Shingles Stories

Shingles is most common in adults over 50, and it is estimated that over 100,000 Australians develop shingles every year.1 What is it like to have shingles? Discover what others have experienced below.

Nicole's story
"It hurt to touch. It affected the clothes that I could wear on my body."
Nicole
had shingles at 53
Jeremy's story
"I never thought that I would get shingles in a million years. I'm super fit and healthy."
Jeremy
had shingles at 49
Anton’s story
"Shingles to me, was something that older people get, not people in their 50s."
Anton
had shingles at 55
Jasmine's story
"I think it was such a shock, because I didn't think I could get shingles. I was healthy, in my 50s."
Jasmine
had shingles at 57
"There are two different types of pain. One is a pain from the rash. And then there's what I'm told is the nerve pain, which can sometimes be like a sharp shooting pain."
Anonymous
Pamela's story
"I was going to retire and go travelling but I’m stuck here with shingles, and this pain. I just can’t go anywhere."
Pamela
had shingles at 56
Roz's story
"Because it was around my waist, and my back, everything that my body touched just exploded in pain... it was just horrible."
Roz
had shingles in her 50s
Peter's story
"I was one of these people that believed it’s not going to affect me."
Peter
had shingles in his 60s
Maxine's story
"The pain had intensified to the point where I couldn’t function. It’s really hard. It controls your whole life."
Maxine
had shingles at 56
Chandini's story
"I still feel like it has affected my vision a little bit... and also I keep getting tingling pains now and then and sometimes, I just feel a sense of numbness on the right side of my face."
Chandini
had shingles in her 50s
Beverly's story
"I couldn’t actually function. I had these spots that disrupted my whole life. I was scared of the pain."
Beverly
had shingles in her 50s

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