Shingles generally lasts about three to five weeks.
People with PHN may continue to feel unwell for months to years after the rash has cleared up.
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What Are the Stages of Shingles?
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Shingles goes through three key phases or stages.
However, the duration of each stage can vary from person to person.
Pre-Eruptive Phase
The pre-eruptive phase starts at least 48 hours before there are any blisters orrash.
It begins with pain or burning sensations in the affected skin area.
Shingles rashes typically appear as a single strip around the left or right side of the body.
Although rare, people with weakened immune systems can develop more widespread rashes that look like chickenpox.
Once the blisters crust over, the rash usually disappears in two to four weeks.
It’s characterized by pain that can last months to years.Not everyone who has shingles will have PHN.
What Can Trigger Shingles to Flare Up?
Shingles is sparked by the reemergence of the chicken pox virus.
Older adults and people with weakened immune systems are at greater risk of developing shingles.
What Are the Worst Days of Shingles?
People who experience postherpetic neuralgia can have lasting, severe pain and other nerve-related issues.
The effects of PHN can be incredibly frustrating to deal with.
Other Symptoms
The virus responsible for causing shingles affects the body’s nerve fibers.
This means that, in addition to pain, a person with shingles may also experience itching and tingling.
Shingles responds well to antiviral treatment, and the pain is typically handled by over-the-counter medications.
What Are the Complications of Shingles?
Postherpetic neuralgiarefers to pain that lasts beyond three months after the initial shingles rash.
PHN can last anywhere from a few weeks to years.
People with weakenedimmune systemsare more likely to have shingles complications than other individuals.
Risk factors for developing PHN include increased age, larger rash size, and increased levels of rash pain.
Other shingles complications include:
How Long Do You Feel Unwell With Shingles?
People who develop PHN may feel unwell for quite a while after the initial shingles outbreak.
PHN symptoms can be so severe that they interfere with your sleep and daily life.
There is no way to predict how long PHN will last.
Some people have PHN for a few months; others have it for a few years.
Some people experience PHN symptoms for the rest of their lives.
How Is Shingles Treated?
There is no cure for shingles, but there is treatment available to help manage the condition.
Will Shingles Go Away on Its Own?
If shingles is not treated, it may go away on its own.
However, there is an increased risk of developing a long-term painful condition called postherpetic neuralgia.
PHN can last for weeks or years.
Do not wait for shingles to go away on its own.
There are widely available treatments to reduce symptoms and the duration of the illness.
At-Home Treatments
Home treatments for shinglesinclude calamine lotion, cool compresses, and colloidal oatmeal baths.
These therapies may help alleviate itching and discomfort from the shingles rash.
Self-care is an important step in managing the symptoms, too.
It includes:
Is Shingles Contagious?
Shingles can only occur if someone has hadchicken pox.
Shingles is not contagious.
It happens when the immune system is weakened and the virus resurfaces, causing the shingles rash.
They would not get shingles from contact with a shingles blister.
Preventing Shingles
The best way to prevent shingles is to get theshingles vaccine, Shingrix.
This vaccine is over 90% effective at preventing shingles.
Adults over 50 years of age are encouraged to get the vaccine, which comes in two separate doses.
A healthcare provider will be able to diagnose the rash based on a physical exam and your medical history.
If they are not sure if the rash is shingles, they can have it tested.
It produces a painful rash on one side of the body, usually around the side of the abdomen.
Shingles can last for weeks to months.
However, for many people, shingles usually runs its course in three to five weeks.
There is no immediate cure for shingles.
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