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Shingles and Postherpetic Neuralgia and Pain

Posted by tikigod18 @tikigod18, Jan 13, 2019

Has anyone suffered from LONG lasting neuropathic pain as a result of Shingles, and what treatment do you use for the pain? My daughter had shingles at 21, a spinal cord stimulator inserted and removed, many trigger point injections, all of which may have contributed to the thoracic pain she has. She is now 34, and teaches yoga, but is still on a compound prescribed by a pain management Dr. in NYC what is basically Oxy. I am paying for this, since neither she nor her husband can afford it at around $500 a month. She could not find a physician in Fl. I know who would prescribe this medication after 10 years, thus the use of an out of state physician. I do not want to see her suffer, nor can I discuss much with her since we barely speak, but this expense, coupled with paying for asthma inhalers that are expensive is becoming more and more of a strain. Any thoughts for alternatives are appreciated.

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ggb21 | @ggb21 | Aug 11, 2021
In reply to @marko82 "A TENS Unit is wonderful. It consists of a small (size of a deck of cards)..." + (show)
@marko82

A TENS Unit is wonderful. It consists of a small (size of a deck of cards) 9V battery operated unit w 4 sticky electrodes that you place over sore spots for from 20 min up to 12 hours on and 12 hours off. The strong tingling (NEVER PAIN) reduces inflammation which causes pain and speeds healing. I got mine in 2010 for wrist problems and when they were OK started putting it on my lower back. Sacrum and sore muscles at the sides. NEVER directly on the spine or across the skull! It comes with a book. I got mine for under $20 at http://www.tenspros.com – the #3000. You don't need anything more elaborate that than. I'd order extra electrodes to save on later S&H. I sent one to each of my brothers who have bad backs. One bro had shoulder surgery. The PT used one on him. He said he had one at home & was told to USE it.

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Marko, thanks for the info. Now that you’ve explained, I am familiar w Tens, my memory just needed a bit of prodding. Just What’s needed is good to know when buying, often one thinks more is better. Sorry about your tinnitus, have u contacted the HLAA (Hearing Loss Assoc of Amer) they might have updated info or direct you to a support group.

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grandma7 | @grandma7 | Sep 30, 2021
In reply to @jerid "Does anyone here experience Shingles chronic PHN. I just don't know how to handle it anymore...." + (show)
@jerid

Does anyone here experience Shingles chronic PHN. I just don't know how to handle it anymore. If anyone has a positive answer to rid ones body of this pain, please tell me.

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I have PHN around and in my eye. I take 600Mg three times a day of gabapentin. Has anyone researched the surgery from the Washington Neurological Institute in Virginia?

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1 reply
grandma7 | @grandma7 | Sep 30, 2021
In reply to @grandma7 "I have PHN around and in my eye. I take 600Mg three times a day of..." + (show)
@grandma7

I have PHN around and in my eye. I take 600Mg three times a day of gabapentin. Has anyone researched the surgery from the Washington Neurological Institute in Virginia?

Jump to this post

I need to correct my dosage of gabapentin. I take 1200 mg three times a day. It is a lot but the only thing that helps at all.,

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mcray2 | @mcray2 | Jan 16 10:58am

My husband has had Post-Herpetic Neuralgia pain near 8-9-10 levels almost continuously every day, since he had Shingles (Zostavax did nothing!…now have Shingrix).

Has had several epidural steroidal treatments that only slightly moderated pain.

Then had intercostal nerve blocks; they actually seemed to make pain worse, from my vantage point.

Now they’re talking about a spinal cord stimulator implant, but read some scary stats on that elsewhere om Mayo Connect.

My husband is in end-stage renal, so cannot tolerate most meds that people with working kidneys can. Doctors gave him very-low-dosage Baclofen in summer of 2019, which — after only 1.2 days’ use — sent him to hospital for a week in Altered Mental State (AMS).

Another set of doctors gave him low-dosage Gabapentin about a year later. I saw sane things happening after 1 pill as with Baclofen, so stopped him; no hospitalization.

He’s gotten interested in whether he could use these same drugs by injecting them into his dialysate, rather than taking them orally. Anyone with experience with that?

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fluffy10 | @fluffy10 | 13 hours ago

Thanks for all the comments. I have had the PHN pain now for 10 months. Am now taking gabapentin. Was able to get off the amitriptalyn. Went off my plant based diet and the pain got worse, so back on the diet. I get some temporary relief from CBD. I really appreciate all the comments on this site. I will keep searching because i have things to do and this pain is slowing me down.

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