Shingles

[lupus-support1]

2004 was not a good year, health wise. In fact, from 31 December, 2003 until October, 20054, I was seriously ill. It all started with a virus . . . . . I won't bore you with the details, but I was forced to seek help at A & E /ER on two occasions. My fabulous rheumatologist was at a loss; I lost a huge amount of weight and there was a concern it had triggered my lymphoma . . . . it didn't!

In the middle of it all, my husband & I decided to go away to a hotel for a week. The strain on him had been great. We arrived on the Monday. Spent a lovely day on Tuesday. Woke up Wednesday in screaming pain - which got worse & worse. On the Friday, a 3 inch red band appeared from my navel all the way around to the spine on my right side. By Sunday, my husband called an ambulance,

SHINGLES!

My rheumie had never seen this presentation. Usually, it looks like a series of blisters. The first time I had shingles, these blisters appeared on the left side of my body in typical presentation and was relatively mild.

Yes, it's shingles, said the Head of Infectious Diseases. It's a rare presentation. "Rare," I thought! It's a bl@@dy insult to injury, as my blood tests were still awful. The pain was one of the worst I have ever experienced and I still have post hepatic neuralgia. Pain vs terrible itching! Usually, the severe pain is treated with drugs such as Lyrica or Neurontin, but typically, I am allergic to both!

It was a massive lupus flare, the likes of which my consultant had never seen. It had happened once before when I was 17 years. At that time no one knew what it was. It started with a strep throat & progressed into a serious situation. Again, I lost 2 stone in weight.

Why did I get shingles? A compromised immune system.

Usually, people have shingles only once in their lives. But sometimes, especially if you have a weakened immune system, you might get repeat infections.

You can’t catch shingles from someone who has shingles. But you can get chickenpox from someone who has shingles if you have never had chickenpox or the chickenpox vaccine.

Shingles Vaccination

Getting vaccinated against shingles reduces your chance of developing the condition. The vaccine used to protect you against shingles is not the same as the vaccine used to protect against chickenpox.

And before you ask - yes, I had the first shingles vaccination, but I didn't bother to get the second! Nevertheless, I was unlucky and it happened as a result of being seriously ill. Shingles isn't life threatening but very unpleasant.

The moral of the story: If you are immune compromised, ask your GP or Primary Physician or Rheumatologist/Haemotologist for advice.

nhs.uk/conditions/shingles/