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Shingles Question
This is a follow-up to another post but it would not allow me to post it in the expert forum.
I have ended my relationship and I am trying very hard to manage my OCD and anxiety until I can get the blood test at the 3 month mark.
I have a followup question able my case of shingles. The rash began to appear on October 29, 3013 and the last time I had intercourse was around September 7th with that partner. On September 23, 2013 I engaged in mutual masturbation and his penis may have slightly touched me. I went to the gyno on October 29th with bumps on the right side of my vulva. She said it look like an irritation and gave me cream. The rash then spread all the way up my right butt cheek. It looked like hives or pretty much like any picture of shingles you would google.The rash never crossed the mid-line. The following night I was in so much pain and barely able to walk so I went to the ER. They thought it was shingles but were surprised because of my age. They said to follow-up with a dermatologist which I did the next day. She said it looked like classic shingles and did not culture it. After healing it left markings for almost a month. Could that have been herpes? Was that too long for a case of herpes to appear? Could the incident on the 23rd relate? I have had no recurrences. Thank you again for your help.
I have ended my relationship and I am trying very hard to manage my OCD and anxiety until I can get the blood test at the 3 month mark.
I have a followup question able my case of shingles. The rash began to appear on October 29, 3013 and the last time I had intercourse was around September 7th with that partner. On September 23, 2013 I engaged in mutual masturbation and his penis may have slightly touched me. I went to the gyno on October 29th with bumps on the right side of my vulva. She said it look like an irritation and gave me cream. The rash then spread all the way up my right butt cheek. It looked like hives or pretty much like any picture of shingles you would google.The rash never crossed the mid-line. The following night I was in so much pain and barely able to walk so I went to the ER. They thought it was shingles but were surprised because of my age. They said to follow-up with a dermatologist which I did the next day. She said it looked like classic shingles and did not culture it. After healing it left markings for almost a month. Could that have been herpes? Was that too long for a case of herpes to appear? Could the incident on the 23rd relate? I have had no recurrences. Thank you again for your help.
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
There is no reason for you to worry further that your prior episode of shingles was in fact herpes. It is time for you to put these concens away and move forward.Simialrly, there is no need for further testing.
There is no medical significance to the numerical value of your test result. It is clearly negative. EWH
There is no medical significance to the numerical value of your test result. It is clearly negative. EWH
Hi Drs,
I took the the HerpeSelect IGG ~7 to 8 weeks post-exposure. The results were negative! 0.04 for both types. Do you think in the absence of symptoms and at this time period I can let all of this go or do I need to wait longer to confirm? Is there any significance of the numbers being so low? I would like to thank you and Dr. Handsfield for suggesting I can the test. I don't think any amount of CBT would have gotten me over this. I needed the truth. My internist has always been willing yet reluctant to give me the test but all of my other providers were against it.
Thanks again
I took the the HerpeSelect IGG ~7 to 8 weeks post-exposure. The results were negative! 0.04 for both types. Do you think in the absence of symptoms and at this time period I can let all of this go or do I need to wait longer to confirm? Is there any significance of the numbers being so low? I would like to thank you and Dr. Handsfield for suggesting I can the test. I don't think any amount of CBT would have gotten me over this. I needed the truth. My internist has always been willing yet reluctant to give me the test but all of my other providers were against it.
Thanks again
I know this is out of control. I am working hard on getting better.
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Your worries and concerns are taking over your life. Rare does not mean that it does not happen and I have had plenty of young, otherwise normal patients who have had shingles.
Your other questions are a bit fanciful:
I am not aware that shingles and genital HSV ever occur simultaneously.
You are correcct that some people can have prodromal or mild symptoms without outbreaks, these same people however also usually have visible outbreaks from time to time. Most persons who have have genital HSV and are looking for outbreaks detect them when they occur.
My sense is that your paranoia about genital herpes is becoming consuming. You need to work through this with your own doctor and/or a counselor-mental health professional, not sit at home letting the internet feed your OCD driven paranoia. It appears that you are having trouble doing this on your own and this Forum is not the appropriate place to deal with such issues either. EWH
Your other questions are a bit fanciful:
I am not aware that shingles and genital HSV ever occur simultaneously.
You are correcct that some people can have prodromal or mild symptoms without outbreaks, these same people however also usually have visible outbreaks from time to time. Most persons who have have genital HSV and are looking for outbreaks detect them when they occur.
