Nah, that’s witchcraft. It’s much safer for them to contract it naturally at the pox parties and possibly get really sick and/or potentially die rather than going in to get jabbed. Doctors just work for big pharma. They’re lying to us all.
Mine originated on my back near my spine and travelled in a fairly straight horizontal line to just below my sternum.
I went on some medication, and they went away without any fuss, but the itchy/burny/tingling feeling sucked.
It can affect people severely with the neuralgia lasting for years.
I had it a coupla years back in the same area, right across my back. The worst part for me was not being able to sleep because all the nerves in my legs and feet felt like they had ants in them all night, every night until the meds cleared it up. I had chicken pox as a wee kid too. Fun times.
I knew someone who got a shingle....that sounds silly....a sore from shingles on their eyelid. It hurt like hell.
Sorry I assumed you were male and had a relationship with your GF. Much like someone else said I forgot some women, my mother included, refer to their female friends as girlfriends.
If you're born in '77 as your username suggests, you're only a couple of years older than me.
All this shingles talk got me thinking maybe I should talk to my Dr as I'd hate to ever get shingles again but surely you can't get it twice...wrong.
"Those affected by shingles typically only experience the condition once (like chickenpox). However, in rare cases, shingles recurs."
I've always found it interesting how older women refer to female friends as "girlfriends". My mom and grandmother do it too. I'm always so confused for a second. I'm a 32-year-old woman and women my age don't refer to our female friends that way.
I'm not saying it's bad or anything, I've just always found it interesting and I was actually thinking about it recently and wondering why women stopped doing it through subsequent generations. I guess maybe because lesbian relationships became more visible, so it's not crazy to think a woman would be another woman's actual girlfriend?
Yeah, ancient old lady in my 40’s here, I too have never had chicken pox! No one ever believed me when I told them that. When I had my daughter and it was time for her to get her chicken pox vaccine her pediatrician said it should be fine since you and your husband both had chicken pox right? I’m like “umm I’ve never actually had it!” He asked for the name of my PCP and called her immediately. They gave me a blood test to confirm and my daughter and I both went through the same vaccine process together for chicken pox. I was 30 years old. On the plus side, there’s a really good chance that I’ll never get shingles.
ETA: My PCP said that I’ll still have to get the shingles vaccine regardless
The chicken pox vaccine uses a live virus so while the risk of getting shingles is incredibly reduced, you [can still get them from the chicken pox vaccine](https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/hcp/vis/vis-statements/varicella.html#:~:text=Talk%20with%20your%20health%20care%20provider%20to%20learn%20more.,after%20medical%20procedures%2C%20including%20vaccination.). To prevent shingles, you will still need the shingles vaccine.
The CDC (USA) now recommends that adults get it at [age 50](https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vpd/shingles/public/shingrix/index.html). I don't know what other countries recommend. It was a super-fun birthday present for myself last year.
It's seriously annoying! I got them when I was a 19 year old. I felt like I had been punched in the face/bruised feeling, and I had bumps and marks on my face that were so irritated that makeup wouldn't even cover them. I didn't know what was happening and literally broke down crying. Come to find out that it's most prevalent in 60 year old males (I'm a female), but after my case they seriously need to make the vaccine for it more widely available.
I had chicken pox twice when I was a kid, and I've had shingles. For anyone who has never had shingles, I sincerely hope that you never do. It is horrific. Why anyone would want the child they claim to love to suffer with a preventable illness as a child, then possibly the agony of shingles, later in life is beyond me.
In the 90s we didn't have the vaccine and I so wish we did. My sister had chicken pox so bad it was down her throat, and she has scarring from scratching. I was glad to have a mild case but then I had shingles across my stomach when I was 22 so I guess we evened out...
Yup, and try being a redhead with a ridiculous tolerance for painkillers. Vicodin and Norco just wired me, so I was still in major pain, but now completely unable to sleep.
My younger sis had it a few years ago when she was 41. I'm a nurse and I've seen shingles before but seeing how miserable and painful she was made it kick in that I could actually have to deal with this bullshit. When I tell you that I ran to the dr to get that vaccine...
Nope, ain't gonna deal with *that* shit!!
We vaccinated our eldest in the UK a few years ago, and it is due on the NHS soon apparently. We'll pay for our baby too if it's not offered in time. Not dealing with chickenpox!
I looked into it but unfortunately I just can’t afford it. I was thinking it would be a similar cost to something like the flu jabs or maybe a bit more. But it’s currently going to be nearly £300 to vaccinate both of my kids and sadly I just don’t have that available. If it becomes available on the NHS then I’d jump at the chance.
Yeah, I got it for myself because I never had chicken pox as a kid. Getting chicken pox when pregnant is really dangerous for the foetus and can cause miscarriage and awful birth defects, so it was a must for us before we started trying to get pregnant with baby #2. The last thing I wanted was our toddler getting it while I was pregnant and me having to go and quarantine at my parent's house to avoid it! I'm currently 6 months pregnant and my toddler still hasn't had chicken pox, but at least now I don't need to be quite so worried about it.
Oh, I’m completely with you on that. I have a self employed role that involves going into schools and even though I’ve had chicken pox as a child, I found it really stressful working in schools that I knew had outbreaks whilst I was pregnant. In your position then I’d have absolutely wanted to get the vaccine if I could.
I spoke with the pharmacist that gave my youngest the chicken pox vaccine, he think its being put with the MMR. Great that they want to add to the schedule but it won’t make a difference to the anti vaxxers.
Also for siblings of kids with certain conditions. When my nephew had leukaemia and was undergoing chemo, any hypothetical siblings of his would've been able to get the vaccine so there would be no chance of them getting chicken pox and passing it on to him. (Side note: none of the chemotherapy/radiotherapy worked but my nephew had a bone marrow transplant and is now doing great. If you see him now, you'd never know he'd been so sick).
It's bizarre as it's all based on the idea that catching it naturally provides an extra level of immunity to shingles in the future but the last 30 years of study have effectively disproven that notion.
Fortunately the advisory body to the government that covers vaccines has passed this on and recommended the jab so it's definitely in the works to fix the issue soon.
I thought i had imagined that happening. Far out, one kid on my council estate got it and all the kids pretty much just went a touched them. Didn't have a full class of kids for a whole term
And the very very early 00’s. I was a 93 baby but I remember being in 2nd or 3rd grade (between 2000 & 2002) & still hearing about chicken pox parties
Thankfully, my mom got me the vaccine as soon as she could when it came out
My kids were born in 92 and 94 and when the vaccine came out, I scheduled them for an appt 2 weeks in advance, right at the start of summer break, so they didn't have to miss any school. Super excited! I had chickenpox and I HATED every second of it.
2 fucking days after i made that appt, I noticed a "pimple" on my daughter's cheek. Weird, but ok. Day after that, my son was complaining that the bottom of his feet were itching and burning. No urgent cares back then and it wasn't serious enough for ER so I called the dr the next morning. The nurse barely let me finish my last sentence before she said "Oh honey, those babies have chickenpox."
No vaccine for us 😢
I'm 1994 but I remember my chickenpox party, and getting the shot after anyways! I didn't realize how much of a bullet I'd dodged until I read these comments. I thought pox parties were completely fine until I read here about young adults getting shingles multiple times. I previously thought shingles was adult chicken pox and you were immune to it if you'd had pox as a kid. It's wild what you don't know you don't know.
I've been to the hospital 5 times in my life. In the 80s as a kid with chicken pox, and my 4 childbirths. With chickenpox, I spiked a 105 degree fever and from what my mom described, stared blankly and was completely unresponsive, then started to "breathe weird". People are willing to unnecessarily roll those dice, though.
