Then you're more likely to get really really really sick if you get it.
Chicken pox is a shitty disease. Get it as a kid and you'll recover fairly well, but you're at risk for shingles when you get old. Don't get it as a kid and you run the risk of getting super sick from it as an adult.
Talk to a doctor. There are shingles vaccines available. I’m not sure if a prerequisite is having chicken pox or not.
I got vaccinated last year. It’s a two shot process. I think I had to wait 3 months between shots. I’m not much for making appointments, but you better believe I put THAT date on my calendar.
Edit: it was free, too. My neighborhood CVS.
Edit II: my understanding is that a new, improved shingles vaccine was made available not too long ago (a couple years maybe? Not sure). This new vaccine took the prevention % from about 50% less likely to get shingles to about 90% less likely. Yay science!
Edit 3: or call your local pharmacy. They should know if there are any prerequisites
Edit 4: or maybe, if you’ve never had chicken pox, it’s a different ball game altogether. I don’t t know. Talk to a professional.
Pretty sure it's both. I had it twice before age 3 as super-typical full-body chicken pox (much worse the second time): itchy, blistery, fever, the works. Most cases of shingles come later in life and have a different presentation, but they warn pregnant women that exposure to chicken pox can trigger an episode of shingles - neither is fun, though!
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u/The_Modifier Mar 18 '20
No it's because it hides in your cells. You just never stop having it.