Gerontologist Sam Cradduck said she had shingles twice, and it connected to an autoimmune condition. She described the burning as nerve pain at the highest level and compared it to a toothache along a nerve pathway. Hers hit her back and flank, where she could not see it or reach it.
Dr. Rhea Rogers, a board-certified physician, said the pain does not show up in random spots. It follows the dermatome of the nerve, so you can map out the nerve to see what is happening. Shingles is the same virus that causes chickenpox, reactivated.
Cradduck called her rash almost fiery red. The second time, it came back on the same nerve pathway and was not as bad.
For anyone weighing the shingles vaccine, Rogers said it does not take the condition away, but it may make symptoms much milder. Age and health matter too. As you get older, she said, your immune system is not as effective, so you cannot fight things as well. Amy O'Rourke, an aging expert, called herself a real advocate for the vaccine. She said it takes two shots, and some people forget the second one.