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Remember that time I got shingles on the face? I know I won’t be forgetting that experience anytime soon…For anyone who has had or currently has shingles, you know this is a pain you won’t soon forget. They call it adult chickenpox, but I can assure you it’s far worse than chickenpox ever was (some of us actually got chickenpox pre chickenpox vaccine!).
I’m going to skip over the whole medical diagnosis part since your doctor should probably be the one doing that but instead describe my personal experience with shingles i.e. herpes zoster or varicella zoster virus and how to recover from shingles quickly.
The first thing I did when I got diagnosed, was immediately take to the internet to see if anyone had helpful tips for healing shingles fast. I read a lot of shingles horror stories, some not-so-horror stories but also some really productive tips. I’m hoping this post can be that for some of you. Or if you have a friend or family member suffering, feel free to pass onto them. We got this!
So, first things first…
SHINGLES DIAGNOSIS
A couple days before the infamous shingles rash appeared, my lymph nodes on the left side of my neck and ear were super inflamed and I felt like I had a fever. I then developed a lot of pain in my ear with a monstrous headache, so the next day I went to the doctor to see if I had an ear infection. That morning I noticed two huge zits on my forehead which I thought was strange (because I never breakout on my forehead) but they didn’t occur to me as anything but zits. You know those huge underground zits you get? They looked and felt like those.
My doctor looked in my ear, felt my lymph nodes and informed me I did not have an ear infection but likely some kind of virus that my body was trying to fight. Neither of us thought anything of the zits and I went home feeling pretty crappy but relieved it wasn’t an ear infection.
Over the next few hours is when the rash really started to develop. A few more bumps on my forehead, one on my eyebrow and those big “zits” also known as “shingles blisters” started to become really painful. The pain I felt in my ear started moving into my head and my swollen lymph nodes made it difficult to turn my neck. I later found out that the pain in my ear was likely caused by the fact that the shingles on my face developed in my trigeminal nerve which is right next to your middle ear.
I knew pretty much as soon as the pain migrated to my forehead that I had shingles. People have been shocked to discover that you can a) get shingles under the age of 60 and b) get shingles on your face. I knew both were possible because my Mom had them on her face when I was really young. Thankfully that situation clued me into what was happening with my own body but for any of you out there who don’t know this, you can get shingles at any age and they can happen at any nerve root in your body, including your face!
SHINGLES RECOVERY
Because I pretty quickly tuned into what was happening, I was able to get started with my shingles recovery fairly quickly. According to the CDC, if you manage to diagnose shingles within 72 hours of the blisters appearing, the antiviral medications (typically acyclovir, valacyclovir/valtrex, and famciclovir) are most effective.
I’m lucky I caught it within that window and am certain I was able to recover from shingles fast because of this. Of course, not everyone will know right away, but if you have a gut feeling or any of the symptoms I described above, go to your doctor!
Besides my antiviral 3x a day I was also prescribed pain meds, which I honestly didn’t end up taking. Heavy pain meds make me feel sick and groggy so except for the first two days when the pain was pretty excruciating, I used advil/motrin (ibuprofen) and tylenol (acetaminophen) to help manage the pain.
Eventually the pain dissipated and was followed by itching as the scabs dried and healed over. This is the typical course of shingles in which it starts with pain + tingling and then the rash appears. Once the rash scabs over you are no longer contagious.
Of course, I also turned to diet and lifestyle choices to also help manage the symptoms. I’m fairly confident that in addition to the antivirals, these choices helped to decrease the span of my shingles experience. So let’s get into that…
HOW TO RECOVER FROM SHINGLES QUICKLY
I think the most important piece of this post is this section. Of course, catching it early and taking the antivirals helps a ton but shingles is so much more than just popping some pills and hoping for the best. I’m not here to throw conventional medicine under the rug. I don’t think I’d have had such a quick turnaround if it hadn’t been for the full course of antivirals I took, but there are a lot of home remedies you can incorporate to also help speed up the process and the pain and itchiness that typically ensues.
