Oromocto Woman Surprised by Shingles
Kendra Grealey, 23, of Oromocto, was concerned when she had itchy, red marks on her torso. She thought it was just dry skin from the cold weather, but worried it was more severe. She asked her friend, a nurse, what was wrong.
“I was like ‘You need to come look at this, I think it might be shingles,’” said Grealey. “And then she said, ‘Yup, you’ve got shingles.’”
Shingles is a virus that affects the nerves, typically around the middle of the body. It can sometimes appear on the legs and shoulders and results in a red, often painful rash. Anyone who had chicken pox as a child can get shingles because they are caused by the same virus. It stays dormant in the body and can be reactivated by stress or other illness.
Shingles is more common in people over 50, but it can affect people Grealey’s age.
“The chance of getting shingles is about 30% in your life,” said pharmacist Paul Bowmen. “You can still get it in your twenties, but the risk is fairly low.”
Grealey went to the Oromocto Public Hospital with her mother to get treatment. After she waited three hours, the doctor said nothing could be done to help her.
“He basically said it was shingles, but that he couldn’t help me at all and that I just had to deal with it,” said Grealey. “It was just an overall disappointing experience.”
Grealey planned to wait out the virus, but it was too painful. She went to a family doctor and got a prescription right away.
“That helped a lot and now I’m almost 100% cured of shingles.”
Bowmen says it is important to start medication early to clear up the infection. Grealey had the rash for a few days at the time of the hospital visit, but the medication she received from the family doctor still made a difference.
“The quicker we get treatment the less likely the pain associated with shingles lasts a long time,” said Bowmen.
Despite the pain, Grealey has a positive attitude when it comes to dealing with shingles as a young adult.
“It’s not that bad living the shingle life. It does get better.”