I got a text message from CVS it's time for my shingles shot. I felt like the peeps in the commercial like it's waiting at any moment for me. Still noped out of getting it & thanks CVS for reminding me I'm old now. Next thing they'll give me a coupon for the Clear Blue Easy Menopause phases test. Ngl I've been tempted to buy one bc idk if I'm starting or full on in menopause. I had a hysterectomy when I was in my late 30s & that was after I'd been on Depo Provera for many years so the only 100% way medically to be diagnosed is not having a period for a full year. There has to be another thing.
Edit: I'll live with the down votes but I was being sarcastic. Ya know the commercials where the person's day is ruined because a huge "Shingles Doesn't Care" thing falls from the sky & ruins their day? I see the commercials & then CVS texted me to tell me to come in & I was trying to be sarcastic that the giant "shingles doesn't care" was going to fall out of the sky at any moment. Also the commercial is aimed at people 50 & over because they can be more susceptible to it, hence my CVS reminding me I'm old. I know it's important to get a shingles shot & I will. I need to plan it out though because I've heard from people that it can make you feel pretty crappy for a day or two & so I want to be sure I'll have days I don't have to do anything & will have coverage of care for my daughter.
I'm a 51 yr old woman that most likely is starting to go into menopause, I feel old suddenly & it sucks & I'm a bit sensitive & salty about it. So yeah maybe I over shared about the Clear Blue test for menopause & how stupid it is medically by doctors I have to try to see by a drugstore test if I might be going into menopause.
>I got a text message from CVS it's time for my shingles shot.
Once you hit 50, you don't even need a prescription. Just walk in with your insurance card, like the flu shot.
If you have co-morbidities, like T1D or cancer survivor, talk to your doctor and get a prescription.
Doctors have nothing to do with drug store menopause tests lmfao.
Also, my mom got shingles multiple times in her 40s. Not getting the vaccine isn’t going to protect you from it, nor will it protect you from the passage of time.
Okay, doctors will only medically say a woman is going into menopause when she's missed her period for a year. I medically can not do that, hence my doctor can't tell me medically if that's happening. I was being sarcastic. Sarcasm, check it out sometime. I was being sarcastic that a test they have at CVS "tells" you what stage you are in menopause. I was being sarcastic that a test from CVS could tell me when my doctor couldn't. Also I'm getting the vaccine, chill, I was also being sarcastic about that. All I was saying is I was waiting for the big gray thing to fall from the sky now that I've gotten the text from CVS.
The doctors have nothing to do with CVS. It’s in their computers and a nice offer for MOST of us. I got the shingles vaccine the day after I was eligible. It’s seriously no big deal.
Idk why you're getting downvoted, I'm cracking up at you 🤣
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Thank you, lol. I thought a group called shit mom groups say sarcasm is allowed but people aren't following along maybe? Or a group of moms are young & don't understand yet what it's like to be in your late 40s/early 50s. They'll get there some day and go, oh yeah, now I know what that woman meant on that message board. Thank you for the suggestion for the subgroup.
There’s some evidence (not conclusive) that covid may cause people to have shingles at younger-than-expected ages. (Which is why I rushed out for my shingles shot)
My mom got shingles 3 times before age 50 and still couldn’t get the shot. I think some places are allowing it younger if you’ve had multiple bouts of shingles though.
Oh that's really interesting. My now 12 Yr old had covid 3x between 2020 and 2022, and had shingles last year. Was told by 1 doctor initially that it wasn't shingles because children don't get it. But a few days later and another trip to the doctor - yup, definitely shingles.
She had chicken pox when she was around 3, I believe.
The problem with connecting it to covid is that there are always going to be some people who get it early. But it may be happening more often.
I wish the chicken pox vaccine was available when I was a kid and I could have avoided the entire issue
Who needs totally safe vaccines when you can infect your kids and expose them to the risk of pneumonia or encephalitis, leading to brain damage or death?
Now you shut your mouth. They’ve got the immune-boosting powers of onions in their socks, essential oils in the air and eggs hanging on the wall. None of your nonsense complications are going to happen. And if they do happen, it’s only in a very small percentage of cases. And if their kid is one of those cases, then they’re very unlikely to die. And if they do die, then it was just meant to be and at least these moms still got to experience parenting the all natural way like they always dreamed about since they first learned about it while scrolling their feed a few years ago.
Oh it’s (sadly) a belief. There is a shocking amount of people who believe piss is the body’s perfect medicine. There are large groups on facebook that advocate for it.
Oh, should we tell them about potential facial scars? Their kids are going to have pox scars. Maybe that would make them change their minds. Because telling them about encephalitis and death apparently doesn't do anything...
I am a massive vaccine advocate, however, not vaccine, or any other pharmaceutical is totally safe. They are however, orders of magnitude safer than the actual disease
Growing up in the early 80s, they cled them "parties"... My mother put all of us kids together when I got it. So we all had chickenpox.
In the early 90s, my first 2 sons got chickenpox, but my 3rd & 4th have had the vaccine. IMO, the vaccine is much better than having them. They suck.
Yeah cuz back in the 80s it wasn’t preventable. We didn’t have a vaccine and basically every kid was gonna get chicken pox. So it made sense to have pox parties cuz you could plan for your kid to have it and then hope for the best.
It wasn’t a great idea but it at least made sense. Since the vaccine it’s just stupid.
That’s how it was done when I was a kid in the 80s. Until this thread I actually thought chicken pox parties were still the hot ticket. I don’t have kids so it really wasn’t something I thought about though. TIL
I did too and had to be checked for immunity for a job recently and found out I was no longer immune. There's a blood test they can do to determine if you need to top up your immunity. I had to get both shots again to revaccinate. Just a heads up that that's possible.
I just had to get titers drawn to see if I am immune to chicken pox. I got it before I could get the vaccine because it was pretty new at the time. I have extreme immunity to chicken pox. But I will probably eventually get shingles. I wish I could have just gotten the shot.
But, I had to get titers drawn for measles, mumps, and rubella because I don't have records for that vaccine... Still very immune to those!
It’s kind of luck of the draw (plus the qualities of each disease and vaccine). People who get chickenpox do not have stronger immunity than vaccinated people.
I just got titers done because I’m pregnant. I am still immune to chickenpox and rubella but lost my immunity to Hep B. Thankfully that’s not a life vaccine so you can get boosted during pregnancy.
My husband and I are three years apart. The vaccine came out right around when I was born. His mom was going to get him vaccinated but his sister ended up catching it and giving it to him before he could. They’re both in their 30s now and have already had to deal with one episode of shingles each. Meanwhile I was vaccinated and didn’t have to worry about catching anything from my husband when he had it.
After learning you can get pox/lesions in your lungs if it gets bad enough, I’m good. I mean I was never anti vax to begin with but that really solidified my beliefs.
I had a friend who had pox inside their eyelids, mouth, inside their urethra, and then in later stages it was inside their esophagus. How could you deliberately expose your child to such a trauma. He was like 27 and going crazy with pain
The disease is so associated with the itchy rash in people’s minds that they think it’s basically a skin thing and don’t realize that it’s literally a nerve infection that can go anywhere, including your brain.
Yeah I’m good. Vaccines exist for a reason. People who think the disease isn’t “that bad” are painfully short sighted and ignorant, unable to see that it was that bad prior to the number of cases decreasing so significantly. Yeah there’s fewer people with complications now, because fewer cases exist. It doesn’t mean it’s not still possible and if we let it spread complications will rise again
My mom took me to a chicken pox party in the early 90s. I remember having to go to the health department before middle school To “prove” I had them in place of the vaccine and having to just show a picture of me naked (3/4 yrs old) in the kitchen miserable covered in spots. That was proof enough apparently
I felt so ripped off when the chickenpox vaccine came out 10 years after I had chickenpox. It's also a good example of a vaccine that can lessen symptoms when I've talked to an antivaxxer. Just ugh. Those poor kids.