CBD/THC
In addition to OTC pain meds, I used CBD and THC to help manage the pain. I’ve been playing around with different types of CBD and found the Calm pen from Dosist to be most effective. For THC I used topical salve on the rash itself and it was literally a godsend to help manage the pain. It was basically like a more effective calamine lotion.
BONE BROTH
There’s a reason your body craves broth when you’re sick. Bone broth is super anti-inflammatory and immune-boosting. It contains vitamins and minerals that help support gut health and reduce pain and inflammation. Generally a good idea to consume bone broth with a weakened immune system.
I’ve had two cups of bone broth every single day for the last two weeks. Currently obsessed with Kettle and Fire and especially their mushroom and chicken broth! Use code THEHEALTHYMAVEN to save 20% off your first order.
KOMBUCHA/PROBIOTICS
When they say “it all starts in your gut”, they’re not kidding! After my bout with SIBO I had to eliminate and then slowly add in fermented foods and probiotics. It’s been almost 6 months since then and I am now happily back to taking my daily probiotic and guzzling my Healthade kombucha. 5:00 PM became my “kombucha happy hour”.
SUPPLEMENTS
Pretty much everyone under the sun will recommend a different supplement to you when they hear you have shingles. Truthfully, there are many MANY out there that could benefit you, shingles or not. I decided to stick with what I had from my Care/of packs and add in one that was consensus amongst everyone, L-Lysine.
Zinc – supports immune function and has an antiviral effect
L-lysine – an amino acid that helps reduce the spread of the shingles virus
Rhodiola – an adaptogenic herb that’s shown stress relieving properties
Astragalus – another herb that helps support immune function and has an antiviral effect
LEMON BALM
I wasn’t sure which category to put this under, so instead it gets a category of it’s own. Lemon Balm is an herb that is known to help reduce pain from shingles specifically, both internally and topically. I pretty much got all my hydration from drinking 6-8 cups of Lemon Balm Tea a day and once the initial couple of days of pain went down, I used a topical lemon balm cream to help reduce inflammation, reduce pain and help promote healing.
Someone on Instagram told me to order this Lemon Balm Salve from Amazon and it was literally the best advice I got from everyone. It’s kind of like one of those thick lotions that you put over the fluid-filled blisters. Within a week the rash had gone done and had begun healing. Some people swear by capsaicin cream but I haven’t tried it.
DIET
I am a true believer in the healing power of food. Now I don’t think eating perfectly “clean” replaces other lifestyle habits or conventional medicine, but it is a great tertiary care to support your body. And truthfully, when you’re sick (at least when I’m sick), I’m not craving the same foods I normally do. I think when you really tap in and listen you’ll realize that the foods you crave like bone broth and vegetables are actually your body’s way of supporting you.
In my case I literally wanted all the warm, green veggies in broth. Particularly kale and bok choy. Interestingly my acupuncturist told me that bok choy is a common healing and cooling food in Traditional Chinese Medicine and that because shingles is excessive heat in your body, bok choy was a great cooling choice. Our bodies are crazy!
In addition to plenty of veggies, I also found myself gravitating towards antioxidant fruits like berries and lots of bananas. I didn’t intentionally do it, but I pretty much ate zero refined sugar for a week. As I started to feel better I was like “give me the brownies!!!” but while I was still heavy in the pain-zone I didn’t want any of it.
I also consumed more turmeric that I ever thought I could and especially loved it in my morning Matcha and Turmeric Latte. My body was NOT craving coffee so my morning matcha really did the trick.
ESSENTIAL OILS
I’ll be honest, when I’m sick I often turn to essential oils for primary support, but for shingles they definitely played second fiddle. I rubbed fortify on my chest and neck lymph nodes to support my immune system and diffused grounding and soothing blends like unwind, spa spirit and tranquility to help stay calm and promote self-care and relaxation.
