Shingles at 56
I'm coming up on my 1 yr. Anniversary of having the shingles on my face and eye. When I was diagnosed with the shingles, I thought I had a reaction from a yard pesticide I was using as I am an avid gardener. I was having sharp (knife like) stabbing pains in my left eye and there was a blister above my left eyebrow that looked like a blister from a sun burn. I went to the Doctor right away as the pain in my eye was getting worse. The Doctor quickly diagnosed me with the shingles and said I had a severe case of it. I was given an antibiotic for the shingles virus and the Doctor gave me a full round of Vicodin and Gabapentin. Then I was to see an eye Doctor as the pain went into my nose area and they were afraid I would have it in my eye and you can go blind from it. Turns out I did have it in my left eye.
From the top of my scalp to the end of my nose and all the left side of my face was affected by the virus. The eye Doctor put me on PrednisoLone eye drops and Zirgan eye gel. He also said I had 6 eye ulcers resulting from the shingles virus and eye scaring. I passed out from the pain in the eye doctor’s chair. The blisters covered my face within three days of the diagnose. The pain was immediate and I pretty well lost it three different times. I bathed my face in a bowl of ground oatmeal and vinegar. Then followed that with Aloe Vera gel and took my Vicodin and Gabapentin every three hours. I was bedridden for 30 days.
The face washing with the oatmeal and vinegar and then the Aloe gel would soothe my face burning and allowed me to rest. The itching and pain lasted for months. I was on Gabapentin for 6 months; however that had many side effects so I had to drop the Gabapentin. I have not been able to return to work (Property Manager) due to the constant pain. At my 6 months checkup my eye Doctor said the eye scaring I would have forever and that my eye prescription had dramatically changed in my left eye. What I can tell anyone who has the shingles to the face and eye is that it is unbelievably painful and the pain doesn’t go away as fast as the doctor’s say it will. When they tell you that the shingles virus damaged the large nerve in your face, they aren’t kidding. You will have face and eye pain for months, maybe years.
I have learned that I cannot go outside into the sunlight without wearing very dark sun glasses; otherwise the eye pain starts in again. I have had to dim the brightness on my TV, phone and I have shear curtains to all windows to keep the lighting in the house calm and not hurt my eye. I wash my face several times a day and keep a heavy moisturizer on it. I didn’t wear any makeup for 8 months. Even now the makeup is light and by about three hours I am taking it off again. Life as I once knew it is no more. ANY stress and I am right back at having pain again. My Doctor said I was to not strain my eye doing computer work and that he doubted if I could return to my career as the stress level would not be good for me. There aren’t very many stories of people suffering from face shingles, so I was happy to read a few on this forum. Thank you to all the people out there that want to share their story with others.
I hope I have helped maybe one in knowing you can find ways of dealing with your pain. Simple home remedies and yes pain meds will get you through the bad times. Hang in there and know you are not alone.
From the top of my scalp to the end of my nose and all the left side of my face was affected by the virus. The eye Doctor put me on PrednisoLone eye drops and Zirgan eye gel. He also said I had 6 eye ulcers resulting from the shingles virus and eye scaring. I passed out from the pain in the eye doctor’s chair. The blisters covered my face within three days of the diagnose. The pain was immediate and I pretty well lost it three different times. I bathed my face in a bowl of ground oatmeal and vinegar. Then followed that with Aloe Vera gel and took my Vicodin and Gabapentin every three hours. I was bedridden for 30 days.
The face washing with the oatmeal and vinegar and then the Aloe gel would soothe my face burning and allowed me to rest. The itching and pain lasted for months. I was on Gabapentin for 6 months; however that had many side effects so I had to drop the Gabapentin. I have not been able to return to work (Property Manager) due to the constant pain. At my 6 months checkup my eye Doctor said the eye scaring I would have forever and that my eye prescription had dramatically changed in my left eye. What I can tell anyone who has the shingles to the face and eye is that it is unbelievably painful and the pain doesn’t go away as fast as the doctor’s say it will. When they tell you that the shingles virus damaged the large nerve in your face, they aren’t kidding. You will have face and eye pain for months, maybe years.
I have learned that I cannot go outside into the sunlight without wearing very dark sun glasses; otherwise the eye pain starts in again. I have had to dim the brightness on my TV, phone and I have shear curtains to all windows to keep the lighting in the house calm and not hurt my eye. I wash my face several times a day and keep a heavy moisturizer on it. I didn’t wear any makeup for 8 months. Even now the makeup is light and by about three hours I am taking it off again. Life as I once knew it is no more. ANY stress and I am right back at having pain again. My Doctor said I was to not strain my eye doing computer work and that he doubted if I could return to my career as the stress level would not be good for me. There aren’t very many stories of people suffering from face shingles, so I was happy to read a few on this forum. Thank you to all the people out there that want to share their story with others.
I hope I have helped maybe one in knowing you can find ways of dealing with your pain. Simple home remedies and yes pain meds will get you through the bad times. Hang in there and know you are not alone.
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