So 2 days ago I woke up with a random itchy rash. It was about 1.5" in diameter, about 4" to the right of, and 2" below my belly button. I also have some swollen things where my leg meets my abdomen, which I can only assume are inflamed lymph nodes.

I was really concerned until I looked it up on the internet. Apparently it's nothing to worry about. But I thought I'd check with TWW, you know, just to be sure it's not AIDS.

2/16/2012 3:41:03 PM

did you have chickenpox as a kid?

2/16/2012 4:47:05 PM

Could also be this:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scabies

2/16/2012 4:48:39 PM

teh herp

2/16/2012 4:48:58 PM

shingles is supposed to be painful as hell...If you had it, you'd probably know it.

2/16/2012 4:49:34 PM

Pics or it didn't happen

2/16/2012 4:55:49 PM

^^^^^ Yes, as an infant. I vaguely remember reading that makes it more likely to get shingles later. It also makes it more likely if you're over 60, but the Wikipedia article seems to be filled with pictures of young people, so it still fits the narrative.

^^^^ huh, I have to say, the rash pattern looks a lot more like shingles than this, but I'll find out eventually I guess. It's almost a little bizarre how it's just a solid tennis-ball area and nothing else. You would think that I would have spread it all over my body and everyone else by now.

^ I thought I'd let in enough posts so that it would be a scroll down first.

[Edited on February 16, 2012 at 4:59 PM. Reason : ]

2/16/2012 4:57:58 PM

Quote :

"If you had it, you'd probably know it."

From what I understand, it is pretty debilitating.

2/16/2012 4:59:41 PM

well i'm not debilitated so...

...

2/16/2012 5:01:11 PM

I am just curious, how did you arrive at Shingles as your diagnosis? It's really rare in people as young as you. And by really rare I mean REALLY rare. The location of your issue makes it even more rare.

[Edited on February 16, 2012 at 5:04 PM. Reason : a]

2/16/2012 5:03:55 PM

i think I googled inflamed lymph nodes and rash

2/16/2012 5:08:23 PM

Oh ok, makes sense then. You have Shingles

2/16/2012 5:11:31 PM

i think you can only get shingles if you've had chickenpox first. it's like a flare-up of the same virus.

your description doesn't really sound like that's it though. it could be a number of things: hives, ringworm, contact dermatitis, etc. it doesn't sound like scabies either though.

2/16/2012 5:28:58 PM

Are you sure it's not just an unfortunately placed spider bite?

2/16/2012 5:45:47 PM

it's Shingles

2/16/2012 5:57:46 PM

Quote :

"hives, ringworm, contact dermatitis, etc"

Now, here's shingles from wikipedia, a day 2 picture



day 2 for me



[Edited on February 16, 2012 at 6:05 PM. Reason : ]

2/16/2012 6:04:26 PM

I had a rash that was sort of like that after I moved and the dermatologist prescribed a cream that took care of it. His guess was that while I was moving I brushed up against something that irritated my skin.

2/16/2012 6:15:00 PM

Get off the internet and go to the doctor

2/16/2012 6:15:08 PM

Shingles! I got it last year, but not that bad.

Go to the doctor ASAP. They'll give you some steroid cream to help with the itchiness/pain and then you get the same pills they prescribe for herpes!

The longer you wait, the more of those bumps will appear. And yes, they do scar.

2/16/2012 6:21:58 PM

Quote :

"then you get the same pills they prescribe for herpes!"

because it is herpes

2/16/2012 6:25:00 PM

oh i know

but it seems so much worse when your valtrex prescription to the hot girl working the pharmacy counter.

2/16/2012 6:29:49 PM

That could be shingles. The rash is in a vaguely dermatomal pattern and you have had chicken pox. The sooner you can begin antiviral treatment, the better. Shingles can become very painful, as it is an infection of your nerve. There is also a small risk of permanent neuralgia, even after the rash is gone.

You may also want to consider why you would be getting shingles. It is rare in a young, healthy person. If you have been taking immunosuppressants, that would explain it. It could also just be a random, shit happens kind of event ...