I personally didn’t do this because I had shingles on my face but if you have shingles on the side of the body (the most common) or somewhere you can soak in a bath, people swear by oatmeal baths to help relieve pain and improve symptoms as well as using a cool compress to provide some relief.
Note: After about two weeks I began seeing an acupuncturist to help with some postherpetic neuralgia (post-shingles nerve pain) that remained even after the rash had healed. I highly recommend if you’re still dealing with pain but are out of the itchiness and scabbing phase.
THE MOST IMPORTANT TIP FOR SHINGLES
I know that this is a lot of information so give yourself time to take it all in. Perhaps, more importantly take this one piece of advice: RELAX. Shingles is usually brought on by stress in your life. While I didn’t think I had a lot of stress (I’ve become a lot better at managing it!), when I listed everything on my plate it’s easy to see how my body was overburdened.
The biggest lesson learned through this process is how important it is to really, truly support your body. People often mentioned how lucky I was to be able to have a job that works from home, but when you’re sick it’s easy to just reach for your phone in bed or work on a project while recovering on the couch. The boundaries are less clear. Though I did the bare minimum I needed to do, I mostly took a lot of time to rest, nap, journal, watch TV and essentially do nothing.
Acknowledging those stressors and putting in plans of action to eliminate or diffuse them is the key to getting over shingles.
And note: there’s no way to cure shingles in 3 days! Anyone who says so is lying, but hopefully using these tips you can get rid of them quickly without any complications.
* * * * *
If you’re over 60 there is a shingles vaccination (called shingrix) to help with the prevention of shingles. You can ask your doctor or healthcare provider about it if you’re interested. And yes, it’s still worth getting even if you’ve had shingles as you can get it more than once!
Have you ever had or currently have shingles? Any tips to add? Drop them below!
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I’m not sure I have Shingles but I did hear the Dr and the pharmacist mention shingles when I went to the ER aftee having warm almost hot areas of my body that were red & rash looking, like hives on my back, sides, stomach, backsides of my knees, chest, and often small hive like bumps would pop up in all of those spots and I would get a blister or hive under my left eye mostly but a few times under the right side. This had been driving me insane with these sometimes small patches to covering my whole side on both sides with these hot itchy areas. Any heat, whether it be heat from warming my home to a hot shower made it 10x worse. Im 38 years old and this is the 3rd time in my life I’ve dealt with this b.s. First time was about 6 mos after the birth of my first child when I was 18. Drs said it was poison ivy, oak, or sumac but I’m not alleefic to those. My eyes would swell shut sometimes. Huge blisters would form on the pads of my feet making it very hard and painful to walk. Next dr said it was hives and until last week I still thought it was hives, I didnt know much of shingles and drs never once said it was anything other than hives except the 2nd time 10 years later soon after I had my daughter and one dr said maybe Lupus. Sent me to an allergy lab and I was injected with soo many things like bread, grass, all meats, pet dander and even flour and mayo. To which I appeared to be allergic to EVERY SINGLE sample they stuck in my back. I was in shock..like how can I be allergic to 75 things I’d been fine with for almost 30 years? Both times at 18 and 28 eventually it just went away on its own, though I made many a trip to the ER for a Benadryl shot as I couldn’t sleep. Now here I am, 38 almost 39 and its been slowly geting worse for about 6 months. Somedays it would push me to pray for death..then some days (4-5 if I was lucky) it went dormant I guess? It’s been getting worse and worse this time though. So bad I rushed to the ER because the hive-like bump under my eye was just that one evening and I felt as if I had a piece of gravel or like my eye had been cut. My husband looked and saw nothing and we flushed it with warm water, eye drops, etc. Next morning there was pus in that eye and my eyeball was bloodshot like I’d never seen and swollen. Thought it had to be pinkeye and told the ER staff that. But the skin on the outer edge between the eye and my hairline was really dry, almost scabby or scaly which I had never experienced before. ER sent me to the eye surgeon across the street