If not for bad luck, there wouldn't be any luck at all( my Shingles story)

[Forevermarypoppins]

I have a few past stories regarding plain old bad luck when it comes to me and healthcare. Prior to this last episode it would've been my cracked tooth at the very beginning of Covid.

TuesOct 25 I'm getting ready for sleep and I feel what I believe maybe a stomach ache. A few hrs later its in my back and it hurts bad. Having Kidney stones prior I'm positive thats what this is. Left sided back pain
WedsOct26 call my PC- he is out of the office for the week, sorry
call my URO PA and get in, she orders a CT. Call and can't get an appt until MonOct31. I call a free standing Imaging place and get in that evening. out of pocket up front +$460 on the CC. The PA is off on the 27th so she'll call me asap on FRI Oct29.
Thurs Oct28 I AM IN PAIN not fun Call my PC back for an appt on Weds NOV2
Fri Oct29 waiting waiting waiting, finally early afternoon I call URO office for an answer. The report shows I have no kidney stones and nothing else wrong is seen. I am in alot of pain and by 5:30pm walking in the ER. 4 hrs waiting I finally get "inside". They have to do their own CT and again, nothing wrong is seen to equate my pain. Prescript ordered and home I go at 12:45 am
The weekend is a blur of pain and taking pain meds.
Call my PC on Mon to see if there are any cancellations- get in for Tues!
TuesNOV1 see my PC, dx: back strain another script and orders PT. PT calls me and my consult appt isn't set until WedsNov9 this 2 weeks after my initial start of all my pain
Weds Nov2 a blur
Thurs Nov3 I have a scratchy feeling going on the left side of my stomach. After dinner decide its PJ already and notice this "rash" You have got to be kidding me right. Shingles enters the mind immediately.
Fri Nov4 Call my PC he's booked but leave message with nurse. Hours later I do get a call and she will speak to Dr and call back. 2 hrs later she calls and YES Dr states its shingles and also mentions this could be related to the back pain, and will prescribe without an office visit. Told to get this first pill in me tonight!!! I think good luck with that because our Walgreens is pretty short staffed and scipts and always delayed. I finally pick it up at 9:45 pm.
Another blur of a weekend with pain and pain meds and now an anti=viral. My stomach is acting up from too much medicine.
Sun my 7yr old grandson who lives in our home comes down with a fever
Mon my 7yr old grandson is vomiting by Mon pm husband isn't feeling well
Tues My 7yr old grandson has a Covid test, strep test and Influenza test He is Positive for Influenza A. By Tues afternoon I am feeling "sick" also.
Weds cancel the PT consult until Mon Nov 14
Thurs/Fri/Sat/Sun just trying to keep the sanity. I have times of extreme pain and times when things are quite manageable but recovering from the probable FLU wears me down. Husband recovers must faster

Yesterday, Mon Nov14th 21 days after the initial stabbing back pain I see the PT for consult and he is quite sure that my initial symptom of back pain is from SHINGLES.
I'm back to my PC tomorrow.

 

[robinb]

Oh no! I'm so sorry to hear about your last couple of weeks. Sometimes, when it rains it pours!

I don't know a lot about Shingles (even though I had a mild case a few years ago). Is it common that pain symptoms start long before the rash shows up?

 

[Earstou]

I had shingles earlier this year. I had horrible pain in my back for a week before the rash showed up. I went to a walk up clinic and they took xrays and found nothing. Next day I noticed two small red dots and sent a photo to my doctor. Even with the antiviral he gave me, my rash progressed to covering my left side from spine to bellybutton.
I eventually realized I could use Biofreeze to numb the pain and that was a turning point for me. Just don't use it on open stores. I had intense pain for at least 6 weeks and the biofreeze helped keep me sane, lol.

 

[Misha72683]

Yes. The rash is usually the last symptom, which sucks because the antiviral has to be given really quickly to work.

I had shingles last year and at first I thought I had hurt my hip as the pain started after a long day of walking carrying a heavy bag. But it just kept getting worse. Three days later I noticed a weird bump on my back, got my husband to take a picture and then googles. It was tiny but it looked like shingles. Called the doctor in the morning and confirmed, yep, shingles. The actual full rash did not show up until the next day (covered my hip and back). It was more than 48 hours from the tiny rash to the full rash, so I could have easily missed my window.