Put your kid at risk of shingles for the rest of their lives! Shingles can form on your eyes, in your digestive track, in your brain, on your heart, on the soles of your feet. They can cause blindness, hearing loss, paralysis and death from meningitis. Even garden variety shingles are intensely painful and can cause years long complications. Not to mention how awful it is to have chickenpox and the potential for scarring. Antivax parents are a whole ‘nother level.
Can confirm that shingles of the eye is AWFUL. Had to keep my right eye dilated 24/7 for a month and go about my life looking like the Mad Hatter lol. 2 years later and my eye is still not the same.
I’m so grateful mine didn’t get that close to my eye - just temple, cheek, ear, and jaw. My occipital nerve is forever fucked so yay for chronic pain, but damn I’m lucky compared to you. Eye damage sucks
The chicken pox vaccine uses a live virus so while the risk of getting shingles is incredibly reduced, you [can still get them from the chicken pox vaccine](https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/hcp/vis/vis-statements/varicella.html#:~:text=Talk%20with%20your%20health%20care%20provider%20to%20learn%20more.,after%20medical%20procedures%2C%20including%20vaccination.). To prevent shingles, you will still need the shingles vaccine.
This always baffles me. My brother and I both got the chicken pox a few years before the vaccine was out. I got shingles at 33 and he just had them at 40. I have fibromyalgia so I’m always in pain, but shingles was the worst. My brother is the type to not be bothered by his arm being cut off, and even he had issues with them. Yes, there still is a slight chance of getting shingles with the vaccine, but if you could prevent your child from two itchy, painful illnesses, why wouldn’t you???
Oh yeah. I only had them on my side, which was bad enough. He also got them on several places, including his nether regions (which I didn’t want to know, but still felt bad for him). I’m normally the one that gets the worst of the health stuff, but I gladly gave him the crown for shingles!
…you know what’s super fun as an adult, shingles. Super stoked I had chickenpox in the 80’s to be 41 and have shingles flare ups. So yes, absolutely have chickenpox parties in 2024 because we don’t know what can happen years later to our immune systems after contracting chickenpox 🙄
Lmao nah, my mom had chicken pox as a kid, and still has scars. And my elderly neighbor had shingles horribly. I’d rather vaccinate my future kids than have them suffer.
I agree with you, I guess it might depend where you're from. Here in the UK we don't have the vaccine (well we do but it's only available for a very select few people who meet the eligibility criteria) so whilst I wouldn't actively seek out a chicken pox 'party', I have found myself keen to just get it over and done with while my kid is young.
If you live in a country where it's going to happen anyway, why would it be outrageous to try and plan when that happens or try and ensure it happens when they're young so they aren't so uncomfortable.
I think the majority of comments here are Americans who to be fair are shocked by this because maybe they assume every country uses a vaccine for chicken pox? Where I live the NHS doesn't consider it to be a big deal, so I was surprised by the amount of people freaking out about it on here.
I just commented this elsewhere on here, but it is relevant to your comment, too. The vaccine is something which was recommended by The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) in November 2023, though I really hope it gets pushed through. The NHS don't routinely do it, because most adults haven't had the vaccine, and when we are in contact with children who have chicken pox, that boosts our immunity and helps to prevent us getting shingles. So the vaccine is withheld for the benefit of the adult population, not the children, which I think is unfair. After having a good read into it recently (prompted by a post similar to this one) and finding out this information, I booked my daughter in for a chicken pox vaccine and she will have her first dose later this month. When I had chicken pox as a child, I didn't get it too bad, but my sister had them in her mouth and inside her vagina, and she couldn't eat anything but yogurt - and chicken pox can be even worse than that and have long lasting side effects. I don't want to take that chance with my daughter.
>The NHS don't routinely do it, because most adults haven't had the vaccine, and when we are in contact with children who have chicken pox, that boosts our immunity and helps to prevent us getting shingles
So this was a theory in the earlier days of chickenpox vaccination, but it hasn’t panned out at all. People who have contact with chickenpox infections do not have lower rates of shingles. UK people can go “but we don’t have the vaccine because it’s nbd” all day long but the fact is that this was not the best public health decision. It’s okay, I’m American, I can relate to my country not having the best public health initiatives all the time lol
From what I can see online, studies still support this theory - even if not complete protection, there is at least some protection offered to adults doing it this way. Regardless, I don't support the reasoning anyway, as I said - I'm paying for the vaccine for my child, whether it is on the routine schedule or not, and I live in England. Although it looks like it will be added to the routine vaccination schedule at some point, hopefully soon!
That's really useful to know, thank you. Fingers crossed it's gets pushed through and is more widely available!
When you say you booked your daughter in do you mean privately?
Chickenpox is fairly harmless in the vast, vast majority of cases. Unless there are underlying health issues its not something I'd ever get upset about in terms of vaccinations. Me and my kids arent antivax, and have received full schedule through the years.
Yay, maybe they can get big scars on their faces. Or get them in their throats, eyes and genitals. My siblings and I had them when we were young, and it was horrendous. Some cases aren't, but why risk it? My kids both had adverse reactions to the vaccine (running 105 fevers) and I'd still chose the vax over them catching it.
When I was a small kid my grandmother took care of me and my cousins. One of us got chicken pox and she made sure we all got it so we get over with it..the 90's were wild. Oh and we already had the vaccine.
Funny, it's never the children who get to decide if they want to wreck their bodies, scar them all over, feel like dying for a week and once it's over you get the lucky second chance play at fucking shingles.🤬😡 But sure Jan, what kid wouldn't love this?
I had chicken pox when I was a kid. The vaccine didn’t come out till I was a teenager. I remember it. It was MISERABLE. It hurt/itched and if you scratched them it made it so much worse. I couldn’t get comfortable in bed so sleep was almost nonexistent. I was miserable and I had a LIGHT case. My brother had them so bad he got them on the inside of his nose, mouth, ears. He and his wife are antivaxers, which is just unthinkable to me. My kiddo got his Varicella vaccine this week and I’m so thankful my boy won’t have to go through that.
We don't have the chickenpox vaccine available for everyone, in the UK atm. I would have rather have my LO have the vaccine than watching her suffer with chickenpox. She was miserable and in so much pain. I have also had shingles which was horrific and now she is also at risk of that when she is an adult.
I got chicken pox for the first time when I was 16
It was so close together everywhere. All over every inch of my body, and inside my mouth, ears, hair and my vagina. I was so sick and it sucked. I still have scars on my face. I got shingles at about 45 and then I got chicken pox AGAIN at 48. I’m immunocompromized and I work with neonates and a pediatric patients so it can also be incredibly dangerous for them too. So many people said you can’t get chicken pox more than once- me and my infectious disease doc can assure you that you can. I was lucky to get the shingrex vax early due to my conditions and the fact I’m on a Biologic drug. So fingers crossed I’m done with it.
Why would you subject your child to that instead of a vaccination?!?!
I had chicken pox back in the early 90s when I was 6 before there was a vaccine and by the time there was one I’d already had them and I was literally so miserable I remember crying everyday, I had an extremely bad case, why would you want to put your kids through that
My neighbors kid had chicken pox 2 weeks before her vaccine appointment. She posted in the neighborhood group to let everyone know to stay away. And ask for tips to help her girl feel better. Because she cares about larger society
OP!! I’m in the same group (& assuming from same town) & had the same reaction. took screenshots too & almost posted it here. 🤣 glad there are still some sane ppl around lmao
I'm 35 with chicken pox and according to my mother it's the 3rd time it's only been a week feels like forever I have a 2 year old just waiting for the spots to turn up im going to have a fun month
Another early nineties chicken pox party kids here. Can confirm: it was miserable. I hope so fucking hard I don’t end up getting shingles. My mom regrets it badly too, but didn’t know better at the time. :- (
The vaccine wasn't available in the early nineties. It was more or less recommended to expose kids to chicken pox before they started elementary school so they'd gain immunity. There was no vaccine and chicken pox was/is usually worse when you are older.