[Edited on February 16, 2012 at 6:37 PM. Reason : if you don't want the girl at CVS to think you have an STD, there are cheaper drugs that also work, you just have to take them five times a day instead of three times a day]

[Edited on February 16, 2012 at 6:40 PM. Reason : ]

2/16/2012 6:35:52 PM

It's an interesting infection kind of thing.

At first I attributed the majority of the discomfort I felt to the inflamed lymph nodes (or whatever bulge under my skin that was, I'm pretty sure they're supposed to be there though).

The only time I had a problem with scratching was when I was sleeping. All other times it didn't bother me enough that I even felt the need to scratch.

I suppose I will need to go look into that herp derp cream.

2/16/2012 7:28:47 PM

What would be the precise definition of an "open sore"?

When I look at an area of skin that is healing, what differentiates whether it has open sores or not?

2/18/2012 12:10:31 PM

rub some dirt on it

2/18/2012 12:26:56 PM

Windex.

2/18/2012 12:48:57 PM

I had a very mild case of shingles around Christmas. It started out with the skin around my abdomen/back area feeling like it had been sunburnt. It was just an odd sensation that was painful but not the worst ever. It was definitely tingly and hurt when clothes pulled tight against it. Then after about 4 days i started getting a rash that basically went from my navel to mid-back. It itched and hurt (still with that sunburn feeling). The bumps eventually scabbed over with this weird dark scab. It completely cleared up in about three weeks.

2/18/2012 12:49:16 PM

Were you rolling around in the grass or walking through a forest?

Or did this happen in bed?

2/18/2012 2:47:24 PM

2/18/2012 8:04:05 PM

I actually ended up having shingles when I was a kid instead of chicken pox...you would DEFINITELY know if you had shingles..I was out of school for a few weeks

2/21/2012 9:28:39 PM

TWW doctors and self diagnosing ITT. I give you the biggest

Quote :

"I vaguely remember reading that [chickenpox] makes it more likely to get shingles later."

Quote :

"You would think that I would have spread it all over my body and everyone else by now."

In other words, you're saying you have no idea what shingles is, yet you're self diagnosing? Follow the advice in this thread and go to the doctor.

[Edited on February 22, 2012 at 8:54 AM. Reason : ]

2/22/2012 8:51:12 AM

or maybe you just used fabric softener?

2/22/2012 8:55:56 AM

Typically, only those with weakened immune systems end up with Shingles. If you have a Shingles outbreak at your age, unless you've recently been pregnant or had some major health issue, you need to go to the doctor because it could be a sign that you have something far more serious going on.

2/22/2012 10:24:12 AM

that creamed chipped beef looks delicious

2/22/2012 12:44:24 PM

I bet it's scabies

2/22/2012 2:03:19 PM

so it's been almost a week. did you go to the doctor? did you figure out what it is??

2/22/2012 2:34:32 PM

Ebola?

5/14/2012 4:12:08 PM

first pic you posted actually looks more like chiggers or bed bugs to me. I stayed at a shitty hotel a couple weeks while training for work and got these itching bumps on my legs that would drive me crazy and hung around forever and the doc said it was that and gave me a Rx some heavy duty cortisone cream.

5/14/2012 4:22:51 PM

On a related note, I just had a few shingles replaced on my roof.

5/14/2012 4:23:41 PM

You should get tested for HIV pronto.

[Edited on May 14, 2012 at 10:50 PM. Reason : w]

5/14/2012 10:48:57 PM

Chiggers make you want to scratch your legs off, even with the application of aloe, anti itch cream, and the like. I finally had to go on steroid cream in order for the itching to stop, and had some red spots up to 3" in diameter. People stopped me to ask what was wrong with my legs- I couldn't wear pants because it made the itching worse.
If you're lucky, they won't scar.

Not fun times.

5/15/2012 12:13:38 PM

This Was the first vaccine I ever gave to a patient! And in order to be licsensed you have to take several classes on the diseases. Shingles was a huge one.

You have to have had chicken pox to get shingles. It's believed that the virus "hides" in the CNS and reactivates later on in life.
It starts (usually) with a band around the waist.
And the pain varies between people.

[Edited on May 18, 2012 at 10:28 AM. Reason : a lot of the people here have mentioned what I was going to say :p]

5/18/2012 10:26:50 AM