Understanding Shingles Through Personal Experience

Ann Garner, like many others, thought shingles was just a minor ailment—until she experienced it firsthand in 2024. Had she known that Norwegians refer to shingles as helvetesild, or “hell’s fire,” perhaps she would have been more prepared for the ordeal ahead.

Shingles, medically known as herpes zoster, is a viral infection that can result in a painful skin rash and may lead to post-herpetic neuralgia (PHN), a form of chronic nerve pain that can linger for years. The term “shingles” comes from the Latin word for “girdle,” reflecting how the rash typically appears around the torso, though it can also affect the face and eyes, as Ann discovered.

It’s estimated that one in three people will develop shingles during their lifetime, with the odds increasing significantly once one turns 50, or if they have a compromised immune system. The illness is triggered by the reactivation of the varicella zoster virus—the same virus that causes chickenpox. This virus can remain dormant in a person’s nervous system for an extended period, only to reactivate when immunity decreases due to age, certain medications, or even acute stress.

At 73, Ann, who is a retired pharmacy administrator from Wales, believes that stress played a pivotal role in her shingles episode. She was grappling with intense pressure from a hefty tax bill when, one July afternoon, she felt an unusual tingling sensation just above her forehead along her hairline.

That sensation quickly escalated into severe pain, radiating down her face towards one eye. “It felt like hundreds of tiny hot needles prickling my scalp and face,” she remembers vividly.

Medical professionals suggested Ann take acyclovir, an antiviral medication that can mitigate symptoms if administered within a 72-hour timeframe from the onset of the rash. She was also prescribed acyclovir eye cream to safeguard her eye, since shingles can potentially cause serious vision issues, even blindness.

However, despite following medical advice, Ann’s face and eyelid soon became engulfed in a fiery red rash accompanied by painful blisters. “I felt like I was being tortured by burning needles,” she describes. “It was as if my nerves were electrified, fizzing and sparking.”

Although shingles is relatively common, public understanding seems to have only fairly recently begun to match the reality of its severity. A 2025 study from the University of Bristol highlights the gaps in public health messaging and the lack of patient experience communication, with researchers noting that many people often view shingles as trivial until they face it themselves.

Furthermore, I think a lot of people might not grasp just how profoundly shingles can impact their lives. Martin Sollie, a consultant plastic surgeon at Oslo University Hospital, studies chronic pain management related to shingles and emphasizes how the disease can significantly degrade one’s quality of life. In 2022, he spearheaded a systematic review on the subject.

His meta-analysis, which examined 2,519 patients across several countries including the US and China, revealed that those with acute shingles had quality-of-life scores around 15% below the physical health norm and 13% below the mental health norm. “We were pretty surprised by how much it affected quality of life,” he comments. Although it’s known that enduring chronic pain can diminish life quality, it’s unusual for a temporary, non-fatal illness to have such a major impact.