My wife has suggested that I get the shingles vaccine. I have heard the horror stories about how devastatingly painful shingles can be. I was born premature, back when 4 pounds 13 ounces was "I'm-sorry-your-son-might-not-live" small. Because of this AND I was her favorite my Mom was incredibly, overly protective of me. I have not had any of the normal child illness. Yes I know some people think it's illogical/stupid to ask the internet for medical advice. I am nor doing that here. I am asking for advice from very valuable friends and family
.
My questions are: Since I didn't have Chicken Pox should I get the vaccine or will it not help?

Is the vaccine contraindicated fo people with an aspirin allergy?

What questions should I ask my doctor prior to getting the vaccine?

Do you have any helpful suggestions about the vaccine?

If anyone wishes to discuss this privately, please email at Rotndad~AT~Gmail.com

Thanks for your help.

My wife and I just finished our second Shingrix vaccination. The effectiveness is very high compared to the shot we got 15 years ago. I don't want to get this crap. Both of us are healthy with no health issues. We're both over 70.

Yes, you should get the vaccine. Shingrix, the newer shingles vaccines, is much more effective than the older version, Zostavax. It is a 2 dose series. No issues with allergies to aspirin. Main side effect is arm soreness.

The questions you asked here should be asked of your doctor or pharmacist. Good luck, it's a hard call. My wife suffered with shingles for a year. I highly recommend anything that can help you avoid it.

BTW, your mother sounds like a great person!

I got a mild case of shingles in 2010 when I was on a job under a ton of stress. I was 37 at that time. It is my understanding you can only get shingles AFTER you've had chicken pox. I had chicken pox in 1986. I got my first dose of Shingrix last week (my arm was sore for 3 days). Since I am under 50, and it's not covered by insurance for those under 50, it cost me about $200 out of pocket. I had a very mild case of shingles, and I still don't want to get that shit again...it sucked.

As others have said, ask your physician at your annual physical (I did, and we decided I should get Shingrix).

Apart from the suggestion above that you confer with your doctor for the answers, my advice is to get the vaccine.

I've never known anyone that had Shingles wanting to have that happen again.

Discuss it with your primary care doc.

My opinion (and my wife’s) as pharmacists is to get the vaccine. Easy insurance against a really bad event.

We got the original shot years ago. About a year ago we got the new two shot vaccine. Neither of us had any problems. Oddly we agreed that second shot was more noticeable. As in noticing it for one more day.

Speak with your doctor or a pharmacist. My wife had shingles when she was pregnant. Believe me she wanted the shot.

If you didn’t get the chicken pox, I don’t think it’s possible to get the Shingles.

If you've never had chickenpox then you can't get shingles.

I just went through shingles about six weeks ago. Mine was on the back of my neck. Yeah it sucked. But again, you won't get it if you haven't had chickenpox so getting a shingles vaccine would seem not to make much sense.

Did you ever have a chickenpox vaccine? If so then in that case you could still get shingles is my understanding. If so, then yes, you should get the shingles vaccine. Trust me, you don't want to go through that shit.

I just read the Shingrix fact site at the CDC.

It's still for people 50+, but no maximum age

People who should NOT ge the vaccine:

quote:

have ever had a severe allergic reaction to any component of the vaccine or after a dose of Shingrix

tested negative for immunity to varicella zoster virus. If you test negative, you should get chickenpox vaccine.

currently have shingles

currently are pregnant or breastfeeding. Women who are pregnant or breastfeeding should wait to get Shingrix.

...if you have a moderate or severe acute illness, you should usually wait until you recover before getting the vaccine. This includes anyone with a temperature of 101.3°F or higher.

I didn't realize they had an immunity test for the virus. Based on that, I'd definitely talk to your doc about getting tested .

I got the shot 4 years ago when my wife came down with it.
She still gets an occasional nerve burn.
I'll be getting the updated shots next month.

I had a mild case of shingles and it sucked.

Get tested and get either the Chickenpox or shingles vaccine.

I just had the 1st shot on Monday night.
Shoulder is still very sore, like someone punched me there hard.

Yesterday, I had sporadic dizzy spells that lasted for about 5-10 seconds for a few hours.

I still have headaches. I hope that this is worth it in the end.

I've had the Shingrix vaccine and al also allergic to aspirin. No issues. I did have flu-like symptoms for a day (achey, lethargic)) and a sore arm.

I had the series of two vaccinations last year. The only side affects I and my wife experienced were extremely sore arms for about a week after.
Talking to people I know that had shingles, this is a miniscule price compared to getting the disease.

quote:

Originally posted by Warhorse:
I had the series of two vaccinations last year. The only side affects I and my wife experienced were extremely sore arms for about a week after.
Talking to people I know that had shingles, this is a miniscule price compared to getting the disease.

GOOD TO KNOW!

I had shingles in my EYE a few years back. Cosequently I lost 50% of my vision in that eye.

GET THE SHOTS

Bob

quote:

Originally posted by rbert0005:

GET THE SHOTS

Bob

He never had chickenpox. He does not need the shingles vaccine because he can't get shingles.

quote:

He never had chickenpox. He does not need the shingles vaccine because he can't get shingles

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
My understanding is that some folks have a poor memory of whether they have had chickenpox.

Shingrix recommended for everyone age 50 and older, whether or not you remember having had chickenpox, because most people have been exposed to the virus.

In short, ask your physician beforehand.

BTW Alan you can get shingles more than once.