It hurt like hell. Worst pain of my life. Also, fun side effect: the shingles were right around my C-section scar and all that scar tissues got inflamed and was super painful.

 

[macraven]

FMP
I really do know what you are going through and the intense pain you have

My husband had shingles some years back and it was a miserable time for him and me
(I included me in that statement as he drove me nuts)

He had zero tolerance to the pain

Hope your doctor will give you a script for pain relief
It will help take the edge off as shingles do not fade away overnight

Sending gentle hugs to you from afar

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Have you seen this thread here this week?

https://www.disboards.com/threads/my-skin-hurts-update-its-shingles.3901118/

What a crazy runaround for you!

I have [post-Covid, the gift that keeps on giving] shingles right now but thankfully I have my own personal nurse (DD) and she figured it out for me with little fuss. (I couldn’t see it.) Just went to the doctor’s to verify. Just a small area so nothing major.

Hope you all feel better soon! We should all brace ourselves for a [predicted] bad winter!

 

[bushdianee]

I had shingles on my head. I didn't have a lot of pain but rather horrible itching. I worked in an elementary school so my first thought was lice. The school health assistant checked my hair ( not my scalp) and didn't find lice. When I went to the doctor I ended up seeing a PA who said it was impetago(sp?), I had my doubts as I had only heard of that around the mouth. After his treatment didn't work I went back and had to see him again. By this time the rash had spread to my forehead and was easily visible. The PA was stumped and when my regular doctor walked by he called him into the room. The doctor was only halfway in the room when he said it was shingles not impetago. Then I got the right examination and treatment. I refused to be seen by that PA ever again.

 

[Dan Murphy]

I have a few past stories regarding plain old bad luck when it comes to me and healthcare. Prior to this last episode it would've been my cracked tooth at the very beginning of Covid.

TuesOct 25 I'm getting ready for sleep and I feel what I believe maybe a stomach ache. A few hrs later its in my back and it hurts bad. Having Kidney stones prior I'm positive thats what this is. Left sided back pain
WedsOct26 call my PC- he is out of the office for the week, sorry
call my URO PA and get in, she orders a CT. Call and can't get an appt until MonOct31. I call a free standing Imaging place and get in that evening. out of pocket up front +$460 on the CC. The PA is off on the 27th so she'll call me asap on FRI Oct29.
Thurs Oct28 I AM IN PAIN not fun Call my PC back for an appt on Weds NOV2
Fri Oct29 waiting waiting waiting, finally early afternoon I call URO office for an answer. The report shows I have no kidney stones and nothing else wrong is seen. I am in alot of pain and by 5:30pm walking in the ER. 4 hrs waiting I finally get "inside". They have to do their own CT and again, nothing wrong is seen to equate my pain. Prescript ordered and home I go at 12:45 am
The weekend is a blur of pain and taking pain meds.
Call my PC on Mon to see if there are any cancellations- get in for Tues!
TuesNOV1 see my PC, dx: back strain another script and orders PT. PT calls me and my consult appt isn't set until WedsNov9 this 2 weeks after my initial start of all my pain
Weds Nov2 a blur
Thurs Nov3 I have a scratchy feeling going on the left side of my stomach. After dinner decide its PJ already and notice this "rash" You have got to be kidding me right. Shingles enters the mind immediately.
Fri Nov4 Call my PC he's booked but leave message with nurse. Hours later I do get a call and she will speak to Dr and call back. 2 hrs later she calls and YES Dr states its shingles and also mentions this could be related to the back pain, and will prescribe without an office visit. Told to get this first pill in me tonight!!! I think good luck with that because our Walgreens is pretty short staffed and scipts and always delayed. I finally pick it up at 9:45 pm.
Another blur of a weekend with pain and pain meds and now an anti=viral. My stomach is acting up from too much medicine.
Sun my 7yr old grandson who lives in our home comes down with a fever
Mon my 7yr old grandson is vomiting by Mon pm husband isn't feeling well
Tues My 7yr old grandson has a Covid test, strep test and Influenza test He is Positive for Influenza A. By Tues afternoon I am feeling "sick" also.
Weds cancel the PT consult until Mon Nov 14
Thurs/Fri/Sat/Sun just trying to keep the sanity. I have times of extreme pain and times when things are quite manageable but recovering from the probable FLU wears me down. Husband recovers must faster

Yesterday, Mon Nov14th 21 days after the initial stabbing back pain I see the PT for consult and he is quite sure that my initial symptom of back pain is from SHINGLES.
I'm back to my PC tomorrow.

