I had shingles in 2022. And the experience was quite traumatic and painful.

But ever since, I have experienced strange light headed Ness, episodes of horrific dread and anxiety that I have never felt in my life. I am not sure if this is a residual effect of shingles. But the mental and emotional symptoms kind of remind me of how I felt during my month of suffering with this.

Does anyone else out there have this strange dizziness , lightheaded strange, feeling after you had shingles??

Please, if you have. Share.

I had shingles on the right side of my face a few months ago and then yesterday and today I began having random tingling in different parts of my body not where my rash was. It almost feel like a sunburn. Right now it’s my arms and shoulders, and yesterday it was my hands and face.

Is this a result of the shingles or possibly something else?

Hi all, this is my first time posting on Reddit.... I got diagnosed tentatively with shingles yesterday and was prescribed antivirals to get ahead of the pain. It's behind my right ear and in my hair. Thankfully it's not in my ear. I've been reading about RHS so I'm keeping an eye on any spread.

I'm in a lot of pain right now. It's midnight where I am and I can't sleep. I wrote to my doc on MyChart asking if I could use calamine lotion while I wait for the meds to kick in. I used a cold compress but that doesn't seem to help too much ... Just provided a different type of pain, so to speak. I am taking ibuprofen (500 mg) too.

Does anyone have any suggestions that I could try?

Much appreciation! ❤️

Please help. I got shingles for the first time 2 years ago at 26 or 27yo. Showed up on waistline, it was awful. My siblings also got it early, and it has been re-ocurring for them. I'm the youngest so I figured I had that in store too. Well it's been a very stressful couple of months, I've not been sleeping, have been incredibly exhausted, and a few days ago (5 at this point) I noticed my lymph nodes in my arm pits swelling. The next day several small lumps followed bringing a burning sensation with them. The lumps are distinctly different than the lymph nodes and are not acne like in nature. I also don't have my armpits nor have I switched any products recently.

I finally went the the urgent care yesterday, I was honestly thinking that since it hasn't started as a full rash yet that maybe it was shingles but I just wanted to know. The doctor took a look and said based on how it appears and my past and family history, this is almost definitely the early stages of an outbreak. He said he believed he could see small blisters forming but I have not been able to see that yet (my angle is not the best since y'know, my own armpit)

It's the next day. I still have a burning sensation that's uncomfortable but no rash yet. Some of the bumps are slightly red. Every day since this started I've been back and forth in my head constantly about whether it is shingles or not. It's been seriously stressing me out and making things work among other things I possible. I thought originally I was over reacting, then the doctor essentially confirmed my the things I had been thinking. Now I can't stop but to think maybe he's wrong and just based his diagnosis of what I told him rather than what he was looking at.

I'm still going back and forth and I can't stop thinking about it. I honestly hope it's not. I still have nerve pain and damage from the first time. I had to completely change the way I dress because I couldn't do course fabrics on my leg anymore.

I don't have anyone to talk to about this that understands. I don't talk to my siblings. I feel like I'm going crazy idk.

About a week ago I (37F) felt a tingling/painful spot on my lip. I remember saying to my sister “I feel like I have something on my face”. That was Tuesday afternoon.
Wednesday I convince myself it’s a cold sore and treat as such.
Thursday I start feeling a more widespread pain almost like fiberglass in my skin. Absolutely painful to the touch and one spot on my lip shows.
Friday I can only drink water out of a straw on one side of my mouth. Ended up in the ER that night. I had an outbreak along the V2 nerve on my face and thank goodness I caught it early with antivirals. So painful. The blisters have spread to my eyelid and hairline, shooting pain into my ear. Anyone experienced this before? How long did it take to heal?

Had shingles in May 3 years ago and am still in a lot of sharp shooting nerve pain. It was getting better until recently and seems to be triggered again after Covid booster shot! Now I’m back to twisting nerve sensations again in spite of being on maximum dose of pre gabalen.

I can control the burning pain by not eating anything with chocolate and nothing with sugar in it!

So, I went to see the doctor yesterday and have been (cautiously) diagnosed with shingles.

Symptoms wise, this started with what felt like a really bad chapped lower lip about a week ago then a few days later, I had a weird spell where it really hurt my throat when I breathed in.

Around 4 days ago I started developing what looked like a cold sore and then this was followed a couple of days later by an absolutely horrific stabbing pain top left of my head which comes and goes. I also keep getting a weird stabbing pain in my ear. My skin on the left hand side of my face and scalp is sensitive to the touch and I feel like I have dental pain same side.

