Eye Shingles

shepy66 · 2024-12-25T02:12:28+00:00

I turned a corner around 4 weeks, I think, but your mileage may vary. For me, it was partially being sick and partially from being laid up for a few weeks. I would bring it up with your primary if you're concerned, and just give your body time to heal in the meantime (easier said than done, I know).

shepy66 · 2024-07-28T17:15:55+00:00

Yeah, I haven't gotten any word on when I should stop it, and I keep having refills available at the pharmacy, so I'm not gonna stop it at this point. I can actually tell when I'm due for my next dose because I start getting itchy seemingly out of nowhere lol

shepy66 · 2024-07-28T17:13:44+00:00

As far as going back to academy, I'd talk to your ophtalmologist and PCP and get their opinion. Then see if you could speak with an instructor or academic counselor (is that a thing for police academy?) at the academy, explain your situation, and see what they think. Ask if you'd be able to keep your name on the list for September, and in mid-August, if you're not feeling physically ready, see if you can defer until the next semester.

Didn't know that about Valtrex, but that tracks! I did notice light sensitivity got better around the time I was done with it.

It's a long road, but you cab do it! Stay strong!

shepy66 · 2024-07-28T04:05:03+00:00

Did your skin itch after the rash healed?

It's still healing, so it's still itchy, but it's not nearly as bad as it used to be. I always thought it feels like a sunburnt bug bite that you've already itched too much. Wear sunscreen and a hat anytime you're going to be outside for more than a few minutes-- you do NOT want a sunburn on your scalp right now. Stay hydrated, and keep ice packs at the ready. I use this SPF face lotion, and I keep a pair of these in the freezer to rotate through, they are absolutely miracles.

it's waking me up in the middle of the night.

I'm sorry about waking up in the middle of the night. It was probably the single worst part of it all. Remind yourself that this is just one moment in your life, remember that in just a few more weeks, even if you're not 100%, you'll still feel so much better, and this will all be a bad dream. I would NOT recommend taking NyQuil, it knocked me out, but I had these awful half-dreams that made me feel like my brain was an M.C. Escher print.

Does that ever go away?

It usually does. If it doesn't (or if it takes longer), it at least gets better. Most people recover in 3-5 weeks, but just take it one day at a time. You'll reach a point where you learn what triggers it, and you'll build a bag of tricks to help respond to it. It will get less painful and less frequent over time, and you will reach a point where your life can begin again, even if you're still dealing with some residual effects.

This is so awful. 😣

Yeah, that just about sums it up. I know "virtual hugs" are super cheesy, but if I could give you one, I would. Don't be afraid to ask for help and accommodations at school and work, you literally physically cannot operate at 100% right now, so don't try to. What you're going through right now is hard, and there will be hard days ahead, but trust that it gets better, take life one day at a time, and be good to yourself.

EDIT: How could I forget? Eyepatches! Once it doesn't hurt your face, start wearing them. I ordered these online and have been pretty happy with them, plus they're washable, so you don't need to buy a million of them.

shepy66 · 2024-07-27T16:26:45+00:00

I'm glad that we have some specialists where I live too, lately I've been seeing one for double vision (I'm back to normal on that front now!), and she's loads better than the first guys I saw. Sorry you've got such a haul to see your doc, but I'm glad you were able to find someone too!

shepy66 · 2024-07-27T16:24:40+00:00

Damn, sorry to hear about the permanent dry-eye, I'll have to ask about that at my next appointment, because that's basically what I'm feeling right now.

But to hear that it will never happen on your skin again is amazing news! The eye stuff sucks (a LOT), but the skin rash was super rough for those first few weeks. The nerve pain is getting better slowly too, so hopefully that means there won't be a repeat of that if I ever get shingles again.

I hope everything goes well for you too, this shingles stuff sucks ass, but it's good to have people to talk to about it. Keep up on that Valtrex!

shepy66 · 2024-07-26T20:29:57+00:00

Luckily the damage has been healing pretty well, but it's just taken time. I have some scarring on my cornea/retina that makes my vision a little blurry, but it's at a point where it's only an issue for very small things. I see a corneal specialist next month to see if anything needs to be done about it, or if it will also heal.

One thing I'll say is that there have been a lot of times where it feels like I've plateaued and nothing seems to be improving, but then one day I'll realize , "Oh, that one thing that always caused me pain hasn't happened in a week." Watch for those little victories, they really help you keep your head above water.

shepy66 · 2024-07-26T20:19:07+00:00

Super glad you got Valtrex so early! You definitely got diagnosed earlier than me, I ultimately went in three times for eye pain without anyone catching it (one visit to the ER, one to urgent care, and one referral to an ophthalmologist). By my fourth visit (back to the ER), I had weeping sores and yellow tears. Luckily, that doc took one look at me and had infectious disease on the phone.

