Shingles

Shingles is a viral infection of the nerve roots. It causes pain and often causes a rash on one side of the body, the left or right. The rash appears in a band, or a strip, or a small area. Shingles is most common in older adults and people who have weak immune systems because of stress, injury, certain medicines, or other reasons. Most people who get shingles will get better and will not get shingles again. Shingles occurs when the virus the cause’s chickenpox starts up again in your body. After you get better from chickenpox, the virus “sleeps” (is dormant) in your nerve roots. In some people, it stays dormant forever. In others, the virus “wakes up” when disease, stress, or aging weakens the immune system. It is not clear why this happens. But after the virus becomes active again, it can only cause shingles, nit chickenpox. You can’t catch shingles from someone else who has shingles. But a person with a shingles rash can spread chickenpox to another person who hasn’t had chickenpox and who hasn’t gotten the chickenpox vaccine. Shingle systems happen in stages. At first you may have a headache or be sensitive to light. You may also feel like you have the flu but not have a fever. Later, you may feel itching, tingling, or pain in a certain area. That’s where a band, strip, or small area of rash may occur a few days later. The rash turns into clusters of blisters. The blisters fill with fluid and then crust over. It takes 2 to 4 weeks for the blisters to heal, and they may leave scars. Some people only get a mild rash, and some do not get a rash at all. It’s possible that you could also feel dizzy or weak, or you could have long-term pain or a rash on your face, changes in your vision, changes in how well you can think, or r rash that spreads. There are also some complications of shingles like postherpetic neuralgia, which is pain that does not go away within 1 month. It may last for months or even years after shingles heal. People who have severe pain and rash during shingles have an increased risk for prostherpetic neuralgia. Disseminated zoster is another complication which is a blistery rash that spreads over a large portion of the body and can affect the heart, lungs, liver, pancreas, joints, and intestinal tract. Infection may spread to nerves that control movement, which may cause temporary weakness. Of course there can always be complications within complications like cranial never complications which may include inflammation, pain, and loss of feeling in one or both eye the infection may threaten your vision. Intense ear pain a rash around the ear, mouth, face, neck, and scalp, and loss of facial nerves. Or scarring and skin discoloration, bacterial infection of the blisters, muscle weakness in the area of the infected skin before, during, or after the episode of shingles. There is no cure for shingles, but treatment may help you get well sooner and prevent other problems .Treatments may include: • Antiviral medicines to help you get well sooner and feel less pain. • Medicines to help with long term pain. These include antidepressants, pain medicines, and skin creams. Also good home care can make you feel better faster like taking the medicine as directed, taking care of skin sores, and keeping them clean. Shingles can be painful and tough do deal with I asked my grandpa what it was like when he had them he said it was terrible but he got through it just like everything else in our lives so take care of your body externally and internally cause you never know whats going to happen next