1. Community
  2. Infections
  3. Shingles

Memory Loss

Posted , 4 users are following.

grace41387
grace41387

so i spoke about my daughter in a series of posts called 15yo with shingles and its healing well but one thing we've noticed is her memory is really bad. she hates trying to remember things bc its confusing n blank. shes in her gcse year and they sit and study poems that will be on the english test and there are four ish poems out of the eight they've done since the start of sept that she literally cannot remember being in the lesson, she remembers slight things but the poems are like brand new to her. is this a normal effect of shingles?

0 likes, 11 replies

11 Replies

  • Merry19451
    Merry19451 grace41387

    Posted

    Dear Grace,

    Depending on the severity and location of the shingles episode and accompanying symptoms, some individuals experience brain fog, depression, fatigue, and exhaustion. If she had the agonizing, excruciating burning pain, and many sleepless nights, that would have impaired her memory and ability to learn even more.

    Herpes Zoster-Shingles is a systematic disease or body wide disease. It does not simply cause a rash and some pain. The virus circulates throughout the body, causing prolonged symptoms.

    Many health care professionals are abysmally ignorant of the excruciating pain, accompanying symptoms, and appropriate treatment and management of this disease.

    Now especially they undertreat the pain, and patients suffer.

    I am a Nurse Practitioner in the States. I have had Herpes Zoster-Shingles every three weeks in my right ear, mouth, throat, and more recently, scalp for 23 years.

    Are you in the UK?

    Best Regards

    Merry Juliana

    • grace41387
      grace41387 Merry19451

      Posted

      it was in her private areas which makes me wonder if it still affects her brain but she didn't sleep for 4 weeks till about 6 am and she is only 15 so the pain and discomfort was a massive shock to her system. we are based in the uk yes

      grace x

    • Merry19451
      Merry19451 grace41387

      Posted

      Sleep issues definitely affect cognitive abilities and the ability to learn. The private area is extremely sensitive to pain, as you know. I doubt that she received any analgesic sufficient for her exquisite pain. I do not know if the schools make any allowances for such issues. Perhaps a note from a compassionate

      doctor might help.

      Is she depressed currently?

      Worried about school?

      Merry Juliana

  • yogi12221
    yogi12221 grace41387

    Posted

    I had some memory issues and the brain fog at the time. Where is her outbreak? I still have memory and thinking issues--I just cannot think as clearly and logically as I used to.

    • grace41387
      grace41387 yogi12221

      Posted

      she has m.e already which affected her cognitively but she's very bright and had a really good memory before shingles. the shingles was in her private areas so i wouldn't expect it to affect her brain

      grace x

  • babs99203
    babs99203 grace41387

    Posted

    Many of the meds used to treat shingles such as gabapentin can cause serious memory loss. That was my first thought. It's one of the most upsetting, as it can be both long and short term. What meds is she on?

    • grace41387
      grace41387 babs99203

      Posted

      she was on aclivior for ages, loads of penicillin when they misdiagnosed it and co codamol

Back to top

Report or request deletion

Thanks for your help!

We want the community to be a useful resource for our users but it is important to remember that the community are not moderated or reviewed by doctors and so you should not rely on opinions or advice given by other users in respect of any healthcare matters. Always speak to your doctor before acting and in cases of emergency seek appropriate medical assistance immediately. Use of the community is subject to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and steps will be taken to remove posts identified as being in breach of those terms.