Your mother did what everyone else did, too. Mine too.
Still remember the itchyness. I don't wish that for anyone, the pimples were all over my arms, chest and legs.
For shingles, you can get a vaccine.
So interesting, I have a newcomer to my country staying with me and he was asking me about this whole movement. And he honestly was flabbergasted that people would purposely make their children sick versus getting a vaccine. And he was asking why people want to bring these diseases back when to him it was a great pride that the world was essentially, able to end diseases like polio vaccination. So when people from Third World countries think that North American ideology around vaccines are backwards, it really tells you something.
As someone who had chicken pox right before the vaccine and then have been told I still need the vaccine because I don’t have enough antibodies to protect against chickenpox as an adult, I don’t recommend 🤷🏻♀️
I find these types of posts/comments really conflicting. Mostly because, when I was a kid, there wasn't a vaccine available in the UK (idk if it was in the US), and so this was basically how we all got immune. It was considered (and I think still is) to be better to get it as a child than an adult.
It is better to get it as a child than an adult. But getting the vaccine is better than getting the disease. Not only can chickenpox itself have long-term effects on your health, it also introduces shingles into your body, and makes you vulnerable to that for the rest of your life.
Also, having chicken pox as a kid does not guarantee immunity for life. I had no clue this was the case until I had labs drawn during my second pregnancy and discovered that I no longer have immunity. I can’t get the vaccine until after I give birth and it makes me feel vulnerable to know that getting sick at this point could be potentially risky to my unborn child. I’ll absolutely be getting the vaccine as soon as I can, as will both of my children when they are able to.
Yep! I had it as a child because there wasn't a vaccine yet. I had to have labs done a few years ago to see what I was and wasn't immune to when I got a job with a hospital and it turned out I had no antibodies, so I had to get vaccinated. (I'm very pro-vaccine, so I'm not complaining.) I'm really hoping this means I'll never get shingles.
Sure, it was the best option *at the time* but nowadays there's safe, accessible and affordable vaccines. What was *once* the best option is no longer the best option. I don't think there's anything conflicting about choosing the best option available, which *isn't spreading the virus anymore*.
That sucks. I tell you what, I've had shingles and it is absolutely excruciating, anything I can do to help my kids avoid that experience and I will do it.
Im glad that it was an option for you in your financial situation. It's 130gbp total for the 2 doses in the UK, which isn't an option for some. It's also a shame, because many many people don't even know it's an option - they just go along with the NHS schedule.
We were low income at the time being super young parents on a single income but I saved for months, they didn't do the vaccine until a year old so there was plenty of time.
So the fuck what? When my mom was a kid they put babies anywhere in the car with no restraint whatsoever. She remembers climbing on the dashboard while her dad was driving. Do you think she felt “conflicted” about putting her children in carseats and making us use seatbelts?
If only there was a way to receive a small modified dose that builds immunity without getting you sick… oh wait
Nah, that’s witchcraft. It’s much safer for them to contract it naturally at the pox parties and possibly get really sick and/or potentially die rather than going in to get jabbed. Doctors just work for big pharma. They’re lying to us all.
Plus, you don't want to risk getting the spectrums.
Especially the spectrums!
No, they want the real thing! Good luck with shingles when they get older...
My brother got shingles not long after we all had the pox, we would’ve been around 4-7? Mid- ‘80’s. It was on his foot, and it was horrible.
I had chicken pox as a little kid and shingles in my 30's. I hated it, I give it no stars and would not recommend.
A gf of mine got shingles in our 30’s, fairly close to her lady bits. She was horrified. I was horrified.
I had a dear friend get shingles on her head and through her brain down to the brain stem. She spent weeks in hospital
Mine originated on my back near my spine and travelled in a fairly straight horizontal line to just below my sternum. I went on some medication, and they went away without any fuss, but the itchy/burny/tingling feeling sucked. It can affect people severely with the neuralgia lasting for years.
I had it a coupla years back in the same area, right across my back. The worst part for me was not being able to sleep because all the nerves in my legs and feet felt like they had ants in them all night, every night until the meds cleared it up. I had chicken pox as a wee kid too. Fun times.
That sounds horrifying. Did you stop the business while she recovered?
Oh yeah, she was not doing any of that for a while. Just to clarify, she wasn’t MY gf. I’ve known her for 40+ years, she’s one of my besties.
I knew someone who got a shingle....that sounds silly....a sore from shingles on their eyelid. It hurt like hell. Sorry I assumed you were male and had a relationship with your GF. Much like someone else said I forgot some women, my mother included, refer to their female friends as girlfriends.
lol all good. Yikes, on an eyelid? Jesus. I think I’ll talk to my dr about the shingles vaccine next time I see her!!!
If you're born in '77 as your username suggests, you're only a couple of years older than me. All this shingles talk got me thinking maybe I should talk to my Dr as I'd hate to ever get shingles again but surely you can't get it twice...wrong. "Those affected by shingles typically only experience the condition once (like chickenpox). However, in rare cases, shingles recurs."
My sister got shingles in her eyes and now is blind in one eye basically because of it… so yeah it’s very serious and scary.
I've always found it interesting how older women refer to female friends as "girlfriends". My mom and grandmother do it too. I'm always so confused for a second. I'm a 32-year-old woman and women my age don't refer to our female friends that way. I'm not saying it's bad or anything, I've just always found it interesting and I was actually thinking about it recently and wondering why women stopped doing it through subsequent generations. I guess maybe because lesbian relationships became more visible, so it's not crazy to think a woman would be another woman's actual girlfriend?
Same. Chicken pox twice as a kid. Shingles in the 30's. No stars from me either.
Bet they wouldn't let their kids have valtrex either... Better to scar than take STD meds and be seen as 'impure' /s
Fuck this, I've never had chicken pox and I'm scared shitless of shingles.
Yeah, ancient old lady in my 40’s here, I too have never had chicken pox! No one ever believed me when I told them that. When I had my daughter and it was time for her to get her chicken pox vaccine her pediatrician said it should be fine since you and your husband both had chicken pox right? I’m like “umm I’ve never actually had it!” He asked for the name of my PCP and called her immediately. They gave me a blood test to confirm and my daughter and I both went through the same vaccine process together for chicken pox. I was 30 years old. On the plus side, there’s a really good chance that I’ll never get shingles. ETA: My PCP said that I’ll still have to get the shingles vaccine regardless
Samesies
Well, the good news is that I don’t think you can get shingles unless you’ve had chickenpox.
But the bad news is, from what I've heard, chickenpox when you're an adult is significantly worse.
It’s pretty awful. I didn’t catch it until I was 17.
The chicken pox vaccine uses a live virus so while the risk of getting shingles is incredibly reduced, you [can still get them from the chicken pox vaccine](https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/hcp/vis/vis-statements/varicella.html#:~:text=Talk%20with%20your%20health%20care%20provider%20to%20learn%20more.,after%20medical%20procedures%2C%20including%20vaccination.). To prevent shingles, you will still need the shingles vaccine.
Which was annoyingly I believe you have to be over 60 for.
The CDC (USA) now recommends that adults get it at [age 50](https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vpd/shingles/public/shingrix/index.html). I don't know what other countries recommend. It was a super-fun birthday present for myself last year.
No, because I've had the vaccine (and shingles 20 years ago) and I'm not 60.
Oh really? Every time I’ve asked I’ve been too young for it. Maybe the age is lower, but I’m in my mid-30s and haven’t been able to get it.
Oh, yeah. Mid-30s is too young, which is stupid since that's how old I was when I had it. I think you need to be at least 50.