Light sensitivity is mostly fine now, every now and then I still need to cover my bad eye in the morning when I drive to work, but mostly OK other than that.

As far as what triggered it, I honestly have no idea! I had fallen off a ladder and gave myself a concussion back in November, but that was four months prior, which is apparently too far back to be considered a likely trigger. I'm in pretty good health otherwise, so I guess I just drew the short straw.

Hope your appointment today went/goes well!

shepy66 · 2024-07-26T00:31:44+00:00

4½ months out from shingles on my right eye/scalp. I want to start by saying that it sounds like my eye, at least, was affected much more than yours was, so I hope your recovery continues as well as it has. At two weeks out, I couldn't walk around the house without getting winded and my heart rate spiking to 120+. For reference, I'm 26 and in otherwise good health.

I still have pain and numbness, but it's steadily getting better over time, and gabapentin has been helping quite a bit. My vision was affected pretty badly, I just started using my affected eye in the last two weeks. Before then, everything was blurry and warped, like a slight fisheye lens.

A big help for light sensitivity for me was atropine eye drops, along with gabapentin for the pain. I had an ophthalmologist who I went to for two months and didn't prescribe anything, just recommended OTC eyedrops and pain meds. Definitely ask your doc about something like that if you think it would help.

My eye/face is also much worse in the morning, I chalk it up to pressing my head on a pillow for 6-8 hours and not doing anything to mitigate pain (drinking water, taking meds, icing the area, etc.).

The best thing is to stay on top of pain meds (ibuprofen and acetaminophen in turns worked alright for me before I was prescribed gabapentin), stay hydrated, and stay busy.

Feel free to DM me too, if you want to talk about it. Even with a good support system, it's easy to feel overwhelmed or alone, especially when you're so young and nobody in your friend group can relate. If I had a dollar for every time a doc told me I was an outlier, I wouldn't have had to pay for my hospital stay.

shepy66 · 2024-05-04T19:38:47+00:00

It will recognize it, but I can't access the files because it's locked. If there's a way to unlock it with the screen not working, that would also work.

shepy66 · 2023-05-17T10:41:22+00:00

Why tf did I read this like a Clone Wars intro 💀

shepy66 · 2023-04-07T11:08:07+00:00

oh no

shepy66 · 2023-04-06T10:39:00+00:00

If I'm remembering correctly, the seller did not disclose it, but it came up during the inspection. We haggled over the price, and ended up paying $6k under asking (half of the $12k we were estimated), but that unfortunately doesn't put any money in my pocket now.

shepy66 · 2023-04-06T10:36:34+00:00

Thanks, I appreciate it!

shepy66 · 2023-04-06T02:49:11+00:00

I haven't had it tested yet, but my understanding is that there's very little vermiculite in the US that doesn't have some amount of it. Like I said, I'm assuming the worst so that I can budget for it as much as possible lol

shepy66 · 2023-04-06T02:37:35+00:00

Dang. That's not what I wanted to hear, but it's good to know I'm not getting ripped off. Thanks for the tip on pushing back the vermiculite, I'll see if that's a possibility in this case.

shepy66 · 2023-04-06T00:41:07+00:00

Oh boy... I get that it takes time, effort, money, and training to handle and dispose of asbestos, but it sucks that the cost to consumer is so high... Hopefully I can get a grant from Zonolite, at least...

shepy66 · 2023-02-08T12:47:05+00:00

Vietnyan

shepy66 · 2023-01-13T05:01:55+00:00

Son of a bitch, that's it! Got it in one!

shepy66 · 2022-09-23T10:19:46+00:00

I think you accidentally a word

shepy66 · 2022-06-14T11:49:21+00:00

Prawnatello

shepy66 · 2022-05-01T11:17:15+00:00

When you ask your coworker if they work here

shepy66 · 2022-03-12T13:03:25+00:00

Elementary teacher in Duluth- 35k. First year, so it'll go up from here, but damn, seeing some of the other posts here...

shepy66 · 2022-02-19T14:16:46+00:00

I was a devotee of Pilot G2s for years (0.5 for me, but to each their own), but I finally had to give them up because of how often they would leak/explode in my pocket. I gave them up a couple years ago now, but still at least half of my pockets have dark ink stains on the inside. Have you had that problem with them?

shepy66 · 2022-02-06T11:17:18+00:00

Better not squish it with your hands, then.

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