Extremely itchy. I didn’t have what I would call pain, but thecarea felt inflamed. The itch is so overwhelming though that that is what stands out most. It was hard to work. It was on my back buttocks, and I would lean against a wall to put pressure on it to keep from scratching. I worked retail at the time, I was in my early to mid 20’s. It was a small area. I think about 2 inches by 1.5 inches.
The first time I think it lasted almost 4 weeks. The doctor diagnosed me incorrectly and gave me antibiotics. Idiot.
Months later the area still had some faint redness, and I was at the dermatologist for something totally unrelated and told him about it, and he said, “if it happens in the same spot again it’s probably shingles.” It dud happen agains several months later, and I had to go to the GYN for something else, and asked him to look at what thought might be shingles. He started to say, “no you…,” and then when I showed him he said, “oh wait…give me…,” the nurse gave him what he asked for and he took a sample to be cultured.. Results—positive for shingles.
Thank goodness for that dermatologist and that I had a GYN appointment by coincidence with a doctor who wasn’t an idiot either. He prescribed me meds.
Sometimes I feel the tingle there and I think it’s happening again. Sometimes it does flare up again when I feel it sometimes it doesn’t. I try to hoard the medicine so I don’t need to go to the doctor again. They overprescribe I have found out over the years.
So, it always was in the same place until about 9 years ago, when I started to get itch on my left cheek and forehead and the top of my head. I would show my husband my head telling him to check if I had a bug bite in my hair. He would say no. I would stratch the area sometimes, it would have almost a pinpont scab like a mosquito bite. This happened two or three times and then would go away.
Finally, one morning, my forehead felt inflamed in a small area, and still itchy. I thought maybe a pimple was coming on. A weird spot for that. I put a dab of alcohol that night. I also had been feeling a weird “headache” for a couple of days, and I had had that before in recent years. The next morning, in the mirror I knew what it was! It was a Sunday morning, and I yelled for my husband that I had to go to urgent care. On my forehead, just above my left eyebrow. I know you can lose your sight from it. I had to get meds, I couldn’t just wait it out to avoid a doctor visit.
It was shingles as I thought. The doctor asked, “do you have it on top of your head too?” Now, I put it altogether. That mosquito bite in my hair I kept making my husband look for was shingles. All along the trigeminal nerve.
In summary it sucks, but I’m grateful it is only a small area when it happens to me. I sometimes get it three times in a year, and then not for 4 or 5 years. I had always been happy it wasn’t on my face, but in recent years it is. I think people with chronic “headache” pain on one side, and trigeminal nerve pain that doesn’t fit other diagnosis should consider it might be undiagnosed shingles.
I fear as I age it will get much worse. For now, when it happens, it usually last about 7 days if I start the medicine by the second or third day. I still have tingle afterwards for weeks and months very often.
I wash my hands well when I have it and avoid young children and babies.
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