I made an appointment for one and the person gave me an information sheet about the shot. It cost $175., it only works on 50% of the people who get it. Since meds and I do not get along, I decided not to take it.

I did get the shot, my Insurance did pay for it, $300. I called them twice to make sure they would before I got it. I didn't even have a sore arm..

The CDC has a lot of good information about Shingles and the vaccine. Now that I'm 60 my insurance will cover the shot. So I'll be getting it soon.

Here is a link that might be useful: Shingles, vaccine

Maire, the pictures at that link are quite a motivator!

The Rx the Dr.s give you once you have the shingles can cause you to hallucinate, lose balance, extreme jitters, and a whole list of things. My DGM got them inside her mouth, ears, nose, stomach... Ten of DGM contemporaries got shingles within 6 months of each-other even though they were all home bound and kept in touch by phone, within 14 months DGM was the only one still living. The Dr. told DM it was very likely the ONLY reason my DGM survived was because DM started her on L-Lysine, which helps keep viral infections in remission.

Talk to your Dr., then GET THE SHOT.

L.MARIE

I had the shot and had no reaction at all.and it was completely covered by insurance. Too many people in my family had shingles. I would never take the risk. My aunt lost her eyesight and was hospitalized for two weeks.

I had it--absolutely no side effects, and Medicare covers it.

I cannot have it due to my RA med, Enbrel. I was just talking to my endo about it when he was giving me my flu vaccine. Things may change in the next 2 years....but since it is a live vaccine and Enbrel suppresses the immune system taking it could actually give me shingles.

My Medicare would not cover mine. I was told only prescription coverage would and I don't have that.

My brother got shingles in his eye and has truly SUFFERED greatly with it and now it has gone on so long, he will always have the pain to some degree.

Scared me silly after seeing what he has gone through...meds and me don't agree, BUT I went for it--cost was over $200 (I am on limited income and no insurance) and I GLADLY paid it.

It was the tiniest needle I ever saw and never felt a thing and even if I still get shingles it won't be as severe as my brother's, so IT WAS WORTH IT!

nola anne

I will get it as soon as I turn 60. My husband works in Radition Therapy and says that if you ever have to undergo Chemotherapy, that shingles are a side affect. We had a relative who got them that way and he was in so much pain.
I think it is a better safe than sorry situation. I would get it even if my insurance doesn't pay for it. Shingles can go away and come back many times on different parts of your body.

Lynn, thank you for the reminder that Enbral and shingles vaccine do not go together. My family seems to be "gifted" with RA on their 50th birthday. Since I already have an autoimmune disease I have a much higher likelihood of developing RA. I may need to investigate getting the shingles vaccine before 50 just to give a bit of protection.

If a person has already HAD the shingles, do they still need to get the shot??
Many thanks for any information, my Dr. is undecided :^(

I had shingles once -- a light case and caught in the 72-hour window where drugs for herpes are effective.

DH and I both got the vaccine. Our Medicare secondary insurance paid for it then, but I believe Medicare will now pay for it as part of the Obama health care law requiring coverage for 'preventive' care.

I'd have paid out of pocket to avoid getting this; to at least have a better *chance* of not getting it; or to possibly experience less severe shingles if I did get it.

I got my shingles vaccine a few years ago and paid a $48 co-pay. That was before I was on Medicare. Best $48 I have ever spent. I remember when my mom had shingles and I certainly would not want to get them.

My Mother had shingles once already and it was so hard on her. RA and OA run heavily in our family, she has it as well as myself and my 2 sisters. I am definitely interested in getting the shot but it has to be up to my docs to tell me if I can with all the meds I take. I have other auto immune diseases, besides the RA and OA, so it will definitely have to be discussed.

Singles isn't necessarily a side effect of Chemotherapy - it's the fact that your immune system is compromised due to the chemo and you're more susceptible to a number of infections.

I had shingles this year and got the anti-viral meeds in time to avoid herpetic neuropathy. My MD did not recommend the vaccine for me as only 5% get it a second time. He said he was more concerned about a reaction to the vaccine than the chance I would have it again. I must say though that during the time I had shingles, I would gladly have stuck out my arm for the vaccine.

Unbelievable, but my 19 year old daughter got Shingles. She had a rash on her stomach, went to a dermatologist, all they could do was prescribe was painkillers.

Just to clarify the connection between RA and not taking the shingles vaccine (in my case) is the medication Enbrel. This medication suppresses the immune system, because of that patients are more susceptible to the live culture in the vaccine. RA itself doesn't cause the issue, RA is due to an overactive immune system.

My sister also got shingles when she was 19. It was very painful for her.

Yep, Lynn. My dad is on Enbrel now and is constantly fighting cold sores because of the medication weakening his immune system. They tried him on another medication but it didn't do any good- turns out he now has RA and OA. Thanks for clarifying since others might have been confused!

I am not an expert by any means. I am 45 and my Mother passed away in November 2009. Lots of stress. In January 2010 I thought I had a chemical burn on my temple - I used haircolor, that I had used many times previously but this time I thought, for whatever reason, it burned my skin (never had before). It was extremely painful - woke me up at night, painful all the time. I called the dermologoist & told her I thought it was a chemical burn. They told me to use neosporin on it and that made it worse. I then went to see my dermotologist & she told me she thought it was shingles - she prescribed a painkiller & said at this stage I was lucky because shingles runs along nerve lines & it could have effected my vision. I was lucky because it had not progressed - I only had 1 shingle.

In May 2010 my older brother - age 58 - thought he had multiple mosquito or other bug bites along the mid point of his back - it was shingles.

Apparently shingles erupts when you are under stress, and that is my experience. I would get the vaccine if I could - if I have already had shingles I don't know if I can or not.

What I have read is that you can only have shingles once, but you can have severe pain episodes later. I researched it when the doc recommended I get it. I know one woman that had it and she was always up tight.

I double checked about getting it more than once. The article said you can years later. I guess research results aren't always be accurate.

It depends which research articles you read Vala. It's not just years later - many things can trigger an attack.

My grandmother, now 99, has had shingles 6 times. All were incredibly painful, and most of her bouts were when she was a younger adult - 45 - 65. She got the vaccine about 15 years ago (I think), and has since had 2 very mild cases.

The vaccine won't prevent every case. It can alleviate much of the suffering, though.