I was at my doctor for a checkup a week ago and he suggested getting the Shingrix vaccine. I went ahead and got the 1st dose that day and scheduled for the 2nd one for December. My left arm was a little sore for 3 or 4 days and I felt more tired than normal that evening, but otherwise no adverse effects. I'm 62 and I'm pretty sure I did have chickenpox as a child.

I had Chicken Pox when I was a kid, but so far at least, I've never been vaccinated and I'm not aware of having Shingles...so my comments are not based on personal experience.

We have a local high profile talk show host that talked on-air about her experience getting her first Shingles vaccine shot a couple months ago. At the time she was probably @ 49 or 50 years old. Before getting the vaccine she specifically asked her doctor about side effects and he told her not to worry about any. I don't recall her specific symptoms, but she had reactions to the vaccine serious enough to keep her from going on-air the next day. It took @ 24 + hours for her to feel well enough to go back to work. She called up her doctor and let him know about her reactions and that she was disappointed in his not preparing her for possible reactions, but left it at that and continues to see him. I don't know if she has reconsidered since first talking about her experience, but at the time she was fairly adamant that she was not going to get the second shot. Admittedly, she is a bit of a hypochondriac and a drama queen though.

Just food for thought, but watching one of the video press conferences by a pair of California doctors opposed to the COVID-19 lock-down strategy, they both emphasized that because our immune systems depend on exposure to various viruses to exercise and strengthen them, they fully expected to see an epidemic of other contagious diseases in the coming months and years, as people come out and are re-exposed to contagious diseases that they might not have contracted prior to the C-19 pandemic. They didn't specifically mention Chicken Pox, but it wouldn't surprise me if this infectious disease reappears along with the many others.

I had Shingles when I was 31. painful and irritating for 6 weeks. I got it again at 46 and it lasted 16 weeks on my back and waist. Absolute hell. Got the Shingrix shots a year later and praying I dont have to deal with that again.

Thanks for this information. I'm going to mention to my Dr how painful the shot was. My sister pointed out it has been MANY years since I called in sick or left work early, but today, I just couldn't hang. I can't attribute it to anything else. So yeah. Put me down for similar side effects from the shot. Daaaaayum!
Anyway. Tomorrow I intend to go back to work and get right back to busn as usual, so let's just say it a has a one-day down time. (Fingers crossed)

I got the series earlier this year. First shot saw a mildly sore arM, but not so bad that I didn’t split wood the next day. Second one got more of a sore arm than the first. A little fever too.
My Dad had shingles bad. Any Shingrex reaction is 99x less than the actual shingles.
I’m 67 and think I had measles But it’s not worth taking a chance.

I knew a few people that had shingles bad and I kept saying I'd get the shot but never managed to get around to it. A little over a year ago a friend emailed me a pic asking what I thought his rash was. I told him he needed to be seen by a doctor immediately and I got my first shot the next day, just before the Shingrix shortage started. I had my second shot a few months later.Shingles is something I've heard I never want.

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Let me tell you guys also what sucks. Getting hand foot mouth as a adult. Been there and done that. Picked it up from my kids day care probably 6 years ago. Only showed up on my feet. My feet looked like a burn victims.

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Kids tolerate this stuff better. Ever had impetigo or scabies? Those suck just as bad. Maybe throw in some pinworms as well. I was sick all the time when my kids were in preschool. Thank God I never got lice. My daughter had long blonde hair and combing out those nits was awful.

I had the Shringrix vaccine about 3 weeks ago and like approximately 70% of recipients, I had a common reaction. It was like a mild case of the flu for three days for me - fever, chills, body aches, etc. Not great, but MUCH better than shingles, which I have had twice. Once on my scalp and neck, and a second time on my groin, buttocks, etc. (use your imagination).

I will have the second shot over the holidays, probably when some nasty weather is forecast so I can just crash and sleep through another potential reaction. Doc really emphasized returning for the second shot, and after experiencing a reaction, I understand why some folks don't return. But, those are also folks who probably haven't experienced shingles.

