Diving after Shingles

[KenGordon]

Thanks. I did look at DAN's Europe website, but I'm not a member and they state that 'specialised medical advice is reserved to active DAN members', which is understandable.

Talk to Oliver Firth. https://www.hyperdive.co.uk/

 

[Graeme Fraser]

This won't answer Graeme's question, but it may serve as a warning for others out there.

I felt as if I had cut my head somehow, in my scalp. I wondered how on Earth I had done that, but when my wife looked at it, she did not see a thing. Later that day, I was walking across a parking lot and a light breeze blew my hair a little. It hurt. I am usually quite the opposite of a hypochondriac, but if there is anything I know about medicine, it is that a light breeze blowing your hair should not hurt. I immediately called the doctor and got an appointment for a couple hours later, although not with my regular doctor. I told the nurse what had happened, and I believe she thought I was crazy. When I told the doctor, though, he immediately diagnosed shingles and put me on antivirals. He said that by getting on them so very early (within 24 hours of the first mild symptom), I had a good chance of beating it, and I did. My case was extremely mild.

Warnings:

• I always thought of shingles as a disease of the elderly, but I know people who have gotten it in their 20s-40s, with some of the cases pretty severe.
• When you get some strange symptom and you realize it is not normal (like a breeze hurting your hair; a rash appearing for no apparent reason), don't ignore it. Pay attention, and don't wait until things get severe. If you catch it early, you may escape a lot of pain.
• Get the vaccine!

Yes I'm afraid I did the typical bloke thing of shrugging it off as nothing. In hindsight an earlier call to the doc would've nipped it in the bud much sooner. Lesson learnt and all that.

BTW, I know exactly what you mean about even a slight breeze hurting. Even the bedsheets feel like sandpaper.

 

[Jcp2]

I had shingles twice, once as an infant, once in college. I never had a documented case of chickenpox so is likely I had some sort of in utero exposure. The nerve of that virus!

 

[Duke Dive Medicine]

Hi @Graeme Fraser ,

The blisters shed the virus, so you should avoid contact with anyone who hasn't had chicken pox. Recommend you avoid diving if the skin is not intact. Once the skin is healed over, you should be fine.

Highly recommend you speak with your practitioner about the vaccine. Here's a blurb from the US Centers for Disease Control: Shingrix Shingles Vaccination | What You Should Know | CDC

Best regards,
DDM

 

[Graeme Fraser]

Hi @Graeme Fraser ,

The blisters shed the virus, so you should avoid contact with anyone who hasn't had chicken pox. Recommend you avoid diving if the skin is not intact. Once the skin is healed over, you should be fine.

Highly recommend you speak with your practitioner about the vaccine. Here's a blurb from the US Centers for Disease Control: Shingrix Shingles Vaccination | What You Should Know | CDC

Best regards,
DDM

Thank you for your advice @Duke Dive Medicine I'm just at the scabby stage now so will certainly leave it a bit longer till the skin has healed.

Definitely going to get the vaccine as you and others have suggested.

 

[RyanT]

No advice, just wishing you a speedy recovery Graeme!

 

[Graeme Fraser]

No advice, just wishing you a speedy recovery Graeme!

Thank you Ryan. On the plus side I had a good excuse not to dig the garden up last week, although I think the wife's starting to get suspicious .

 

[Altamira]

A lot of people don't pay as much attention to Shingles as they should. After getting the old Shingles vaccine, I had a pretty mild case isolated to hip and thigh, but a good friend of mine lost an eye because the virus attacked her face. Now I have the new Shingrix vaccine, and am hoping I miss a repeat bout of the virus. Even a mild case was not fun.