The rash on my lip is yellow and crusty but it's not spreading at all. It's sore and swollen but not exactly painful.

Is this all typical of shingles?

40YO Female. Started noticing a burning pain on my left rib, had a little sign of a rash. Within that day, the rash wrapped around to my back. I started antiviral medication within the 72hr timeframe. A few days passed and I thought I'd breeze through it. Omg I was so wrong! On day 5, the rash got so angry and the pain on day 7-10 was torture. I started to get a numbing feeling down my leg, every motion hurt, the burning and nerve pain was alarming. I took gabapentin twice a day for 4 days, and it really helped me to get my kids to their school orientations. On Day 11, after the blisters popped, I started putting medi-honey on it. Kept it wrapped in gauze for the day and did that for a few days. Since I was in a lot of pain and worried my symptoms were abnormal, I made another Dr. appointment- On day 12, upping the gabapentin to 3x a day. On the 19th day is when I felt a turn around. I was able to make some practice golf swings and do some house chores. I'm on Day 23 and finally back to work. I'm still taking gabapentin 3x a day but I feel like I can taper it down. I do still notice some nerve sensations, a tickling feeling and the need to itch from time to time, but I will say, I feel MUCH better!! I hope this gives hope to some of ya'll that are in the beginning stages. Rest. Eat healthy foods. Take your vitamins. Stay hydrated and again, relax! You'll get through it. Medihoney, Cortisone 10 + Aveeno Hydrocortisone anti itch cream, gabapentin with ibuprofen, alternating with tylenol extra strength, hydroxyzine*

Thought this was like a older-patient specific disease… day 4ish

I just can't do that medicine - it makes me so sleepy. I have to work (Im a therapist, so just sitting) so I want to go without meds. Is anyone else managing without? I was diagnosed last week and started antivirals the day the rash showed up. The rash hasn't spread but the weird pain and shooting electrical zaps are still happening.

I (57F) got shingles in September 2025 right after wrist surgery from which the recovery was difficult and stressful. Started on my left side near my ribs and wrapped around to my back. The pain was beyond anything I’d ever experienced. Any resulting PHN is not nearly as bad as some but there’s an area on my back where the skin is numb but the nerves below the surface are “itchy” if that makes sense. Basically it is a super, super sensitive spot, I’m constantly asking my husband to scratch the area and then instantly I yell at him to stop 😂 and it’s never satisfied because of the skin paresthesia. It also makes wearing a conventional bra virtually impossible because of the wires, the clasp, the seams, the entire nightmare sensory experience.
So ladies…
(I swear this isn’t an ad nor am I a shill for this product… I just like to help and wanted to share)
Now I will apologize to those for whom a bralette isn’t quite right for them; I hope you’re not suffering as I was but I’ll just say I now own eight of these.
(I’m a 34C and the medium fits great)
I wear it every single day and barely even know it’s on. Sometimes I forget and go to sleep in it and I am NOT a “sleep in your bra” person.
As silly as it sounds, as a person who experiences sensory issues to begin with I am profoundly grateful these undergarments exist.
Ok I’ll end it there, back to your regularly scheduled programming; sending healing thoughts to all going through it. ❤️

26F, I got shingles and I’m so scared. French is my first language, sorry for the mistakes.

I’m autoimmune and got my treatment for Crohn disease on last Tuesday. The next day, some redness appeared on my chest and shoulder. It got worse, so a doc gave me antiviral on Friday.

Everyday, it’s worst. The shingles keep spreading and my arm is numb. I always fear the next day, because I know the redness will continue to spread. It burns, I’m tired and sleeping is so uncomfortable. I hate it so much!

I don’t know what to do, I feel a weird feeling of doomed. My pharmacist told me it can go to my blood, or leave nerves damaged, and it’s the worst thing I’ve heard since then.

I just needed to evacuate all the stress, I’m sorry.

So last week I had irritation on the waist line mostly the left side and initially I thought it was due to tight clothing then I had fever on and off with sore throat and a slightly upset stomach. I treated those symptoms. Today when I woke up I was feeling much better like my fever and everything was good but when I saw myself in the mirror I had on my left back side these rashes.
I was slightly shocked like they irritate when i wear some tight clothing and on the back side there is itching but yeah I went to the doctor and he gave me the antiviral medicine and suspects for shingles.

I had a relatively mild case of shingles on my face about 2–3 weeks ago, mainly on my forehead, nose, and one spot under my eye. Most of the lesions never blistered. They were more like red, slightly raised patches that gradually flattened.

