I have Shingles?!

What I didn’t know, that you should, in the event you are the 1 of 3 adults who develops shingles later in life.

I knew shingles is caused by the same virus as the chicken pox, usually develops in the elderly after you had chicken pox as a child and could be very painful.  Since I didn’t know anything else (not even what it looks like), my various symptoms, which changed every couple days in the first week, led me to believe I had different things going on.  I already had an annual physical scheduled, so instead of going to urgent care, just over a week passed before I was diagnosed.

On Friday, 1/12 I woke up with a massive headache and general muscle pain in my shoulders, neck and base of my head.  This is not unusual for me so I spent most of my day in bed laying on my C-Rest to re-align my spine using it’s nubs to self-massage the knots on my scalp and neck between quick spurts of checking work email and before heading to an appointment in the afternoon.

I noticed a few small pimples forming on the front of my neck adding to the few already on my jawline that appeared earlier in the week.  I hadn’t been sleeping well, was in process of getting my roof replaced so had been crawling around my dirty dusty attic, and cleaning my house so pimples were not surprising.

Saturday, 1/13 I notice a lump about 1/3 the size of my palm on the back left of my scalp. It was tender to the touch.  I brush it off with I either hit my head harder than I recall crawling in the attic or I self-massaged too vigorously the day before.  I’ve had bumps develop before for both reasons in the past.  The pimples are starting to itch, though more than i would expect to be normal, so I wonder if I was bitten by a fire ant instead.  Instead of only applying acne medication, I also apply my homemade remedy of essential oils (EO) for bug bites to reduce itchiness and heal the bite faster.  I also have a bit of stomach issue and have to run to the restroom more than normal.  I must have eaten something that didn’t agree with me.

Sunday, 1/14 the itchiness of my neck is more intense leading me to believe they really are bites so I stop applying the acne cream and apply the EO remedy throughout the day.  The bump on the back of my head has grown to about half the size of my palm on my head and is starting to itch also.  Little bumps are forming there too!  Maybe it was a fire ant that went to town on my scalp.  Or could it be spider bites?  I’m not sure but the itch is starting to drive me crazy, more so than the pain of the bump.  No further stomach ailments though.

Monday, 1/15 on the big bump on my head that’s quite painful to the touch, the small bumps are more pronounced and there seem to be more of them.  My neck bites were so itchy I scratched them open while asleep during the night.  My friend notices and asks about them and I guess it’s either fire ant or spider bites.  She questions if they had a clear watery liquid come out when i scratched them open and I confirm they did.  She tells me fire ant bites are usually filled like that.

Tuesday, 1/16 I’m supposed to fly out of Houston, and this is when I get stranded at HOU due to the Inga Ice Storm.  The itch in the scalp is intense and I realize more bumps appeared above the bump on the left side of my scalp and even behind my ear, it’s spreading!  This can’t be fire ant bites, there are too many and new ones.  I google symptoms while spending hours at the airport and fear I may actually have lice instead.  But its still only on a small portion of my scalp and wouldn’t lice be all over my head?

Wednesday, 1/17 early morning I fly out of Houston and am still suffering from insane itchiness, but a new symptom appears, an earache.  I’m guessing whatever I have has affected my inner ear and flying has caused my earache.  It is a sporadic sharp pain deep in my ear canal that literally stops me in my tracks and causes me to bring my hand up but disappears before my hand even reaches my ear.  Sometimes it comes in successions one after the other several in a row other times it’s once and doesn’t happen until much time has passed.

The pain of the bump on my scalp has magnified several times over, if my hair even sways as I walk, it feels as if there are tiny knives being stabbed into my scalp.  I am officially miserable and worried!

Shortly after arriving at my destination, I am able get pictures of my scalp and behind my ear which I send to my best friend who is a nurse and cousin who is doing her medical residency describing my symptom asking them if I might have lice.  Do I feel burrowing in my scalp because it looks like it might be scabies or some kind of bug? No, but one suggestion is to buy a lice kit to check.