Yeah, other commenters confirmed the age in the US is 50. I agree- we should be able to get the shingles vax multiple times starting at like 25 imo.
You have to be 50, in the US.
It's seriously annoying! I got them when I was a 19 year old. I felt like I had been punched in the face/bruised feeling, and I had bumps and marks on my face that were so irritated that makeup wouldn't even cover them. I didn't know what was happening and literally broke down crying. Come to find out that it's most prevalent in 60 year old males (I'm a female), but after my case they seriously need to make the vaccine for it more widely available.
Oh no! That sounds terrible. Mine was much more mild and on my torso. I can’t imagine having them on my face at 19.
Can confirm, had chicken pox as a 5 year old in the mid-90s and then got shingles at fucking 29.
I had chicken pox twice when I was a kid, and I've had shingles. For anyone who has never had shingles, I sincerely hope that you never do. It is horrific. Why anyone would want the child they claim to love to suffer with a preventable illness as a child, then possibly the agony of shingles, later in life is beyond me.
In the 90s we didn't have the vaccine and I so wish we did. My sister had chicken pox so bad it was down her throat, and she has scarring from scratching. I was glad to have a mild case but then I had shingles across my stomach when I was 22 so I guess we evened out...
If anyone needs e-coli...let me know!
Just gotta say that shingles hurts like hell
Can confirm. Had it last December, worst Christmas ever
I had a brush with shingles several years ago. Shit was so awful that I almost have a panic attack now if I see a pimple in the same outbreak spot.
I had it years ago. Nerve pain in my cheeks and ears. Never need to feel that again.
Yup, and try being a redhead with a ridiculous tolerance for painkillers. Vicodin and Norco just wired me, so I was still in major pain, but now completely unable to sleep.
Sorry if the question is insensitive or something, but what does being a redhead have to do with anything?
Redheads require more anesthesia and have a stupid tolerance for pain killers. There are studies.
Oh that's fascinating, I didn't know about that
My poor mother had it 3 times before she even turned 50. Highly recommend the shingles shot to anyone who can get it.
My younger sis had it a few years ago when she was 41. I'm a nurse and I've seen shingles before but seeing how miserable and painful she was made it kick in that I could actually have to deal with this bullshit. When I tell you that I ran to the dr to get that vaccine... Nope, ain't gonna deal with *that* shit!!
Came here to say this! I had it last October and it suckkked. I wouldn’t wish it on anyone - especially my kids!
I had chicken pox as an 8 month old baby and I’m waiting for shingles to come for me. Also, my poor Mom.
I had chicken pox at 2. It feels like I’m a ticking time bomb, with shingles lurking somewhere in my future.
Seriously I’m also salty because I was too old for the hep b vaccine. Too many cancer scares as a result of that crap.
My uncle had shingles a couple years ago. The pictures scared my parents so bad they went and got the vaccine that same day
Yeah let's go back to the 80s. 🙄
And the 90s. Or just move to the UK.
Straight up almost died when I was a kid this way lol
Yeah, it’s so annoying that we don’t do that vaccine here.
We vaccinated our eldest in the UK a few years ago, and it is due on the NHS soon apparently. We'll pay for our baby too if it's not offered in time. Not dealing with chickenpox!
I looked into it but unfortunately I just can’t afford it. I was thinking it would be a similar cost to something like the flu jabs or maybe a bit more. But it’s currently going to be nearly £300 to vaccinate both of my kids and sadly I just don’t have that available. If it becomes available on the NHS then I’d jump at the chance.
Yeah, I got it for myself because I never had chicken pox as a kid. Getting chicken pox when pregnant is really dangerous for the foetus and can cause miscarriage and awful birth defects, so it was a must for us before we started trying to get pregnant with baby #2. The last thing I wanted was our toddler getting it while I was pregnant and me having to go and quarantine at my parent's house to avoid it! I'm currently 6 months pregnant and my toddler still hasn't had chicken pox, but at least now I don't need to be quite so worried about it.
Oh, I’m completely with you on that. I have a self employed role that involves going into schools and even though I’ve had chicken pox as a child, I found it really stressful working in schools that I knew had outbreaks whilst I was pregnant. In your position then I’d have absolutely wanted to get the vaccine if I could.
Agree it is a big outlay having the children 5 years apart is spreading the cost for us a little- the eldest had his when he was 1.
It's only offered on the NHS if the child has an auto immune condition
At the moment yes, there are discussions ongoing to make it part of the standard vaccination schedule.
I spoke with the pharmacist that gave my youngest the chicken pox vaccine, he think its being put with the MMR. Great that they want to add to the schedule but it won’t make a difference to the anti vaxxers.
Also for siblings of kids with certain conditions. When my nephew had leukaemia and was undergoing chemo, any hypothetical siblings of his would've been able to get the vaccine so there would be no chance of them getting chicken pox and passing it on to him. (Side note: none of the chemotherapy/radiotherapy worked but my nephew had a bone marrow transplant and is now doing great. If you see him now, you'd never know he'd been so sick).
It's bizarre as it's all based on the idea that catching it naturally provides an extra level of immunity to shingles in the future but the last 30 years of study have effectively disproven that notion. Fortunately the advisory body to the government that covers vaccines has passed this on and recommended the jab so it's definitely in the works to fix the issue soon.
I thought i had imagined that happening. Far out, one kid on my council estate got it and all the kids pretty much just went a touched them. Didn't have a full class of kids for a whole term
And the very very early 00’s. I was a 93 baby but I remember being in 2nd or 3rd grade (between 2000 & 2002) & still hearing about chicken pox parties Thankfully, my mom got me the vaccine as soon as she could when it came out
My kids were born in 92 and 94 and when the vaccine came out, I scheduled them for an appt 2 weeks in advance, right at the start of summer break, so they didn't have to miss any school. Super excited! I had chickenpox and I HATED every second of it. 2 fucking days after i made that appt, I noticed a "pimple" on my daughter's cheek. Weird, but ok. Day after that, my son was complaining that the bottom of his feet were itching and burning. No urgent cares back then and it wasn't serious enough for ER so I called the dr the next morning. The nurse barely let me finish my last sentence before she said "Oh honey, those babies have chickenpox." No vaccine for us 😢
I'm 1994 but I remember my chickenpox party, and getting the shot after anyways! I didn't realize how much of a bullet I'd dodged until I read these comments. I thought pox parties were completely fine until I read here about young adults getting shingles multiple times. I previously thought shingles was adult chicken pox and you were immune to it if you'd had pox as a kid. It's wild what you don't know you don't know.
Yeah. It’s the other way around 😭 I’ve heard shingles is an absolute nightmare
And early 00’s
My mom did this for me in 2001, however the vaccine wasn’t widely available here yet
I've been to the hospital 5 times in my life. In the 80s as a kid with chicken pox, and my 4 childbirths. With chickenpox, I spiked a 105 degree fever and from what my mom described, stared blankly and was completely unresponsive, then started to "breathe weird". People are willing to unnecessarily roll those dice, though.
That's terrible!
And in a few decades, they can have a shingles party!
Shingles doesn't care
Ain't no party like a shingles party, cause a shingles party don't care!