The Shingrix vaccine is ninety four percent effective, while the prior vaccine was approximately 70% effective. That is what makes it worth the experience.

As I said earlier we didn’t have a lot of problems with the shots.
I just asked my wife, the nurse. She reminded me that we had taken Tylenol beforehand.
That might help.

Took the first of the two shots yesterday. I am not an individual that I affected by pain like most, I have a very high pain threshold, I feel like I got hit with a baseball bat. I had the flu shot at the same time (different arm) nothing like the shingle side. Better than the alternative...........

The stuff is very viscous. What helped me was warm compress and massaging the area.

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Originally posted by sns3guppy:
Shingrix is a vaccine against not only shingles, but against chicken pox.

Shingrix is a vaccine against developed specifically for shingles. FDA approved it based on clinical trials against shingles, not chickenpox. Although the same virus (varicella zoster virus, or VZV) is the cause of both diseases (chickenpox and shingles), folks would be tempted to extrapolate that Shingrix can prevent chickenpox also. But, there is absolutely no good medical evidence that it does.

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Whether one believes one has had chicken pox or not, the Shingrix vaccine is well advised. Especially for those who are older.

If you're unsure if you ever had chickenpox, a simple VZV IgG antibody blood test from your PCP will tell. If you're positive for the antibody, get the Shingrix.

If you're negative, then you should get the chickenpox vaccine, not the Shingrix. The chickenpox vaccine has been around for decades with established positive track records. Go with what's known, not with assumption. Getting the chickenpox as a child might be just a nuisance, but getting chickenpox as an adult is usually very severe with lots of complications that can kill you.

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Originally posted by Balzé Halzé:

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Originally posted by ZSMICHAEL:
My understanding is that some folks have a poor memory of whether they have had chickenpox.

Very true.

Not just that, but chickenpox sometimes can be so mild that kids who had it didn't even know (or, really, their parents didn't). So, they think they never had it, until years later, they had a blood test that showed they are immune (+ VZVIgG).

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Originally posted by BigCity:
I got mildly sick with the first shot, but The second one made me sick for 3 days.

I felt like crap (couldn't do anything except sit on the couch) for a day after the first shot and was fine after the second. My wife only had a sore arm and no other symptoms.

I honestly can't remember having chicken pox as a kid but I came down with shingles about five years ago, so there is that. It was all over my shoulder and back and I was miserable for a good month. Never want to experience that again. The wife has had two mild bouts with shingles herself.

We will probably get this new shingles shots in a few months. I was told by our pharmacist that medicare does not cover the cost of the shots. It looks like both shots will run each of us around $300. Does that sound about right?

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We will probably get this new shingles shots in a few months. I was told by our pharmacist that medicare does not cover the cost of the shots. It looks like both shots will run each of us around $300. Does that sound about right?

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Medicare does cover most all of the cost. It is a little confusing because it may be Part B or Part D. Call your pharmacy they will know.

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Just checked it is covered if you have Part D coverage. Part D is about 80 bucks per month depending on the plan you select. It covers drugs and you should have it.

Another timely thread!

My wife got the Shingles vaccine yesterday. She's 62, and believes she never had chickenpox. Today, she says she feels "like the wind has gone out of her sails". I know others that have had significant reaction to the vaccine. I also know others don't have significant reactions. My doctor has advised me to get the vaccine as well (I'm 59, and I DID have chickenpox).

From what I have heard about shingles, this is a vaccine well worth getting. Out of an abundance of caution, I would suggest getting it when you have nothing of importance scheduled for the next 2-3 days after getting the vaccine, just in case you do have a reaction.

The wife and I have Medicare Parts A and B with supplemental coverage for that gap. Neither of us have Part D. We just have never needed it. So I guess the cost of those shots comes out of our pocket.

Adding Part D at this point probably doesn't make much sense over the long haul. Heck, I don't know.

Part D makes sense if you are on medications. I would look into the cost and see if it makes sense for you. Some of the patented meds are outrageous.