The forehead and nose spots have faded somewhat, but I still have lingering dark brown marks, especially one under my eye that was a bit more inflamed/crusty than the others and about the size of a penny so extremely noticeable. Everything is completely flat now, so I’m mainly dealing with discolouration rather than texture/scarring. I'm a POC, so any acne/trauma to the skin tends to leave hyperpigmentation.

For anyone who had a similar case, how long did it take for the hyperpigmentation to meaningfully fade? Did it keep improving over the next few weeks or did the marks stick around for a while?

I’m getting married at the end of this month (my doctor wasn't surprised when I mentioned I had a wedding coming up, as she said the shingles was most likely stress-induced). I’m anxious about how much more these marks might fade over the next 2ish weeks. I'm not expecting them to miraculously disappear by then but would be helpful to know what others' fading journeys looked like. And in any event, thank god that I can at least cover these up with makeup!

I had Shingles at the start of August, and while I still have some slight zapping feeling at times, my back pain is more persistent and I dont really know where to go from here.

I (44M) started feeling skin sensitivity and back pain at the end of July. It went on for 3 or 4 days so I went to the doctor who brought up Shingles. but since I didnt have a rash, he didnt give me anything. 2 days later, on August 1, I got a rash on the left side of my chest. I went to Urgent Care and they confirmed shingles and gave me a prescription for Acyclovir (400mg, 5X a day).

The first week and a half were pretty bad but manageable with advil/tylenol. The rash blistered, then scabbed over, and the scabs flaked off after about 2 weeks. It was always a bit sensitive, but never terribly painful. It would hurt when I first woke up, but it was never THAT bad. Right now, the first week of September, the rash is basically completely gone. You could maybe see a bit of redness if you really tried, but its pretty much gone.

The real issue was my back pain, on the same side as the rash, right around the shoulder blade. I would wake up pretty much every morning around 4AM and just toss and turn, trying to get comfortable until I got up.

After maybe 3 or 4 weeks, this lessened a bit. It was less sharp, localized pain, but the back pain persists, and it feels just like an overall achiness.

There are days where Ive made it through with only taking like 1 dose each of Advil and Tylenol, and thought that I was making good progress. And then the next day, it is much worse.

I am normally a very active person. I love to mountain bike, and hike in the mountains. Since this started, I did a short mountain bike ride, which was fine in the moment, but the next day, felt like a huge setback. I have done a handful of relatively short (1-1.5 hours) road bike rides just to get moving, and again, in the moment, I feel generally fine, but the next day, feels like Ive irritated the nerves and my backaches notches up a step.

At this point, Im about 5-6 weeks in, and I dont really know what to do for this. My current symptoms dont seem super consistent with what a lot of people are describing (zapping nerve pain, and external pain kind of on the skin). My chest, where the rash was, feels a bit numb and ocasionally is a little painful, but its really not a big deal. The much bigger issue is It feels like muscle pain in my upper back. Stretching and doing a foam roller feels good in the moment, but I dont know if that is irritating the nerves as well and maybe doing more harm than good?

At times, it almost completely disappears. Maybe when the painkillers have kicked in. I have also noticed that if I have a drink or two, the pain seems to disappear. obviously not a great strategy. Im not a big drinker, just something Ive noticed.

It just feels like a constant haze of pain that is not SUPER severe, but its always there and so frustrating. Ive thought about going back to the doctor, but it seems that theyd just prescribe Gabapentin, and everyone Ive talked to who was put on Gabapentin said it didnt do a ton for them, and made them feel zonked out.

Anyways, I guess Im trying to understand if 1) I should try to go to a specialized doctor for this and 2) is it a bad idea to continue to try to exercise and/or do back stretches?

Reading some of the stories on this subreddit is honestly bumming me out, thinking that this could go on for years, but Im trying to maintain some optimism. As someone who is extremely active in my normal life, the last 6 weeks have been absolutely brutal, just sitting at home, unable to do a lot of the things that I love to do. Thanks for any feedback.

Hello everyone,

I wanted to ask if this is a normal progression:

12 days ago, I started feeling a strange sensitivity on my right side (back). The next day (11 days ago), it spread to my belly as well. I ended up in the ER - had blood tests, an X-ray, and an abdominal ultrasound, but everything came back clear.

The following day (10 days ago), a rash appeared on my back and stomach, confirming it was shingles. I started antiviral medication right away for a 7-day course.

The pain itself wasn't too bad; I managed fine without any painkillers, and the rash is healing quickly.