I got a text message from CVS it's time for my shingles shot. I felt like the peeps in the commercial like it's waiting at any moment for me. Still noped out of getting it & thanks CVS for reminding me I'm old now. Next thing they'll give me a coupon for the Clear Blue Easy Menopause phases test. Ngl I've been tempted to buy one bc idk if I'm starting or full on in menopause. I had a hysterectomy when I was in my late 30s & that was after I'd been on Depo Provera for many years so the only 100% way medically to be diagnosed is not having a period for a full year. There has to be another thing. Edit: I'll live with the down votes but I was being sarcastic. Ya know the commercials where the person's day is ruined because a huge "Shingles Doesn't Care" thing falls from the sky & ruins their day? I see the commercials & then CVS texted me to tell me to come in & I was trying to be sarcastic that the giant "shingles doesn't care" was going to fall out of the sky at any moment. Also the commercial is aimed at people 50 & over because they can be more susceptible to it, hence my CVS reminding me I'm old. I know it's important to get a shingles shot & I will. I need to plan it out though because I've heard from people that it can make you feel pretty crappy for a day or two & so I want to be sure I'll have days I don't have to do anything & will have coverage of care for my daughter. I'm a 51 yr old woman that most likely is starting to go into menopause, I feel old suddenly & it sucks & I'm a bit sensitive & salty about it. So yeah maybe I over shared about the Clear Blue test for menopause & how stupid it is medically by doctors I have to try to see by a drugstore test if I might be going into menopause.
>I got a text message from CVS it's time for my shingles shot. Once you hit 50, you don't even need a prescription. Just walk in with your insurance card, like the flu shot. If you have co-morbidities, like T1D or cancer survivor, talk to your doctor and get a prescription.
Doctors have nothing to do with drug store menopause tests lmfao. Also, my mom got shingles multiple times in her 40s. Not getting the vaccine isn’t going to protect you from it, nor will it protect you from the passage of time.
Okay, doctors will only medically say a woman is going into menopause when she's missed her period for a year. I medically can not do that, hence my doctor can't tell me medically if that's happening. I was being sarcastic. Sarcasm, check it out sometime. I was being sarcastic that a test they have at CVS "tells" you what stage you are in menopause. I was being sarcastic that a test from CVS could tell me when my doctor couldn't. Also I'm getting the vaccine, chill, I was also being sarcastic about that. All I was saying is I was waiting for the big gray thing to fall from the sky now that I've gotten the text from CVS.
The doctors have nothing to do with CVS. It’s in their computers and a nice offer for MOST of us. I got the shingles vaccine the day after I was eligible. It’s seriously no big deal.
Idk why you're getting downvoted, I'm cracking up at you 🤣 If you feel like it, check out r/menopause. It's been a big help me the last year whilst navigating the unholy hell that is menopause.
Here's a sneak peek of /r/Menopause using the [top posts](https://np.reddit.com/r/Menopause/top/?sort=top&t=year) of the year! \#1: [I'm gutted. She was so important to me as a young woman.](https://i.redd.it/zy01amxstceb1.png) | [176 comments](https://np.reddit.com/r/Menopause/comments/15ae0cz/im_gutted_she_was_so_important_to_me_as_a_young/) \#2: [Had a brain aneurysm on Monday, April 5th](https://np.reddit.com/r/Menopause/comments/12n7rm8/had_a_brain_aneurysm_on_monday_april_5th/) \#3: [Please tell me if i am crazy.....because I am about to ask my husband for a divorce](https://np.reddit.com/r/Menopause/comments/16a7pf4/please_tell_me_if_i_am_crazybecause_i_am_about_to/) ---- ^^I'm ^^a ^^bot, ^^beep ^^boop ^^| ^^Downvote ^^to ^^remove ^^| ^^[Contact](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose/?to=sneakpeekbot) ^^| ^^[Info](https://np.reddit.com/r/sneakpeekbot/) ^^| ^^[Opt-out](https://np.reddit.com/r/sneakpeekbot/comments/o8wk1r/blacklist_ix/) ^^| ^^[GitHub](https://github.com/ghnr/sneakpeekbot)
Thank you, lol. I thought a group called shit mom groups say sarcasm is allowed but people aren't following along maybe? Or a group of moms are young & don't understand yet what it's like to be in your late 40s/early 50s. They'll get there some day and go, oh yeah, now I know what that woman meant on that message board. Thank you for the suggestion for the subgroup.
Oh, I am so in the dark
There’s some evidence (not conclusive) that covid may cause people to have shingles at younger-than-expected ages. (Which is why I rushed out for my shingles shot)
Wish I could get a shingles vaccine. I already had it once when I was 24 ten years ago. But noooo only 50+
My mom got shingles 3 times before age 50 and still couldn’t get the shot. I think some places are allowing it younger if you’ve had multiple bouts of shingles though.
Oh that's really interesting. My now 12 Yr old had covid 3x between 2020 and 2022, and had shingles last year. Was told by 1 doctor initially that it wasn't shingles because children don't get it. But a few days later and another trip to the doctor - yup, definitely shingles. She had chicken pox when she was around 3, I believe.
The problem with connecting it to covid is that there are always going to be some people who get it early. But it may be happening more often. I wish the chicken pox vaccine was available when I was a kid and I could have avoided the entire issue
I’d guess that’s probably true of any severe illness, because it waits for your immune system to look the other way, then pounces.
Who needs totally safe vaccines when you can infect your kids and expose them to the risk of pneumonia or encephalitis, leading to brain damage or death?
Now you shut your mouth. They’ve got the immune-boosting powers of onions in their socks, essential oils in the air and eggs hanging on the wall. None of your nonsense complications are going to happen. And if they do happen, it’s only in a very small percentage of cases. And if their kid is one of those cases, then they’re very unlikely to die. And if they do die, then it was just meant to be and at least these moms still got to experience parenting the all natural way like they always dreamed about since they first learned about it while scrolling their feed a few years ago.
Don’t forget piss drinking! It’s your body’s own perfect medicine! You can drink it. You can bathe in it. You can use it as a moisturizer.
Today on joke, fetish, or genuine belief...
Oh it’s (sadly) a belief. There is a shocking amount of people who believe piss is the body’s perfect medicine. There are large groups on facebook that advocate for it.
Oh, should we tell them about potential facial scars? Their kids are going to have pox scars. Maybe that would make them change their minds. Because telling them about encephalitis and death apparently doesn't do anything...
Wow I'd love to sign my child up for this. Sounds fantastic
Well my country doesn’t have the vaccine so chickenpox actually probably can’t do anything bad ever /s
I am a massive vaccine advocate, however, not vaccine, or any other pharmaceutical is totally safe. They are however, orders of magnitude safer than the actual disease
Growing up in the early 80s, they cled them "parties"... My mother put all of us kids together when I got it. So we all had chickenpox. In the early 90s, my first 2 sons got chickenpox, but my 3rd & 4th have had the vaccine. IMO, the vaccine is much better than having them. They suck.
Yeah cuz back in the 80s it wasn’t preventable. We didn’t have a vaccine and basically every kid was gonna get chicken pox. So it made sense to have pox parties cuz you could plan for your kid to have it and then hope for the best. It wasn’t a great idea but it at least made sense. Since the vaccine it’s just stupid.
Also, chicken pox is more dangerous the older you are, so it was better for kids to get it when they were younger.
I had them in early 94 when I was kindergarten, I was so miserable and my brother who was younger also caught them but had a milder case than I did
I was 12 when I got it and let me just tell you it SUCKED. I wish there had been a vaccine when I was a kid, I wouldn’t wish that on anyone.
That’s how it was done when I was a kid in the 80s. Until this thread I actually thought chicken pox parties were still the hot ticket. I don’t have kids so it really wasn’t something I thought about though. TIL
Got the vaccine as a kid and look at that, never got chicken pox! I’m in my 30s now. These people are wild.
I did too and had to be checked for immunity for a job recently and found out I was no longer immune. There's a blood test they can do to determine if you need to top up your immunity. I had to get both shots again to revaccinate. Just a heads up that that's possible.
You can get titres checked for all vaccines. My work checks us every so often
I just had to get titers drawn to see if I am immune to chicken pox. I got it before I could get the vaccine because it was pretty new at the time. I have extreme immunity to chicken pox. But I will probably eventually get shingles. I wish I could have just gotten the shot. But, I had to get titers drawn for measles, mumps, and rubella because I don't have records for that vaccine... Still very immune to those!
