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Shingles : Don't take chances

Posted on 09/04/2013 1:59:18 PM PDT by deputytess

Hey Folks, I recently recovered from shingles.Still have a bit of nerve pain. I was very lucky and managed to avoid the worst through early intervention. I just want to encourage anyone out there who's had chicken pox to talk to their doctor about the shingles shot. You don't want to go through what I went through. This especially goes for my fellow "Boomers". Stress is one of the main triggers for shingles and we 50 somethings have a lot of stress. God bless you all and stay healthy.


TOPICS: Health/Medicine
KEYWORDS: chickenpox; health; shingles
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To: deputytess

Apparently shingles is fairly prevalent. My dad (in his 80’s) got a mild case of it a year or so ago but recovered reasonably quickly. However, an older lady I knew who was already in ill health got a bad case of it, very very painful, and died a few days later of a heart attack. Her daughter has told me she really thought her mom’s death was hastened by the stress of the shingles attack.


61 posted on 09/04/2013 2:32:04 PM PDT by Hetty_Fauxvert (FUBO, and the useful idiots you rode in on!)
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To: deputytess
Do you know how long this vaccine is supposed to stay in your system?

I just got rid of a major stress producer in my life, so I'm not as worried about getting it as I once was.

62 posted on 09/04/2013 2:32:25 PM PDT by FrdmLvr
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To: deputytess

My elderly mother got shingles - pretty much destroyed her vision in one eye. It was a year-long battle between the inflammation and pressure of glaucoma, and the steroids used to battle it. In the end, she lost a cornea.


63 posted on 09/04/2013 2:32:51 PM PDT by PGR88
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To: ThomasMore
195 in Rhode Island without insurance. With insurance... $)

Huh?????????

My local CVS and Walgreen pharmacies are only charging $25 regardless of insurance coverage.

Let me guess, they also tried to sell you some property?

64 posted on 09/04/2013 2:33:49 PM PDT by Hot Tabasco (')
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To: justlurking

You gotta weigh everything, I understand. It can be devastating, it was for my dad. Look up some of the pics and stories of bad cases of shingles, it can be a disaster.


65 posted on 09/04/2013 2:34:34 PM PDT by Lakeshark (KILL THE BILL! CALL. FAX. WRITE.)
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To: Zathras

My dad kept telling me that I had the worse case of chicken pox on the planet and that I’d better get the shot.....didn’t listen of course. However, because I went to the doctor as soon as I did get them, didn’t have that severe a case.....I did get the shot after full recovery - my doctor said it wouldn’t stop me from getting another bout but would make the time shorter and not as severe!!!!


66 posted on 09/04/2013 2:35:15 PM PDT by BamaDi ("The definition of a racist today is anyone who is winning an argument with a liberal.")
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To: RikaStrom
I figured out what I had as soon as I broke out. I was feeling pain in that area for about a week prior: I thought it was a back-ache.

Once I got an anti-viral from the doctor, it went away pretty quickly. I had a relatively mild case, so there wasn't any recovery. It hurt, but I could still work.

I did have the phantom neuropathy for a while. It didn't last more than a few months.

67 posted on 09/04/2013 2:36:32 PM PDT by justlurking (tagline removed, as demanded by Admin Moderator)
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To: Veto!

I know where you’re coming from - I avoid shots at all costs - in fact, I walked around with the prescription for the shot for 4 months.....finally worked up the nerve two weeks ago....it truly does give you peace of mind!


68 posted on 09/04/2013 2:36:48 PM PDT by BamaDi ("The definition of a racist today is anyone who is winning an argument with a liberal.")
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To: deputytess

Had shingles on my face. Felt like someone was slapping me nonstop for days. It consumed my every thought.

I am 40 and had a mild case of chicken pox. Apparently the milder the chicken pox, the more likely of outbreak of shingles.

Glad you are on the upswing, but keep stress down, it can come back.


69 posted on 09/04/2013 2:37:08 PM PDT by autumnraine (America how long will you be so deaf and dumb to thoe tumbril wheels carrying you to the guillotine?)
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To: Veto!
I got it at our local Rite-Aid drugstore. REally inexpensive.

$205 at our local Rite-Aid.

Definitely not "REally inexpensive" to me or most people.

70 posted on 09/04/2013 2:37:12 PM PDT by steve86 (Some things aren't really true but you wouldn't be half surprised if they were.)
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To: Gen.Blather
I got it at a store. I think it cost $15-25.

Sounds like your co-payment.

71 posted on 09/04/2013 2:38:50 PM PDT by steve86 (Some things aren't really true but you wouldn't be half surprised if they were.)
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To: EDINVA

The unasked question is what is the downside of the vaccine? (yes, there IS a cost to pay, people just don’t want to talk about it.)


72 posted on 09/04/2013 2:39:00 PM PDT by fwdude ( You cannot compromise with that which you must defeat.)
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To: deputytess

My Son in Law had shingles while on a year long tour in Afghanistan. He is a Navy guy on an army tour. They made him keep working 12 hour shifts, 7 days a week.


73 posted on 09/04/2013 2:40:58 PM PDT by SHOOT THE MOON bat
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To: Hot Tabasco

Our CVS in southern Rhode Island would not even HANDLE the vaccine.

Blue Cross up here is a joke. They control everything. Most corrupt state in the union. Anyway, BC would not cover any pharmacy in my area. They would only cover getting from a clinic.


74 posted on 09/04/2013 2:41:57 PM PDT by ThomasMore (Islam is the Whore of Babylon!)
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To: Hot Tabasco

oh...my type-o

$0.00 if you get it from the clinic. Blue Cross covers the whole cost that way.


75 posted on 09/04/2013 2:43:31 PM PDT by ThomasMore (Islam is the Whore of Babylon!)
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To: Lakeshark
To everyone: shingles can happen to about anyone, at any age, but it's most common in the elderly, the immunocompromised, and yes, stressed people.

In most case we don't know why.

But let me please warn you, that if you suspect you have shingles, see your doctor right away.

The anti-viral meds are really only effective if you catch the disease within 72 hours. And if you're over 50 you can get post herpetic neuralgia, where the shingles goes away, but the pain stays forever.

You do NOT want that.

In a lot of cases, people feel a tingling or stinging at the site before the blisters/rash appears.

And unless you are REALLY immunocompromised its only on one side of the body.

76 posted on 09/04/2013 2:44:53 PM PDT by boop ("You don't look so bad, here's another")
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To: fwdude

Downside is, it may not stop you from getting shingles. Upside...is you probably won’t get shingles but if you did it would be mild case.

Rare reactions to the vaccine but I think that is true with most potent vaccines.


77 posted on 09/04/2013 2:45:35 PM PDT by ThomasMore (Islam is the Whore of Babylon!)
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To: Tax-chick

It’s a nasty experience. If you get to the doctor quick they can knock it down with anti-viral medication, but you need to do it very fast.


78 posted on 09/04/2013 2:46:27 PM PDT by LongWayHome
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To: steve86

“Sounds like your co-payment. “

I had no insurance when I got this. It was several years ago. But last year my generic script cost averaged $80/month. It’s now $230/month/script. I was told it’s because of Obamacare. So, if the price has gone up several hundred percent we can probably thank Obama.


79 posted on 09/04/2013 2:46:38 PM PDT by Gen.Blather
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To: fwdude

Like everything else in life, the vaccine has its pros and cons. Here’s one take (if you will disregard the source):

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/03/health/03iht-snbrody.1.7730476.html


80 posted on 09/04/2013 2:47:34 PM PDT by EDINVA
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