and the Dr came in after hours to check me out. It was so infected he could only write me antibiotic drops and reachedule me to come back in 2 days. Couldn’t get walmart to send over the pre-authorization so I used pinkeye drops the 2 days until I saw the dr again. He was pissed because he spoke with the pharmacy at Wal-Mart and told the person how badly I needed this medication yet they failed to do ANYTHING. Those 2 days without proper meds made me much sicker and in more pain. My 2nd appt he found a different pharmacy that this med was covered by my insurance. Still 4 hours of problems and pharmacies not having it and insurance issues put me through more hell. Tuesday is my 3rd appt and I’m hoping he can diagnose me once and for all. The Dr stressed how dangerous it was for me not using the antibiotic eyedrop he prescribed and I was terrified, bawling, and slept for 2 days. This was the worst experience I have gone through so far. Thought I would share my story as I learned and felt much relief reading all of yours. Thank you, brandi
Your post totally hit me. I was diagnosed with shingles last week. I have it on one side of my face and in my eye. I live alone and far away from my family who are all located on another continent. With the shutdown for Covid19, my host country’s borders are closed and my family cannot come to help me. I find the pain horrific, the fatigue draining and the isolation devastating. On top of it the stress of missing work. How long afterwards did you return to work (I suppose working from home in these days of Covid19)? I feel like perhaps there is something wrong with me that I cannot manage to work yet.
I was diagnosed 7 days ago with shingles. Left side face and head. For several weeks prior to rash, I was experiencing unusual left temple migraine…which would not relent. Then last week left lip developed tiny blisters and itching. (I’ve never had a cold sore in my life). Then left eyeball pain got worse…like it had been bruised or strained. Next…the red bumps appeared all around left face with concentration at trigeminal nerve slightly above the left ear…then all hell broke lose.
I called my Doc who diagnosed me via telemed, due to the fact that our whole country’s in quarantine from Covid 19. Emergency visit to eye Doc, as my left eye was becoming more involved and painful/red.
Valtrex x3/daily…plus 20mgs prednisone daily. Ibuprofen to attempt to manage pain…although not very well. Applying calamine to blisters like mad…somewhat helpful. The rash is fading after one week, but other sensations of pain…crawling skin…itching…electrical shock zaps…continue to evolve. I feel like I’m losing sh#+ at nearly every moment…sleep eludes me from the constant twinges of the aforementioned sensations. I’m feeling very much on my own with this bc of the state of our world being ravaged with Covid 19…the stress levels of every one are being stretched to near capacity. It’s IMPOSSIBLE to keep calm for anyone….truly feel out of control…and stress is the enemy of shingles.
Anyone else in the throes of shingles right now, I especially feel for you.
Hello! I was diagnosed with Shingles on Saturday. All last week I had what I thought was a horrible sinus headache. Nothing would touch the pain. Tuesday I got what I thought was a pimple above my left eyebrow, but it never came out – it turned into more of a flat rough patch. Saturday morning I woke up to huge swollen lymph nodes and just feeling awful, so I reluctantly headed to urgent care. The doctor said ” I think this is shingles.” Well, the stress of our current times doesn’t make that so surprising. I have developed a few more faint spots on the left of my forehead, but none are especially painful. The worse part is the burning/itching in my eye.
I just wanted to say that I completely understand how you feel, dealing with this in one of the most uncertain times. I hope you start to feel better soon!
I had a similar experience as you, Angie. In the week before I was diagnosed with shingles in my eye, I had an itchy eyebrow and it felt like grit was in my eye. The pain and light sensitivity started before I broke out with two small lesions on my forehead. I managed with Dilaudid (left over from a surgery), THC (cream and capsules), gabapentin, along with the Valtrex and Zirgan ointment. At my 7 day follow-up today, the pain is mostly gone but they diagnosed scleritis as a complication (inflammation of the white part of the eye). One thing I’ve found helpful and recommend to everyone is using yoga nidra to manage your stress. There are several free ones online, including for pain management. Moving ahead, I’m going to become much better about managing my stress.
