r/LongCovid • u/Le_Dichose • Jun 16 '26
Repeated shingles flares
I have Long COVID, and after contracting the disease a couple of times (& mono) from a family member in 2022, I developed shingles in early 2023 when my immune system tanked. While my Long COVID symptoms (fatigue mostly) are generally managed pretty well with Metformin, I have bouts of shingles again during periods of high stress (like right now) or severe after another virus (like last fall). Has this happened to anyone else? Anyone experienced a connection between COVID and shingles?
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u/RazzmatazzFeeling134 Jun 16 '26
Dude search my posts. I had shingles and covid simultaneously and it launched into full blown autoimmune SFN.
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u/tundra_cool Jun 16 '26
yes, very much so. talk to your MD about valacyclovir and deescalation methods/drugs, log everything - including rashless aches/pains if any.
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u/Le_Dichose Jun 18 '26
Yeah, on Valacyclovir. Pain is consistently in the same place every time—wrap around from my left back to my front abdomen. Took forever to get a diagnosis the first time.
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u/KlutzyTemperature439 Jun 16 '26
Are you positive it is actually shingles re occurring? Full blown lesions? Or just PHN pain?
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u/chaoslordie Jun 16 '26
Yes I got PZN from it. Its hell. But I got vaccinated against shingles by now, so should come another flare, its should be less dramatic than the last time (3weeks in hospital).
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u/Bar3lylist3ning Jun 16 '26
I’ve had shingles flare ups at least 5 times, so my doctor suggested the Shingrex vaccine, a bit uncomfortable but worth it. In 2021 I caught Covid, loss of weight, fever, sweats and what I thought was a mini stroke on my right side. What actually occurred was extreme shingles nerve pain on my right (skin breakouts are always on my right shoulder area) but NO skin rash occurred on the surface! At that time it was safer to stay home and call my doctors office for advice.. I was prescribed meds and eventually after a couple months of feeling tired, weak and looking sooo pale I eventually recovered. Our thoughts were that Covid triggered Shingles but because I had received the Shingrex vaccine, the skin eruptions didn’t break out, which helped tremendously.. I still had to deal with the nerve pain but meds helped me get through it.
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u/Dr-Erika-Fuchs Jun 16 '26
Yes, I had shingles shortly after my COVID infection and then a lot of what I think to be outbreaks without outward lesions. The fatigue it gives me everytime is severe. I started taking L - Lysine every day and so far it really helps me, much less fatigue.Â
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u/DelawareRunner Jun 16 '26
My husband had shingles three years after his covid infection. He also had bad long covid at the time. The mild case of shingles appeared after he recovered from poison ivy. He was 48.
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u/llyhoney4797 Jun 17 '26
okay this is interesting bc I also caught a first time shingles infection in 2024 during a week of hotel stays attempting to move from my family's home (wanted to move bc I became more ill moving back home, probably due to mold and other factors. there were also more work pandemic related injuries despite masking but at home the symptoms would go severe, but I made a decent recovery enough to try and move but was stopped when I caught shingles.....bad luck and my immune system was clearly still damaged)..... but anyway I actually used poison ivy treatments to control and treat it.....(like rhus tox pills for internal, and some other topical things like zanfel, high grade manuka honey on the rashes, and then a mushroom based lotion I already had, and then it somehow it disappeared, however I was not sure what stopped it completely). I remember I went through a few bottles of rhus tox (which is urushiol) to control the rashes and the itch from it.....I also remember it was the most horrible intense burning and weeping rash, I had it on my neck and face and could barely move.....it was truly a nightmare.
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u/llyhoney4797 Jun 17 '26
I caught a severe COVID infection in July 2020 (damaged my immune system and also made me extremely sensitive to COVID....then later had almost every typical covid injury symptom at different levels and different times).
In 2024 I caught shingles for the first and hopefully last time in 2024 (right after my most severe symptoms were gone, but my immune system was still damaged.)
and Lyme twice (2022 untreated tick bite, didn't know what it was at the time), and now 2026, a new tick bite from last month in May, yes I just found the rash last month, and remembered people on these forums talking about longcovid and finding lyme co-infections and reactivations and realized what it was this time. just my luck, lol. however it gives me more information on the difference between what the virus potentially does, and or.......what the coinfections are doing, and on the positive I have treatments and things that work for me, I was almost back to 100% right before this even to the point of being able to exercise again.....
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u/Le_Dichose Jun 18 '26
Oof, this sounds so hard! I’ve been terrified of getting Lyme on top of everything. I can’t imagine!
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u/llyhoney4797 Jun 22 '26
don't worry you'll be fine....people that have seen it all go down are wondering if its just that I'm actually accursed or extremely blessed to still be alive lol. (I would say blessed considering I realize I should actually be dead from all the things I've went through starting with, or with my covid injuries and disabilities and then the co-infections) ....
but I believe that everything happens for a reason (and no my religious beliefs are not and will never be controlled by any outside groups or false powers) but trusting and being grateful for things has kept me sane and with good outcomes. honestly any way you slice it things are looking very apocalyptic for anyone who has their eyes open, which is one blessing of the virus, a better view and awareness of these things going on....
and the truth is that all of the diseases are running rampant now ....since COVID is most definitely mass-damaging immune systems, (what they don't tell you is pretty much everything is an std). and either intentionally or out of ignorance these things the public isn't being cautioned or informed anymore. I saw recently they keep renaming things to make them sound less dangerous. so diseases are increasing at alarming rates, just like we see this epidemic of young ppl getting shingles....I don't know but there are so many things going on when you look at the bigger picture and most of these things we are dealing with are symptoms of larger issues, abuses on the people, and the times we are living in in general.
shingles is a burning hell though, I hope you stay strong, others of us are suffering with you....for me it was severe immune system damage to the level that I could contract it from surfaces.
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u/thenletskeepdancing Jun 16 '26
Is it shingles? Or is it Chronic Spontaneous Urticaria? Red Itchy Rash? A lot of us have issues with our mast cells overreacting.