You sure have a lot on your plate there, FMP. Wishing you well and that all those concerns are just history for you and your family, very soon.

gentle 's

 

[RamblingMad]

What's really terrible about this is that you can't get the vaccine until 50. That's ridiculous. There should be one that you should be able to get sooner. I had chicken pox as a kid, but I'm not older enough to get the vaccine. My sister had shingles in her 30s. I've lucked out so far.

Hang in there.

 

[BlueStarryHat]

Ohmygosh, that's a lot to go through, FMP! I have no Shingles story or advice for you, just a boatload of good wishes that you get better sooner rather than later.

 

[DVCjj]

I had shingles earlier this year. I had horrible pain in my back for a week before the rash showed up. I went to a walk up clinic and they took xrays and found nothing. Next day I noticed two small red dots and sent a photo to my doctor. Even with the antiviral he gave me, my rash progressed to covering my left side from spine to bellybutton.
I eventually realized I could use Biofreeze to numb the pain and that was a turning point for me. Just don't use it on open stores. I had intense pain for at least 6 weeks and the biofreeze helped keep me sane, lol.

Sorry about the Shingles. Truly. I didn't know you could use Biofreeze on Shingles (As you said, I'm sure can't be on sores).
I cannot live without Biofreeze. I have all the varieties and when I travel, the first thing in my suitcase is Biofreeze. From all joint pain to neck pain to headaches, Biofreeze (and China Gel) are absolute Lifesavers.

 

[kymom99]

Sorry about the Shingles. Truly. I didn't know you could use Biofreeze on Shingles (As you said, I'm sure can't be on sores).
I cannot live without Biofreeze. I have all the varieties and when I travel, the first thing in my suitcase is Biofreeze. From all joint pain to neck pain to headaches, Biofreeze (and China Gel) are absolute Lifesavers.

The rash goes away before too long but the pain remains.

My husband had internal pain and thought it was because he rode a horse the day before. I told him he probably wilted his core. Then came the rash.

 

[Bianca and Bernard]

I had shingles on my head. I didn't have a lot of pain but rather horrible itching. I worked in an elementary school so my first thought was lice. The school health assistant checked my hair ( not my scalp) and didn't find lice. When I went to the doctor I ended up seeing a PA who said it was impetago(sp?), I had my doubts as I had only heard of that around the mouth. After his treatment didn't work I went back and had to see him again. By this time the rash had spread to my forehead and was easily visible. The PA was stumped and when my regular doctor walked by he called him into the room. The doctor was only halfway in the room when he said it was shingles not impetago. Then I got the right examination and treatment. I refused to be seen by that PA ever again.

DH had his on his head, about 10 years ago. He was in so much pain; didn't realize it was shingles until after the rash was all over. (he's bald, so very visible) He has a few scars from it.

 

[Earstou]

My rash took more than two months to completely go away.

I found out that the gel Biofreeze (in the green tube) wasn't as strong as the other types of Biofreeze. It didn't do much for my pain, so I don't recommend the gel. I have read that the gel is safe for kids and that is why it's not as strong.

 

[DisneyHardin]

I hope you have a quick recovery. I had shingles 2 years ago and my journey was somewhat similar. I ended up in the ER in the middle of the night, but they couldn't figure out what was wrong with me and just sent me home with a few pain pills. My family doctor wanted a follow up after the ER visit 2 days later and she is the one who noticed the rash on my waistline and realized it was shingles. For me, nothing really helped the pain, but after about 2 weeks it had more of less subsided and after 6 weeks was totally gone.