I am starting radiotherapy next week. I will keep everybody informed as I\'m moving along the next few months.

I had 8 weeks of radiation with IMRT -Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy. I had the latest technology applied and had no real side-effects like skin burning and hair loss. I did have to take Flomax for a while, but didn't like the side effect of dizzy spells everytime I stood up from sitting or lying down. Right now, I'm awaiting my second PSA test in Jume to see if the score is lower as it should be.

My Father had Radiotherapy after his surgery 10 years ago. He had no problems till now. I guess we should have expected this because it had gone into his lymp nodes. Now he had Advanced Prostate Cancer and has traveled into his bones.

My Dad just finished 40-something treatments, now he has to wait 30 days to have a test (possibly the PSA?) to see if it worked. I hope so.

Anyway, my dad is 60, in fairly good shape, and he didn't suffer too many side effects other than some problems urinating, and being tired.

I completed 8 week of IMRT for prostate cancer rwo wweks ago. The worse side effects were loose bowel , gas, urgency and excessive frequency for urination and bowel movement.

The bowel and urine volumes were also very light. I have bben megadosing on Sal Palmetto and that apparently helped. It almost got to the point where I couldn't pee at all.

I wonder if I am suppose avaoid sunlight,I was out on a hot day and I fely very week afterward and have been having mino rskin irritaion issue all over my body- alot of itching.

My bones and teeth also started weekening but I a taking herb supplements and calcium for that.

I don't know if th eradiation has anything to do with it, but during the treatments, my foot gave out onme just my normal walking down the stairs. Was on crutches for a day or two.

A friend emailed me with some home remedies for shingle pain and itch. I promptly forgot about that stupid stuff until I was kept awake for nights on end with itching around my eye and forehead. In the middle of the night I recalled that email and found it. One easy thing was vinegar and I had some. There was nothing to loose and I was desperate. I got a Q-tip and swabbed it on and in a minute or so the itch went away. I went to bed and slept till morning.

I have continued using vinegar as a preventative. I put it on before going to bed. I wash it off in the morning. Before I leave the house, I reapply it. I use it full strength. I have since added aspirin to it, maybe 5 with a few tablespoons of cider vinegar. I stir it up and apply it with a Q-tip. It does seem to increase the effectiveness. I even apply it between my eyelid and my numb/itchy eyebrow, but imagine how it would hurt if a drop got in your eye, so be careful.

I don't know if this is common knowledge, so I joined this site to pass on this information for others that have postherpatic neuralgia.

Good Morning: (:

I was having a lot of pain on the left side - front and back. I discovered that if you mix Cayenne Pepper with a little olive oil (make a paste). Apply it to the painful areas (yes it will burn somewhat at first) wait a few minutes - then the pain goes away. Tried this last night and was able to sleep pain-free all night. Woke up feeling so much better and painfree.

Oh! Discovered you have to wash it off before you go out. If you don't, when you start sweating, the heat from the peppers will be activated and will be uncomfortable. Believe me, I now know that I have to remove it before going out. However, it seems as though the pepper goes into the affected areas during the night and the pain goes away.

I have not had to use the pepper treatment at all today. I shall have to see how long this lasts. Oh, I am also taking the drug "Gabapentin" - 300Mg three times a day.

I have been taking this drug for about 2 weeks now. It did'nt stop the pain but the pepper definitely does work. Oh! its the hottest type they have - 90%.

Still shocked that I became a Shingles candidate. Sure did hurt a lot in the beginning. Thought I was in another dimension. Gee Whiz!!

Oh Well - as they say ***** happens! By, the way, that is a quote from my Doctor!!! God Bless You All!!

Good Morning: (:

It's me again. Forgot to thank Mikewhite for his recommendation for using vinegar and aspirin. That indeed does work. I had read about it on the internet. Glad you were able to get some refief. Hope you are feeling much better. God Bless You Always!!

Thanks for your confirmation that my concoction does work. I have found that it does not hurt to give something new a try as long as it is something so simple as vinegar.

Just to let everyone know that Sept. 16 is PHN awarness day



The American Pain Foundation (APF) has designated September 16 as the second annual Postherpetic Neuralgia (PHN) Awareness Day, which is part of National Pain Awareness Month.

I would like to report that the gel taken directly out of an aloe vera plant and put on burning and itching skin, caused by post herpetic neuralgia, will cause a marked reduction in that irritation. You must be patient though, because it is slow acting. The ingredient in aloe vera that causes this analgesic effect is a mystery to me.

Mike you said you don't sleep I want you to try Melatonin - I been taking it for years now it helps me to sleep at night - try it and let me know

Thanks. I just now wrote it down on the shopping list. We had a boy stay with us this past summer, who would not go to sleep. His mother gives him melatonin and so every night he would get a pill. He would fall fast asleep in 10 minutes. It worked well for him.

I had actually thought about using it myself. But, I was thinking, a big mistake sometimes, that maybe the NATURAL increase in melatonin in the body around bedtime might be the cause of the increase in itch/burn that happens at the same time. That maybe there is a connection or correlation between natural melatonin levels in the body and the itch/burn increasing and decreasing.

If you have found that it has no affect on your itch/burn, then my thoughts on a possible connection flies right out the window.

I will get some and hopefully prove my thoughts wrong, kind of like another experiment.

Thahks for the tips. The vineger does work will now try adding the aspirin

After a lot of experimenting, I graduated from vinegar to something that worked better. Lanacane rubs into the skin and smells good too. It is inexpensive and can be bought just about anywhere. Put on a big dollop of that and pretty soon you can get relief from itching. It will not work for all, but will work for many.

Remember though, that this stuff is for PHN, and not the shingles rash.