Shingles, is it always related to HIV ?

I am 59 years old. I had shingles for the first time in July of this year. I've never heard that shingles was connected to HIV.

Your life is not over.

There are a lot of nice people on this forum.

You will get some good answers and info.

God bless you. I hope you feel better already.

Cindy Duffy

Hi Lia, I'm sorry to hear that you have shingles.  There's no connection between HIV and shingles, so please don't be afraid.  Anyone who has had chicken pox as a child can get shingles.  I guess it's like chickenpox for adults. 

I was diagnosed over the summer and it lasted about 4 months.  Alot of pain and sleepless nights.  And your doctor is right its not contagious.  There is no cure but there are vaccines that you can take to decrease the odds of getting it again.  It's also supposed to decrease the pain as well.  My doctor told me I would be immune for a year, but I know thats not true for all people.

You will find people on this forum who have had recurring shingles so they can address this further with you.  So far I'm doing ok and I hope it wont come back to haunt me again.  The blisters went away completely around the 3 month mark, it was slow but I tried to manage it as best I could.  There is pain medication you can take to help manage the pain, did your doctor suggest any. I used pain meds and more importantly I tried to keep myself busy so that I didn't spend so much time focusing on the pain.  I love listening to music, so I walked everyday with music in my ears, very loud, to drown out the pain.  I also used olive oil on the blisters to reduce the burning sensation. 

I think its important that you try to keep yourself moving, not excessively, just enough to keep your body from developing muscle aches from sitting too much.  It's difficult to get through this, but I know you will.  There's a nurse on this forum who has recurring shingles, so if she reads your post, you can ask her medical questions that a nurse can answer.  She's very good.  anyways, I hope this helps a little.  There are nice people on this forum so feel free to ask and look for support.  Nobody understands shingles better than the people who have had shingles.  Have a good day.

FORGET what everybody says...DO NOT believe Dr. Google

If you have had chicken pox, you might develop shingles in the future.

Anyone with a compromised immune system is more susceptible to developing shingles. Immunosuppressed includes HIV, everyone on chemo, someone with liver disease just to name a few.

You are contagious to anyone susceptible to shingles. Eventually the blisters will crust and scab as they heal.

Shingles does not mean that you have HIV.

Shingles always happens on one side of the body at a time.

Send your family to have a shingles vaccination BUT be sure to have them share that they have been recently exposed to shingles.,

When you are well, you should consider the vaccination as well because you can develop shingles multiple times.

I have had them five times but I am unable to take the vaccination because I am on chemo.

Dear Lia,

First,

I am so sorry for your suffering and pain.

Herpes Zoster-Shingles is caused by reactivation of the chickenpox virus that lays dormant on your sensory central nervous system until your immune system is stressed.

Getting married counts as a major stressor. Congratulations!

Most people who get Herpes Zoster-Shingles do not have HIV.

You are infectious to individuals who have not yet been infected with the chickenpox virus. This can include pregnant women and their unborn children, to whom it is very dangerous. They can contract chickenpox from the exposed vesicle-blisters until they have completely scabbed over and no longer contain any fluid. This can take up to one month from the beginning of symptoms.

The disease usually starts with an individual having symptoms including headache. fever, chills and sweating, aches and pains, malaise, exhaustion, and fatigue. This is followed by pain in an area called a dermatome, then the rash. The vesicle-blisters occur in waves or crops over a period of five days, then stop.

During this time and the next month in particular, you can experience excruciating pain-burning, lancinating, sometimes itching. Occasionally, when someone is younger, the pain is not as severe as when one is older. In any case, the physician should have prescribed an antiviral for seven days and a strong analgesic (pain killer.)

If it isn't taking care of your pain, please see him today and ask for something stronger.

During the next few weeks, you need to rest and sleep, not engage in sports. The Varicella virus circulates in your entire body, and can make you feel as if you have the flu.

If you keep all the vesicle-blisters covered, you are not infectious, but I would not provide care for any child or person who has never had chickenpox. (Per your vesicle-blisters on your fingers)

I am a Nurse Practitioner in the States.

I have Herpes Zoster-Shingles every three to five weeks for the past twenty years in my right ear and twice in my right eye.

Also, Google the Lysine high-Arginine Low Diet to follow regarding Herpes Zoster-Shingles.

The important thing is to relax, rest, and get better.

Please let me know if you have any questions and how you are doing.

Best wishes

Merry Juliana

I hope others relieved your concerns. The short answer is. NO! Maybe the various abbreviations confused you. It can make you feel miserable, but they are totally different issues.

First I want to say congratulations on getting married. Also, I'm sorry for your pain from having shingles I know how painful it can be and I would not wish that upon anyone. Second shingles is not always associated with aids. That kind of ignorance is what makes having chronic shingles (I have chronic shingles or reoccurring shingles) so embarrassing. I have posted all this information before. However, I thought you might find it helpful. 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 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.

After the third bout of shingles my doctor mentioned HIV and sent me for blood tests.

At the blood clinic they told me that there is no more connection with shingles and HIV than there is with a common cold and HIV and that frankly they were a bit miffed about wasting NHS money because of ill informed doctors. I offered to pay them for the tests but they insisted on doing them free of charge.

You only have to come in contact with chicken pox to develop shingles, you don't even have to develop chicken pox ...I never had it as a child or adult but obviously came in contact with and picked up and harboured the viris at some stage.