Shingles Shot

[linus6948]

My beautiful female pharmacist had been asking me for the last couple of years to get the shingles shot. I always put it off until my chiropractor told me of his boyhood friend who had gotten an attack of shingles in his testicles and now over a year later he still suffers from the nerve damage it had done and there is nothing the specialists can do help him with his suffering. He also mentioned a patient who got it in the eyeball and almost lost his sight.

So that was enough for me and I went and got the first shot and two months later the second shot, my wife also got her shots. The day after Christmas a dear friend called and as I had been doing with all my male friends I was telling him the testicle story. He cut me short and said I have it, I asked oh you already got the shot and he said no I have it I`ll send you some pictures. He got it in the face and scalp and said the pain was so bad you could not even touch his hair without him screaming.

They tried nerve blockers to no avail and finally gave him oxycodone to dampen his pain, even a breeze on his face causes him pain. The specialist he is seeing said for a man the worst place to get shingles is in the testicles and the second worse place is the face and scalp. The Dr. also told him we all carry it in our lower spine and they are still not sure what triggers it but extremely stressful life events seem to be a common component to a flare up. In my friends case he watched his father slowly die over two months and then his Mom had a breakdown and he had to deal with that. Also they just lowered the age for getting the shot to 50 from 60 as the stress created by covid has resulted in quite an uptick in shingles cases, I would say this is one shot worth getting.

 

https://photos.app.goo.gl/NyfWikSZPD1wwiAh6

Edited February 14, 2021 by linus6948

[MackTheFinger]

I had shingles 15 years ago or so. It wasn't fun. Mine started on my chest just beneath my right shirt collar, wrapped it's way around my neck and shoulder, and into my scalp. Itching, intense pain, nasty looking rash, all that jazz. Post herpetic neuralgia is no joke. Mine was what I imagine it would be like getting stabbed with an icepick. Everything's going good and BAM!! 

 

The way shingles was explained to me is that the virus goes dormant in a random nerve bundle and that's why it shows up in different places on different people when it becomes active again.

 

If you're employer insured they should pay for the vaccine, Medicare won't. 

[Merle Coggins]

I had shingles a few years ago in my right shoulder. It migrated all the way down my arm almost to my wrist. It got up close to my neck but didn’t quite get there. It was quite uncomfortable for a few weeks. Not fun, and yet I consider myself pretty lucky compared to some stories I’ve heard, including the ones here. 

[TodFitch]

I got a shingles vaccination years ago but recently found out that the earlier shot I had was only about 60% effective at the time and that by now it is probably only 20% or 30% effective. My younger sister had the same older vaccination and still got shingles. From her description is it something you really want to avoid.

 

So I am now scheduled for the first shot to the new shingles vaccine in a few weeks. Couldn’t do it right away as they want you to wait a couple of weeks after any other vaccination you have gotten and I just got my second COVID-19 shot a few days ago. I understand this newer shingles vaccination is very effective.

[plymouthcranbrook]

My Mother had it and my wife's Aunt had it and both were miserable    . I have held off over cost but have decided $400 for my wife and me to have it is gong to be worth it. So probably by summer if anything goes well we should have it. I had the older one as well but so far ok but who needs more misery?

Edited February 15, 2021 by plymouthcranbrook

[busycoupe]

I just had my second shot a week ago. Felt pretty punk fora day or so, but that was much better thangetting shingles.  I've had several freinds suffer with it, and really don't want to get it.

[Dan Hiebert]

Our son got shingles in that #1 worst place when he was still a teen.  He didn't have a bad case, but with it down there, it was certainly a miserable experience.  My wife, daughter, and mother-in-law have hall contracted it in the last couple of years, relatively mild cases, but they were all miserable none-the-less.  I haven't gotten it, but I remember when I contracted chicken-pox, it was diagnosed the day after my brother and I had walked past a chicken coop on our way home from school, we swore that's how we got it, and to this day, every time I hear "chicken-pox" I get flashbacks to walking past that same chicken coop.

[kencombs]

On 2/15/2021 at 7:15 AM, busycoupe said:

I just had my second shot a week ago. Felt pretty punk fora day or so, but that was much better thangetting shingles.  I've had several freinds suffer with it, and really don't want to get it. 

I've been fortunate I guess.  Got my second shot yesterday and no ill effects at all.  I was really late in getting the second as the Covid shots were more important IMO, and it was recommended not to get them close together.