At a base level, shingles (also referred to as Herpes Zoster) occurs when a nerve area gets infected due to the varicella-zoster virus. Even though it may be incredibly painful and quite unsightly, it usually starts to ease up after a couple weeks and is usually gone within a month.
A skin condition that is unsightly, irritating and painful; does this sound familiar? Indeed, that lovely little previously mentioned varicella-zoster virus is additionally accountable for the common childhood terror, chickenpox.
In fact, anyone who has experienced chickenpox in the past will retain the normally dormant varicella-zoster virus inside their nervous system for the rest of their life until it becomes active on occasion once again. This suggests people with the dormant virus may also be vulnerable to shingles, and as most of us caught chickenpox in our childhoods, it’s no great surprise that 1 in 5 are afflicted by shingles at some stage in our lives.
Shingles Symptoms?
So, how does one spot it? Well, shingles symptoms are really simple and usually consist of the following:
* To start with individuals with shingles will experience a continuous burning sensation in an area of skin which will become very tender to the touch. The discomfort will eventually become continuous although on some occasions it might be indicated as sporadic sharp stabs.
* A few days after the discomfort has started, the most apparent of shingles symptoms will appear when a rash forms, most typically around the upper body or face (often around the eyes). This rash will eventually develop into blisters that are very irritating and itchy. Eventually the blistered sites will become dry and scab over prior to subsiding.
Shingles Treatment?
For all those unlucky enough to go through this condition, the good news is that there are a variety of different forms of shingles treatment readily available that can relieve both the discomfort and visibility of the condition.
Firstly, your doctor may prescribe you antiviral medication which will limit the spread of shingles over your body; although that is much more typical in serious cases. It goes without saying that it’s very much a case of the earlier the better for the administration of such drugs.
It goes without saying that regular painkillers and anti-inflammatory medications like ibuprofen will definitely relieve many of the painful shingles symptoms.
Finally, there are also many types of shingles treatment that can be carried out in your own home. For instance, steer clear of tight fitted clothing that can rub and irritate areas of skin affected by shingles. And if you remember from childhood struggles with chickenpox, a lathering of chamomile lotion will definitely alleviate itching.
Unfortunately, shingles cannot be avoided other than by attempting to not get chickenpox to start with. As we can all remember, that is much easier said than done!
Suffering from shingles? People who have had chickenpox often get shingles. Be sure to read my article on treating shingles.