Wonderful article. This is my first time experiencing shingles… And it does suck so much. At first I thought it was a dental problem and went to the dentist to get a filling done… But behold, I started getting blisters on my chin and ended up going to an urgent care. It is my first day on my valtrex med and oh boy… My tongue is covered in white sores, blisters on my chin leaking like some zombie creature… And the throbbing pain and teeth/ear pain from time to time. The absolute worst experience!!
Hello!
Did you take kombucha while having shingles? I have the virus, but i’m not sure if i can start taking it while i have it
Please enlighten me
Susana
yes I did! Great source of healthy probiotics.
It is New Year’s Eve and for the first time in a decade, I will not be attending my beloved NYE yoga class.
I am not sure that I have shingles because there is no rash as of yet. I felt nauseous yesterday and had a tight stomach ache which changed into severe pain down my left side body that I have never experienced before. I took advil because I couldn’t take the pain anymore.
Anyway, thanks for this very helpful article. I know what to do naturally as well as using western medicine if a rash appears in the next day or so.
Unlike many of you, I am typical of the demographic of shingles patients-61 years old. I guess I should have gotten the vaccine.
Just want to post a perspective from a 77 year old man. I had Shingles beginning in June of this year and now after nearly 7 months the pain is manageable. I developed post herpetic neuralgia following Shingles. I understand this is not unusual for someone my age. I can tell you that I would not wish this on my worst enemy. It is indeed terrible. After 7 months of unrelenting pain during my waking hours and sometimes when trying to sleep, which was difficult for the first 90 days or so. I slept sitting up sometimes just to be able to sleep at all. I have taken CBD, Advil, Tylenol, Tramadol, Diclofenac, Lydocaine, and also acupuncture. It depends on what I am or am going to do that predicates what mixture I take. My Dr. says I have a few months to go before the nerve ends heal enough to stop the pain. I eventually learned how to deal with the pain and discomfort. Just waiting to the day when it goes away. Oh, bth he says that in some cases the pain never goes away completely. Wonderful to hear !!
Thank you for all the suggestions.I have atypical facial pain in my chin and in the only remaining tooth on the lower right side of my face(all the others were pulled because they thought the tooth was the problem)I have been dealing with this for over 4 years.It is a cousin to trigeminal neuralgia-or a cousin to something seeing they don’t know what it is.trying topical stuff now along with all the medical drugs that numb me down.Took so much turmeric at the start of it all that I messed up my thyroid-but maybe topical will be a good way to do it.if anyone has any suggestions I am willing to try.Acupuncture has left me bruised so badly-that taking an exacto knife to my chin to find the problem could not hurt worse(plus free stay in a bin for the winter!)Good luck people
I am dealing with Shingles as well, and I am now in Week 2 and I am looking for relief. My shingle is on my left breast and goes in a line around my back to my spine and I did catch it in time and the doctor was able to prescribe the anti-viral medicine. There is a lot of irritation with my shirts that I cannot stand anything touching it. What I just discovered is Lidocaine patches, and what a relief that is for at least the irritation of the rash. It does not seem to help the inner pain, but helps with the itching some. Just wanted to add this to the list of things to try. My doctor tells me that since I am over the age of 50, that as soon as this clears up that I should get the Shingles vaccine. Not age 60 anymore, but 50.. I will be adding lemon balm and some of the other products that was mentioned here, so very thankful for the article and all of the responses.
Hi, I stumbled upon your post while browsing for diet and care during Shingles. I am currently suffering from it and taking medication since the past 6 days and it doesn’t feel good. The pain, the burning sensation and loss of appetite has made it very uncomfortable. I loved your tips on food and probiotics. I generally like eating fruits and yogurt but I guess the medicines are playing with my appetite. I will definitely try the kombucha and lemon balm tea for relief. Might buy some organic broth as well.
My only tip to bear with the burning sensation was to apply calamine lotion on the affected area(stomach and waist is where the outbreak is).
Thank you very much for your post and insights ????