted
shona53538 teresa83432
Posted
r._f._09034 shona53538
Posted
Hey guys. Sorry you're going thru this. I started having the tingling/stinging after may be my third year of reoccurring shingles. For me, it's like a tiny electric shock or like someone stuck me with a pin. What's worked for me, whether i'm sitting in the lounger or in bed at night is a Homedics PA1 massager. You know, those huge bulky massagers that everyone bought when they first came out but everyone is trying to get rid of because its kinda lousy for sore muscles and such but its great for what I use it for what I need it for.
Naturally, I don't have it directly on my shingles but laying beside me. However, I HAVE run it up and down my legs between outbreaks to sooth the PHN. It works wonders. During a shingles outbreak, the constant vibration settles the tingling down almost instantly and I can sleep. I've slept with one beside me most every night for years now, out of habit now I guess, so i've been through several. I did hear someone say there is a new something on the market that's made exclusively for sleeping that lightly vibrates your bed but I haven't looked it up yet because it was just an advertisement I heard in passing and don't know the name but I plan to look into it. I only found out about this because my husband had an injured shoulder while I had shingles and discovered his relief was also mine. Otherwise, I probably would be never even trying it, considering the very nature of shingles itself. Hope you guys have a better day and night. Take care friends.