My sense is that your paranoia about genital herpes is becoming consuming. You need to work through this with your own doctor and/or a counselor-mental health professional, not sit at home letting the internet feed your OCD driven paranoia. It appears that you are having trouble doing this on your own and this Forum is not the appropriate place to deal with such issues either. EWH
As opposes to being completely asymptomatic carriers
And what percentage of extremely anxious women would detect lesions?
Also, I called UW about western blots and they said some people get prodrome or internal inching with no lesions? Is this true? On my way to therapy
Could I have had shingles and herpes at the same time?
Terri Warren posted this on her forum:
"Oh my. Shingles rarely recurs in the healthy adult. I am virtually certain this was your genital herpes. And it seems that your dermatologist agreed. So I don't know if your boyfriend didn't get your herpes, already has herpes or what. Has he actually been tested? If not, he should be. And if he is uninfected, I would recommend daily therapy for you and at least for a while, condoms if he is concerned about transmission."
http://www.medhelp.org/posts/Herpes/Herpes-on-buttocks/show/1823566
THE INTERNET IS RUINING MY LIFE
"Oh my. Shingles rarely recurs in the healthy adult. I am virtually certain this was your genital herpes. And it seems that your dermatologist agreed. So I don't know if your boyfriend didn't get your herpes, already has herpes or what. Has he actually been tested? If not, he should be. And if he is uninfected, I would recommend daily therapy for you and at least for a while, condoms if he is concerned about transmission."
http://www.medhelp.org/posts/Herpes/Herpes-on-buttocks/show/1823566
THE INTERNET IS RUINING MY LIFE
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
I agree with your thoughts and reflections. Take care and good luck. EWH
Thank you for your prompt response. I aware this is more of a psychological/psychiatric issue than a true health/life concern yet it is very distressing. I guess you could say shingles was my obsession de jour. I am in CBT and other treatment and plan to stay celibate and hold on off on the test until I can make a rational decision. I guess I am trying to convince myself with 100% certainty that I don't have herpes before I get a blood test (which I know I can't do). I am also concerned of what will happen if I get an equivocal result (or multiple for that matter) and open up a whole new can of worms. Uncertainty and OCD don't mix well. I wish my mind had grabbed onto a disease with a more reliable test. I hope everyone out there suffering from these same anxieties are able to overcome them as well. Take care.
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Welcome back to the Forum. I'll be answering your question today and have reviewed your earlier interaction with Dr. Handsfield in preparation for this reply. As occurred with Dr. Handsfield, I have two main thoughts.
To address your specific question, on occasion genital herpes can be mistaken for shingles which is caused by the same virus that causes chicken pox. Your description however is very helpful and what you experienced really does not sound like HSV. Further, had this been HSV, i would have expected it to have occurred sooner since your last contact. Typically HSV lesions occur within two weeks of exposure to an infected partner. Finally, just to address one other thing you said, no one is too young to get shingles- while the infection is more common in older persons it is not all that uncommon in young persons either.
My second thought is, as Dr. Handsfield has already said, it sounds as though you are far, far too worried about genital herpes. To that end, I think it might be helpful to get the blood test and find out- either you will have it or you won't. Before you test however, think about what you will do if your test is positive (a negative test is easy). While HSV should not be a big deal, it sounds as though if your test were positive, you would be strongly impacted.
I hope this comment is helpful. EWH
To address your specific question, on occasion genital herpes can be mistaken for shingles which is caused by the same virus that causes chicken pox. Your description however is very helpful and what you experienced really does not sound like HSV. Further, had this been HSV, i would have expected it to have occurred sooner since your last contact. Typically HSV lesions occur within two weeks of exposure to an infected partner. Finally, just to address one other thing you said, no one is too young to get shingles- while the infection is more common in older persons it is not all that uncommon in young persons either.
My second thought is, as Dr. Handsfield has already said, it sounds as though you are far, far too worried about genital herpes. To that end, I think it might be helpful to get the blood test and find out- either you will have it or you won't. Before you test however, think about what you will do if your test is positive (a negative test is easy). While HSV should not be a big deal, it sounds as though if your test were positive, you would be strongly impacted.
I hope this comment is helpful. EWH
It was only on the hair bearing region and a little on my thigh. I believe she said the s2 nerve.
You are reading content posted in the STDs Forum
Herpes spreads by oral, vaginal and anal sex.
Herpes sores blister, then burst, scab and heal.
STIs are the most common cause of genital sores.
Millions of people are diagnosed with STDs in the U.S. each year.
STDs can't be transmitted by casual contact, like hugging or touching.
Syphilis is an STD that is transmitted by oral, genital and anal sex.
