Originally Posted by
pinzgauer
I can thank shingles for:
- 4 days in the hospital, the first of which were life threatening
- the worst pain I've ever been in, and I've had multiple bad kidney stones
- missing part of my nose
- vision impairment in one eye because my body is fighting ghost shingles virus in my cornea
- Ongoing nerve pain/discomfort 18 mths later in the impacted nerve (dermotope) that runs from the tip your nose through your eye socket over to your ear
Get the shot, it is recommended starting at 50. It is stupid that insurance won't pay for it until you're 60, so most people wait too late.
The best way to describe shingles impact on nerves is like a wire with the insulation eaten or eroded. Which causes the nerve to fire when it shouldn't, or not fire when it should.
I'm still taking gabapentin to manage the nerve weirdness. If I don't take it it feels like I have a worm or a fly wiggling in the corner of my eye. That and ache/tingling along the nerve.
So yeah, it can be way more than an itchy patch of skin.
Steyr said he'd pay a grand to avoid it? I'm at least $10k out of pocket due to shingles, and will continue to pay for meds.
Get your shot. Or not, and learn the hard way.