Just a few short weeks ago I was experiencing some odd pain that radiated in a complete circle on my upper body. It was kind of hard to describe but my skin tingled and was very sensitive. I thought maybe living in the high desert the weather was making my skin extra dry. A few days later the pain became so intense it was uncomfortable to even move; at this point it felt like I had been beaten with a lead pipe and then lit on fire!

Being unemployed and not having health insurance I was very reluctant to go to the doctor and get this checked out. The pain was so debilitating that all I wanted to do was sleep just so I wouldn’t feel it. Later that day I noticed a small red rash area on my left side located on my ribcage. Very perplexed I put some hydrocortisone cream on it and thought nothing of it.

Awhile later I noticed a few more red areas; at this point I anxiously approached my wife and asked what they looked like to her. By now I was unnerved and starting surfing the net trying to figure out what this could be. I decided that I better go get myself checked out as the pain with the rash was giving me quite a scare.

I went to my local urgent care and paid the ungodly co-payment they charge people with no insurance but I was kind of over a barrel at this point! I finally got called in and was patiently waiting to see the doctor. The doctor finally came in to check me out, after briefly explaining to her the pain I have been in and then showing her the rash area on my body she exclaimed; “You have shingles!”

“Shingles, how could I have gotten that?” My head was swimming with trying to figure out how in the world I could have gotten shingles. The doctor explained to me that shingles is a form of the herpes virus that lies dormant in your spine, if you have had the chicken pox then the virus is inside you. A dip in your immune system and high bouts of emotional stress can cause shingles to manifest itself. Shingles also attacks your nerves and the rash follows nerve patterns from your spine.

I felt dirty, at first I thought that promiscuous people get things like shingles not happily married men! I was given a strong anti-biotic medication that I had to take 5 times a day for 10 days. After I got home I got back on the internet to research shingles further. What I found out really scared me; in severe cases shingles can affect your eyesight and hearing. Not to mention that the pain stays with you for quite some time after the blistery rash goes away. The best part(insert sarcastic overtones here), you can get it over and over if your health conditions go south and you get high amounts of stress. With being out of a job, no insurance, and the economy in the tank, there was the valid reason I was looking for.

It’s been about 10 days since I was diagnosed with shingles and I am on the last day of my anti-biotic, the rash has really shrunk but the pain is as bad as it has been. I am really worried that I will be afflicted with it for quite some time. I don’t want to have to continually see the doctor for it as I am barely getting by on unemployment as it is. If you have had the chicken pox then be aware that you carry this virus in you and all it takes is the right health conditions and shingles could pop up. A word from the now wiser, shingles aren’t just for roofers anymore.

-AngryDago-