Later that afternoon I send the picture I took on Monday of my neck per their request since it is easier to see those and they both think it may actually be an allergic reaction . Have I used any new products? YES!  I started using a new shampoo and hair serum on the same day because I ran out of both a couple days before my first symptom.  Ironically enough, both products claim to contain more natural ingredients than chemical.  They say it is up to me if I want to go to urgent care depending on my symptoms since I already have an appointment scheduled with my primary doctor the following Monday.  I decide to see how the next 24 hours go – if new symptoms or new bumps appear, I’ll go to urgent care the next day on Thursday.

Since I’m paranoid I may have lice, I look up what EO I can use to treat lice since that is what I have on hand immediately.  I pull together a recipe and immediately drench my hair in an EO diluted mixture soaking my scalp and carrying it through the ends of my hair.  I tie up my hair in a bun and throw a disposable shower cap on it. Thank goodness I am a remote worker and can do this while I work!

After work, I buy a lice kit with a comb.  After my hair is thoroughly combed through, not a critter is found and I can rest easy knowing I can take my next flight out on Friday, no longer having to cancel my next trip.  It must be an allergic reaction after all.  But shouldn’t it be all over my scalp?

I left the new shampoo and hair serum at home and have been using my typical travel products so I shouldn’t develop any new symptoms if it was, in fact, an allergic reaction to the new products.  Notably, the EO mixture has relegated the itch to a very tolerable level.  Therefore I opt to wash my hair that night and reapply the EO mixture and leave on overnight.  Even if it’s not lice, it’s soothing and since it’s diluted, I figure it can’t hurt anything.  Unfortunately it didn’t help with the intense sharp pain I was feeling though.

Thursday, 1/18 no new symptoms to report and in fact, the itch is clearly subsiding.  The pain and earache are still the same, but no new bumps that I can feel and the existing ones are starting to scab over.  I decide not to go to urgent care and go on my trip so I can go to my Doctor appointment on Monday.  I keep the EO in my hair for as long as I can stand before washing it out.  Friday, 1/19 pretty much everything has already scabbed over and the size of the bump has reduced by about half which is a sign to me, I must be on the road to recovery.  Pain on bump is no longer crazy painful, earache is still about the same though.  I fly out to my next destination as planned.

Saturday and Sunday the earache subsides before disappearing and pain on my scalp has stabilized only being noticeable when my scalp is touched directly or hair is pulled (combing/brushing). Itchiness is pretty much gone.

Monday, 1/20 appointment with Dr first thing in the morning and he diagnoses me with shingles asking if I have been under an unusually high amount stress than normal.  Yes, I answer and add that I thought shingles only happened to the elderly.  He states he’s seen 20 and 30 year olds come in with shingles.

After the appointment I search what EO should be used to alleviate shingles symptoms and was pleased to find many that I used for what I thought was lice is applicable for shingles.  In fact, they are claimed to reduce the duration, severity and symptoms which can explain why my itch was greatly soothed, new blisters did not develop and the newer blisters did not grow bigger as the initial ones did.

In summary, shingles begins as a red swollen rash that develops fluid filled blisters on one side and area of the body within 3-5 days that rupture and scab over in 7-10 days,. It may take up to 4 weeks for complete healing.  People who have had chicken pox with low immune system, who are sick and/or under a lot of stress are susceptible to developing shingles.

With head shingles, headache and flu like symptoms will typically occur before the rash appears, including fever and upset stomach, but without the cough and runny nose.  It is possible a person feels feverish, but actually does not register a higher temperature.  These symptoms should dissipate when the lesions scab over.  The virus affects the nerves.  Pain and soreness will first develop where the lesions will appear and the pain worsens when the blisters develop, being set off by even the lightest touch or movement, even a light breeze. Pain typically lasts 1-2 months but can last longer.

Shingles around the ear can cause intense pain, tinnitus or abnormal sounds, vertigo and loss of hearing.

Shingles can be spread through direct contact with the fluid from the blisters to those who have never had chicken pox before. A person is not contagious before the blisters appear or when the blisters crust over.

My head still is painful to the touch and I am hopeful will disappear after the month as typically indicated.  I have currently developed some flu like symptoms with sore throat, body aches and general fatigue, but can’t say with certainty if it is related to the shingles or simply the nasty flu that has been going around everywhere.  Either case, I’m looking forward to a full recovery soon!