For those of you that thought only the elderly get shingles(Varicella Virus), listen up.
Anyone who has had the chicken pox can get shingles. I am 32 yrs old and had a pretty heavy dose of chicken pox when I was around 10yrs old.
So imagine my confusion when I woke up Saturday morning with a red rash on my left ribcage area. Just underneath my breast there was a scattering of little red bumps that resembled bug bites. While it itched, it also had super-duper sensitivity in that area. Thinking it was bug bites, I went on my merry way.
After a few days of the rash not improving, I saw the doctor. I had began to feel queasy, tired, experienced pain in my back and neck as well as the rash starting to hurt.
He confirmed it. Shingles. I never once considered this diagnosis.
Looking back it all comes together. Having two small children I am always tired, but recently more than usual. Many mornings I had woken up with a stiff neck and back pain. I just brushed it off and kept going about my days the way I usually did.
My rash is fading thanks to medication I started. But the pain and fatigue is still very real. Of course my children now both have the risk of getting chicken pox.
What the real shocker here in this situation is the lack of info on shingles for Moms and nursing Moms. My son is nursing and I was concerned over him contracting the virus and getting chicken pox. Also the effect of the medication on him. I could have gone without the meds and then risked myself getting worse.
After carefully considering it, I started medication. I take the pill right after my son nurses so I have a good 3-4 hours for the medication to break down in my body. He is 8 months old and eating a little bit of solids. This helps to stretch his feedings out. We have been making up for any nursing he wants to do at night.
Since we co-sleep this is not difficult and he nurses in bed. At this point the medication is at a small amount in my body. He can however become infected if he has direct contact with the rash, so I have taken caution while nursing. I keep it covered to prevent him from rubbing up against it.
While I could have gone without the medication, I could have also gotten worse. That would have left me unable to care for my kids. He is not experiencing any side effects at this time, but I am observing him closely.
I hope this helps ease anyone’s mind who is looking for information on breastfeeding and shingles. I had a hard time finding anything so I really felt the need to share my experience.