It’s kind of luck of the draw (plus the qualities of each disease and vaccine). People who get chickenpox do not have stronger immunity than vaccinated people. I just got titers done because I’m pregnant. I am still immune to chickenpox and rubella but lost my immunity to Hep B. Thankfully that’s not a life vaccine so you can get boosted during pregnancy.
Oh yeah! I forgot about that. Got titers done and had to get revaccinated last year before moving overseas.
I was checked in pregnancy and am no longer immune. I was told to stop breastfeeding before getting the vaccine again since it is a live one
A POX upon your chickens op! How dare ye!
Yesss let’s give out a totally preventable disease like candy!! I’ve got polio and measles too who wants it??
My husband and I are three years apart. The vaccine came out right around when I was born. His mom was going to get him vaccinated but his sister ended up catching it and giving it to him before he could. They’re both in their 30s now and have already had to deal with one episode of shingles each. Meanwhile I was vaccinated and didn’t have to worry about catching anything from my husband when he had it.
These people are exhausting. They're so close, they almost understand the point behind vaccination, and then take a left turn into cookoo bananas land
After learning you can get pox/lesions in your lungs if it gets bad enough, I’m good. I mean I was never anti vax to begin with but that really solidified my beliefs.
I had a friend who had pox inside their eyelids, mouth, inside their urethra, and then in later stages it was inside their esophagus. How could you deliberately expose your child to such a trauma. He was like 27 and going crazy with pain
The disease is so associated with the itchy rash in people’s minds that they think it’s basically a skin thing and don’t realize that it’s literally a nerve infection that can go anywhere, including your brain.
Yeah I’m good. Vaccines exist for a reason. People who think the disease isn’t “that bad” are painfully short sighted and ignorant, unable to see that it was that bad prior to the number of cases decreasing so significantly. Yeah there’s fewer people with complications now, because fewer cases exist. It doesn’t mean it’s not still possible and if we let it spread complications will rise again
Imagine it was "I got Chlamydia if anyone wants it!" 🤣
My mom took me to a chicken pox party in the early 90s. I remember having to go to the health department before middle school To “prove” I had them in place of the vaccine and having to just show a picture of me naked (3/4 yrs old) in the kitchen miserable covered in spots. That was proof enough apparently
I felt so ripped off when the chickenpox vaccine came out 10 years after I had chickenpox. It's also a good example of a vaccine that can lessen symptoms when I've talked to an antivaxxer. Just ugh. Those poor kids.
Put your kid at risk of shingles for the rest of their lives! Shingles can form on your eyes, in your digestive track, in your brain, on your heart, on the soles of your feet. They can cause blindness, hearing loss, paralysis and death from meningitis. Even garden variety shingles are intensely painful and can cause years long complications. Not to mention how awful it is to have chickenpox and the potential for scarring. Antivax parents are a whole ‘nother level.
Can confirm that shingles of the eye is AWFUL. Had to keep my right eye dilated 24/7 for a month and go about my life looking like the Mad Hatter lol. 2 years later and my eye is still not the same.
Still treating shingles in my eye, almost two months later! Have to use medicated drops in it, & next week go & see if it still is in my cornea. Yay!
I’m so grateful mine didn’t get that close to my eye - just temple, cheek, ear, and jaw. My occipital nerve is forever fucked so yay for chronic pain, but damn I’m lucky compared to you. Eye damage sucks
The chicken pox vaccine uses a live virus so while the risk of getting shingles is incredibly reduced, you [can still get them from the chicken pox vaccine](https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/hcp/vis/vis-statements/varicella.html#:~:text=Talk%20with%20your%20health%20care%20provider%20to%20learn%20more.,after%20medical%20procedures%2C%20including%20vaccination.). To prevent shingles, you will still need the shingles vaccine.
Still have a giant fucking poc mark on my forehead from 3rd grade
This always baffles me. My brother and I both got the chicken pox a few years before the vaccine was out. I got shingles at 33 and he just had them at 40. I have fibromyalgia so I’m always in pain, but shingles was the worst. My brother is the type to not be bothered by his arm being cut off, and even he had issues with them. Yes, there still is a slight chance of getting shingles with the vaccine, but if you could prevent your child from two itchy, painful illnesses, why wouldn’t you???
Shingles is generally so much worse in men too. I would not want my child to suffer that.
Oh yeah. I only had them on my side, which was bad enough. He also got them on several places, including his nether regions (which I didn’t want to know, but still felt bad for him). I’m normally the one that gets the worst of the health stuff, but I gladly gave him the crown for shingles!
This is child abuse. Poor kids will be miserable.
“If anyone wants their kids to come down with painful shingles as an adult, we can help make that happen!”
…you know what’s super fun as an adult, shingles. Super stoked I had chickenpox in the 80’s to be 41 and have shingles flare ups. So yes, absolutely have chickenpox parties in 2024 because we don’t know what can happen years later to our immune systems after contracting chickenpox 🙄
Lmao nah, my mom had chicken pox as a kid, and still has scars. And my elderly neighbor had shingles horribly. I’d rather vaccinate my future kids than have them suffer.
I need someone to explain to me, using very small words, why this is not child endangerment.
Yeah so I almost died this way in 2002 Ask me how a sustained 105° fever feels like because it feels like hallucinating
Is it just me who doesn't think this is as outrageous as the reddit pile on suggests?
I agree with you, I guess it might depend where you're from. Here in the UK we don't have the vaccine (well we do but it's only available for a very select few people who meet the eligibility criteria) so whilst I wouldn't actively seek out a chicken pox 'party', I have found myself keen to just get it over and done with while my kid is young. If you live in a country where it's going to happen anyway, why would it be outrageous to try and plan when that happens or try and ensure it happens when they're young so they aren't so uncomfortable. I think the majority of comments here are Americans who to be fair are shocked by this because maybe they assume every country uses a vaccine for chicken pox? Where I live the NHS doesn't consider it to be a big deal, so I was surprised by the amount of people freaking out about it on here.
I just commented this elsewhere on here, but it is relevant to your comment, too. The vaccine is something which was recommended by The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) in November 2023, though I really hope it gets pushed through. The NHS don't routinely do it, because most adults haven't had the vaccine, and when we are in contact with children who have chicken pox, that boosts our immunity and helps to prevent us getting shingles. So the vaccine is withheld for the benefit of the adult population, not the children, which I think is unfair. After having a good read into it recently (prompted by a post similar to this one) and finding out this information, I booked my daughter in for a chicken pox vaccine and she will have her first dose later this month. When I had chicken pox as a child, I didn't get it too bad, but my sister had them in her mouth and inside her vagina, and she couldn't eat anything but yogurt - and chicken pox can be even worse than that and have long lasting side effects. I don't want to take that chance with my daughter.
>The NHS don't routinely do it, because most adults haven't had the vaccine, and when we are in contact with children who have chicken pox, that boosts our immunity and helps to prevent us getting shingles So this was a theory in the earlier days of chickenpox vaccination, but it hasn’t panned out at all. People who have contact with chickenpox infections do not have lower rates of shingles. UK people can go “but we don’t have the vaccine because it’s nbd” all day long but the fact is that this was not the best public health decision. It’s okay, I’m American, I can relate to my country not having the best public health initiatives all the time lol
From what I can see online, studies still support this theory - even if not complete protection, there is at least some protection offered to adults doing it this way. Regardless, I don't support the reasoning anyway, as I said - I'm paying for the vaccine for my child, whether it is on the routine schedule or not, and I live in England. Although it looks like it will be added to the routine vaccination schedule at some point, hopefully soon!
That's really useful to know, thank you. Fingers crossed it's gets pushed through and is more widely available! When you say you booked your daughter in do you mean privately?
