Shingles Pain

People who have shingles know the pain all to well.  The sharp pain that keeps you awake at night, the painful itching that doesn't stop.  Shingles pain is probably the worst side effect of having the shingles disease.

Shingles is a disease caused by the herpes zoster virus.  Much like an adult version of the chicken pox, shingles affects millions of people each day.  Even if you had chicken pox as a child, you are still susceptible to getting shingles.

Most people assume that you only have the shingles pain during an outbreak of shingles. This is not always true. While some people report that they only experience pain during an outbreak, most often the shingles pain is felt before the blisters or rash appear.

Sometimes the shingles pain is felt for up to two weeks before an outbreak of shingles is experienced. It can also be felt for months after the shingles blisters go away.  The pain associated with shingles after your outbreak is known as Post Herpetic Neuralgia (PHN).

Post Herpetic Neuralgia (PHN) is the pain that is associated with shingles after the outbreak is over.  Many people would call the pain after the outbreak shingles pain, however the pain after the outbreak is due to the nerve being swollen or agitated still.

PHN is one of the more painful times that can occur after a shingles outbreak.  The amount of time that you can suffer from PHN is unknown and varies from one shingles outbreak to another.

While there is still no cure for shingles, there are treatment options available.  First, there is the shingles vaccine that you can take. While it carries its own risks, including the chance you can still get shingles, it has provided hope for thousands of people that have taken the vaccine.

Some of the shingles pain treatments include having your doctor prescribe pain relievers, anti-depressants and anti-viral medicines.  Each person responds differently to the different treatments while they have shingles.

If your shingles has progress to Post Herpetic Neuralgia (PHN) your options are more limited for pain relief.  While some organic treatments have helped with the itching and swollen nerve issues, most of the medications still have a limited effect on the shingles and PHN pain.