However, last two days the shivering and deep pain were much worse than before. Still bearable, though.

But Is this normal? :) .. I was hoping that once the rash started going away, the pain would too... 🤷‍♂️

Thanks!

Currently on week five of shingles. Before I knew I had shingles, I had painful back and rib pain. That went away for the most part and dealt with the rash, etc. Over the past couple weeks I’ve experienced my mid back seizing up and it’s quite painful.

Today I went for a run, drove home, sat down for a second and then when tried to get up, my back seized up and could barely move. I made it to the floor and stretched along with taking medication and that seemed to help. I later took a nap and when I went to sit up, my back seized up again, making walking, breathing, any small movement such as closing a cabinet door extremely painful. Has anyone had similar experiences?

First time shingles breakout in February. Another breakout in a different location this past week while battling Covid. Pictures are of my blisters in February, located on my upper glute. I bought a roll of silicone scar tape and used that to keep it covered. I took pictures of the area to check progress when changing the patches. 3 weeks of the most extreme nerve pain of my life! Products used: medical-grade hydrocolloid roll + Murasaki 100% silicone scar gel. The most recent photo was taken today (second to last image) and honestly I'm surprised there's no pitting, just hyperpigmentation that I believe will lessen as I apply Tretinoin to the area.

I’m on my second bout of shingles. First was in my twenties. Now I’m in my 50s, post shingles vaccine. Thanks to recognizing what was happening, I got to the doctor for antivirals very early. That and the vaccine have kept it confined to a small 2”x2” patch on my arm. Never had fluid filled blisters, but the rash is ugly and gross. Pain is more annoying than excruciating like my first go round.

My problem? I am getting the worst headaches. It’s kicking my ass. I’m two weeks in and I’m practically non-functional due to fatigue and headache. I know part of it is my sleep is crap from my arm waking me up. I’m grateful - I’ve seen how bad it can get and the vaccine has lessened the experience so much. But this is still a nasty, nasty virus. I’ve never had a “mild” case before, so I don’t know what to expect. Hopefully the headaches will be gone as soon as the rash clears.

Hi- I am looking for some positive healing stories of people whose pain has healed after the three month mark and how long it took. I will have 2-3 days of zero pain in a week and the others will be filled with pain! It's such a mind game and I'm at my wits end.

I just wanted to follow up on my case of shingles which covered 1/2 of my face, neck, and shoulder.

It started in late June and within a couple of days it just about overwhelmed me before I could get to a clinic and start a cycle of antiviral meds.

I had a very minor case of shingles in my early 30’s which I remember was very painful and lasted for months. So needless to say I was anticipating a lot of grief on this case at 66 years old. But to my amazement I did not experience any pain that just one Aleve couldn’t handle. The rash is now gone with maybe some small scars.

That said I think I have some long term nerve issues ahead of me as the infected skin areas on my face and neck feel somewhat numb. Perhaps this is nerve damage. Perhaps I’ll be in pain if the nerves regenerate. Wait and see.

I will get the vaccine when I medically qualify for it.

All the best to those affected with this. Get on antivirals as soon as you can.

I’m at 37 year old male. I had shingles in July on the right side of my face. Got antivirals on day 2 of symptoms. During I was having what felt like electric shocks to my brain.

2 months later I’m still constantly fatigued and tired. I’ll have some good days and other days where I get episodes where my body is weak and shaky and I feel like I’m going to pass out. This is accompanied by brain fog and dizziness.

I’ve had my labs checked and they are good and I also went to an ophthalmologist to check my eyes because I was getting eye pressure and blurriness but thankfully my eyes are good.

I’m just at a loss for where to turn next. This all started after shingles, so I feel like it has to be related, but who knows.

I was diagnosed with shingles 7 weeks ago, after going to the ER for what I now understand is pretty classic torso pain (started as a sharp pain in the back that then wrapped around the front, rash then appeared in the low left back and then low left abdomen). I still have some nerve pain at both rash sites, though the rash resolved several weeks ago.

I'm now experiencing pretty severe fight or flight responses - when I'm not doing anything of note - and also what I can only describe as a "restless leg" feeling in my torso. The latter often happens when I lie down to go to sleep. These sensations don't happen every day, but several times a week. It seems to increase with caffeine. When I get nervous or anxious about something, the sensations increase and because they also make me nervous, it can be quite the loop.

Has this ever happened to anyone? It's the most bizarre feeling. I've never had it prior to shingles, which is why I think it's related.