Anyone with shingles and time off

[Lookatheskies]

How long did you have off work and how did you manage the pain and tiredness with going back? When did you really start to feel better?

Where are your shingles? I’ve had it twice: first time on my arm and I didn’t need any time off work although I was tired.

The second time I had it on my scalp and it was the worst pain I’ve ever experienced. I had weeks off. It took almost a week for me to get any decent pain relief. It was a good six weeks before I started to feel better but I also couldn’t sleep because I couldn’t have any pressure against my head.

I had shingles over summer. They were at the back of my neck coming round to my shoulder and chest. I worked through it but the nerve pain was absolutely horrendous. Nothing helped - not pain relief / cold compress / lidocaine gel to numb it. The itchiness and scares are still there and I’m signed off for never pain. I’ve been told to take the shingles vaccination as soon as possible.
Hope you feel better soon.

Oh god I am so sorry they sound awful!

Mine first appeared on my chest (rashwise). They actually are not too bad there. There's a slight stinging but to be honest I fell into a garden of nettles when I was a child so I can live with the surface level stinging!

My back however...no rash there but I can only get by on cocodamol and lying on a hot water bottle. I can move about but not for too long as it is just so uncomfortable.

After 3 hours the meds wear off and then I have to wait 1 hour to take more in agony. I am going to ask the GP tomorrow what they can give. Maybe I could have separate codeine and paracetomol and take them 2 hours apart so there is no gap of them running out. I am not even sure if the meds do much other than make me feel more chill and a bit drowsy? Maybe they make it worse when the pain bounces back? I also read that paracetomol lowers the immune system so am I prolonging the shingles even?!

Pressure does seem to help. A hot hot water bottle pressed against it. I also found that lying on a semi-soft spiked pilates ball under my shoulder where the pain is helped. I haven't tried a cold compress. Interesting to hear lidocaine didn't help. I think I will try epsom salts bath before bed.

Its like an angry midget is hitting my back with a hammer.

Also its funny how a normal to do list feels enormous. Just things like unloading and loading the dishwasher. Washing my hair. It took me all day today to feed myself, sort an online delivery, and feed myself again.

If I can get the pain to a low constant that might be manageable as I can alternate between working standing up or on the sofa. I can't even think about tomorrow now I have taken the codeine.

I think there needs to be more public awareness about shingles. I had it for 5 days before I got diagnosed. How would I know that the pain and a rash would be shingles? I just thought I'd been sitting funny and had an unusual eczema flare or an allergic reaction. It seems ridiculously obvious now that someone presenting in A&E with nerve pain, the coming out in a rash while in A&E could likely have shingles...but no, told it was unlikely as the rash was not one sided. Literally 1 cm over the mid way line.

Rant over.