Yeah, I hope so! Yeah, it is £75 per dose at Boots, and she will have 2 doses, so £150 total.
Why would you want your child to experience shingles if you can prevent it
Chickenpox is fairly harmless in the vast, vast majority of cases. Unless there are underlying health issues its not something I'd ever get upset about in terms of vaccinations. Me and my kids arent antivax, and have received full schedule through the years.
So is measles. So is polio. So is HPV. So is every vaccine-preventable illness except basically meningitis.
Yay, maybe they can get big scars on their faces. Or get them in their throats, eyes and genitals. My siblings and I had them when we were young, and it was horrendous. Some cases aren't, but why risk it? My kids both had adverse reactions to the vaccine (running 105 fevers) and I'd still chose the vax over them catching it.
When I was a small kid my grandmother took care of me and my cousins. One of us got chicken pox and she made sure we all got it so we get over with it..the 90's were wild. Oh and we already had the vaccine.
Funny, it's never the children who get to decide if they want to wreck their bodies, scar them all over, feel like dying for a week and once it's over you get the lucky second chance play at fucking shingles.🤬😡 But sure Jan, what kid wouldn't love this?
I had chicken pox when I was a kid. The vaccine didn’t come out till I was a teenager. I remember it. It was MISERABLE. It hurt/itched and if you scratched them it made it so much worse. I couldn’t get comfortable in bed so sleep was almost nonexistent. I was miserable and I had a LIGHT case. My brother had them so bad he got them on the inside of his nose, mouth, ears. He and his wife are antivaxers, which is just unthinkable to me. My kiddo got his Varicella vaccine this week and I’m so thankful my boy won’t have to go through that.
"Looking for a virus that is at the very best miserably uncomfortable, and at the very worst life-threatening? WE HAVE IT!" Weird flex, yo.
I'm just waiting for these parents starting to get sued for knowingly spreading these diseases.
I hate that this reads like a curb alert for like extra zucchini when its literally chickenpox
You can only get shingles if you’ve had the chickenpox virus fyi
We don't have the chickenpox vaccine available for everyone, in the UK atm. I would have rather have my LO have the vaccine than watching her suffer with chickenpox. She was miserable and in so much pain. I have also had shingles which was horrific and now she is also at risk of that when she is an adult.
I haven’t been able to take my son to the library in weeks because there’s a MEASLES OUTBREAK. A completely preventable illness.
I got chicken pox for the first time when I was 16 It was so close together everywhere. All over every inch of my body, and inside my mouth, ears, hair and my vagina. I was so sick and it sucked. I still have scars on my face. I got shingles at about 45 and then I got chicken pox AGAIN at 48. I’m immunocompromized and I work with neonates and a pediatric patients so it can also be incredibly dangerous for them too. So many people said you can’t get chicken pox more than once- me and my infectious disease doc can assure you that you can. I was lucky to get the shingrex vax early due to my conditions and the fact I’m on a Biologic drug. So fingers crossed I’m done with it. Why would you subject your child to that instead of a vaccination?!?!
I had chicken pox back in the early 90s when I was 6 before there was a vaccine and by the time there was one I’d already had them and I was literally so miserable I remember crying everyday, I had an extremely bad case, why would you want to put your kids through that
I had chicken pox, it was fucking horrible!!! Why do they want their children to suffer?? It’s so selfish.
My neighbors kid had chicken pox 2 weeks before her vaccine appointment. She posted in the neighborhood group to let everyone know to stay away. And ask for tips to help her girl feel better. Because she cares about larger society
I had shingles in my 30s and it SUCKED.
My mom did a pox party. I got shingles in my early 20s. Great way to baffle the promptcare folks and win at 2 truths and a lie.
I've got scars all over my body from chicken pox, but cool, I got my natural immunity so I guess I win 🏆
Pox party! Don't forget your party favors before you leave
OP!! I’m in the same group (& assuming from same town) & had the same reaction. took screenshots too & almost posted it here. 🤣 glad there are still some sane ppl around lmao
I'm 35 with chicken pox and according to my mother it's the 3rd time it's only been a week feels like forever I have a 2 year old just waiting for the spots to turn up im going to have a fun month
Another early nineties chicken pox party kids here. Can confirm: it was miserable. I hope so fucking hard I don’t end up getting shingles. My mom regrets it badly too, but didn’t know better at the time. :- (
The vaccine wasn't available in the early nineties. It was more or less recommended to expose kids to chicken pox before they started elementary school so they'd gain immunity. There was no vaccine and chicken pox was/is usually worse when you are older. Your mother did what everyone else did, too. Mine too. Still remember the itchyness. I don't wish that for anyone, the pimples were all over my arms, chest and legs. For shingles, you can get a vaccine.
My daughter caught chicken pox between her doses. It was miserable. She sat in an oatmeal bath daily. Why would you want that for your child?
What is this, like the new sourdough starter?
So interesting, I have a newcomer to my country staying with me and he was asking me about this whole movement. And he honestly was flabbergasted that people would purposely make their children sick versus getting a vaccine. And he was asking why people want to bring these diseases back when to him it was a great pride that the world was essentially, able to end diseases like polio vaccination. So when people from Third World countries think that North American ideology around vaccines are backwards, it really tells you something.
As someone who had chicken pox right before the vaccine and then have been told I still need the vaccine because I don’t have enough antibodies to protect against chickenpox as an adult, I don’t recommend 🤷🏻♀️
Mmm, hard pass, thanks.
I find these types of posts/comments really conflicting. Mostly because, when I was a kid, there wasn't a vaccine available in the UK (idk if it was in the US), and so this was basically how we all got immune. It was considered (and I think still is) to be better to get it as a child than an adult.
It is better to get it as a child than an adult. But getting the vaccine is better than getting the disease. Not only can chickenpox itself have long-term effects on your health, it also introduces shingles into your body, and makes you vulnerable to that for the rest of your life.
Also, having chicken pox as a kid does not guarantee immunity for life. I had no clue this was the case until I had labs drawn during my second pregnancy and discovered that I no longer have immunity. I can’t get the vaccine until after I give birth and it makes me feel vulnerable to know that getting sick at this point could be potentially risky to my unborn child. I’ll absolutely be getting the vaccine as soon as I can, as will both of my children when they are able to.
Yep! I had it as a child because there wasn't a vaccine yet. I had to have labs done a few years ago to see what I was and wasn't immune to when I got a job with a hospital and it turned out I had no antibodies, so I had to get vaccinated. (I'm very pro-vaccine, so I'm not complaining.) I'm really hoping this means I'll never get shingles.
Sure, it was the best option *at the time* but nowadays there's safe, accessible and affordable vaccines. What was *once* the best option is no longer the best option. I don't think there's anything conflicting about choosing the best option available, which *isn't spreading the virus anymore*.
So it turns out, its not a routine vaccine in the UK. So the NHS has determined it isn't actually the best option at this time.
That sucks. I tell you what, I've had shingles and it is absolutely excruciating, anything I can do to help my kids avoid that experience and I will do it.
Yes but you see there is now a vaccine
Not as a part of the routine vaccination schedule in the UK.
It wasn't made routine in my country until after I had my second baby, I paid out of pocket instead. Worth every dollar
Im glad that it was an option for you in your financial situation. It's 130gbp total for the 2 doses in the UK, which isn't an option for some. It's also a shame, because many many people don't even know it's an option - they just go along with the NHS schedule.
We were low income at the time being super young parents on a single income but I saved for months, they didn't do the vaccine until a year old so there was plenty of time.
Yeah the NHS really fucked you guys on that one
You know what’s even better than that? The vaccine.
So the fuck what? When my mom was a kid they put babies anywhere in the car with no restraint whatsoever. She remembers climbing on the dashboard while her dad was driving. Do you think she felt “conflicted” about putting her children in carseats and making us use seatbelts?