"Shingle Bells! Shingle Bells! Shingle All the Way!"

OK, so I went to the doctor today, and he confirmed what I already knew.......................NO I'm not pregnant! Ha Ha! Not funny,anyway, about a week ago, around where the back of my bra goes on my shoulder blade, I had this intense itching...I mean the kind of itching that curls your toes when you scratch it. I had Carl scratching....and Hannah has the best back scratching nails...sharp and thin..they both thought I was crazy...I kept asking Carl, are you sure you don't' see a bug bite? No bumps? No rash? Nothing? There was nothing there, but it felt like there was. Meanwhile, I'm just not feeling so great, sleeping a lot & I knew something was going on. I told Alicia a couple of days ago that I thought I was about to have a flair up of my fibromyalgia...anyway, then, where my back is itching goes numb...like when your foots asleep,,,I knew it itched, I was scratching and I couldn't feel myself scratching... but still nothing there. Well, last night, when Carl scratched, he said, oh, now I see something....hallelujah! I'm not crazy. Needless to say, I knew right then what it was....Merry Christmas to me! I have Shingles. :-) What are they you say?

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Shingles is an infection of a nerve and the area of skin supplied by the nerve. It is caused by a virus called the varicella-zoster virus. It is the same virus that causes chickenpox. Anyone who has had chickenpox in the past may develop shingles. Shingles is sometimes called herpes zoster. (Note: this is very different to genital herpes which is caused by a different virus called herpes simplex.)About 1 in 5 people have shingles at some time in their life. It can occur at any age, but it is most common in people over the age of 50. It is uncommon to have shingles more than once, but about 1 in 50 people have shingles two or more times in their life..

OK, so that means I'm not contagious...unless my rash is weeping...you haven't had chicken pox or the vaccine...and your rubbing against me naked. I just don't see that happening...so you're all safe! I asked Dr. Payne if I could have a doctors note to excuse me from a couple of date nights with my husband...ha ha...Jen B. , I know you're laughing...yes I really did ask. No get out of jail pass for me. In case you are wondering, the symptoms are below...you never know, you might need this information some day. Never underestimate what you can learn from a blog....and by the way, if you have any of these symptoms, and you start treatment within 72 hours of the rash beginning, the rash will not spread around your torso, and the whole process will be more pleasant...and by the way, this is NOT my back, it's some poor guy I found when I googled it...

• The first symptom of shingles is often extreme sensitivity or pain in a broad band on one side of the body. The sensation can be itching, tingling, burning, constant aching, or deep, shooting, or "lightning bolt" pain. Typically, 1-3 days after the pain starts, a rash with raised, red bumps and blisters erupts on the skin in the same distribution as the pain. (this is where I am now). They become pus-filled, then form scabs by 10-12 days. The rash disappears as the scabs fall off in the next 2-3 weeks, and scarring may result.

• Pain is usually the first symptom of shingles. For some, it can be intense, with just the slightest touch causing severe pain. Sometimes the pain can be mistaken for other problems or diseases, such as kidney stones, gallstones or appendicitis, depending on its location. Some people experience the pain without the rash, which makes diagnosing shingles more difficult.Fifty percent of people over 60 who develop shingles, and are not treated, will suffer from post-herpetic neuralgia and have severe pain in that nerve for the rest of their lives, while fewer than seven percent treated with acyclovir will suffer permanent pain.
  
• Although the shingles rash may resemble chickenpox,the virus typically causes more pain and less itching the second time around. The pain associated with shingles has been described as intense and sometimes unrelenting.(my mother in law had shingles last year, and she said the pain was worse than childbirth!) If you think you are experiencing symptoms of shingles, it is very important that you see your doctor right away. Antiviral prescription medications such as Valtrex, can help reduce your symptoms and help shingles blisters heal faster. However, the medication should be started within 72 hours (3 days) after the rash of shingles appears, so it is important to see your doctor right away. Below is a picture of my medication...three times a day for a week....is it really necessary to make the pill that big..? I mean come on! It's almost as 1/2 the size of the nail clippers! Ugh!

Most people are surprised by how ill they feel with shingles. This seems out of proportion with the extent of the skin involved. There is a general debility and exhaustion, sometimes with aches and pains and sometimes a mild fever. Depression is often a feature of shingles, as in many other viruses. You may need up to three weeks off work. ..oh boy! No housework for three weeks! Not...sometimes you just have to laugh and remember it could always be worse...pray that it is mild and that I can keep a sense of humor about it. :-)