Shingles is not contagious. As a matter of fact everyone already has it dormant In their system. Commonly it outbursts after the age of 60 or so but in some cases it happens at a younger age. I had it at 23 and it was one of the most painful n uncomfortable things.

Incorrect. Shingles itself is not contagious, but is the the herpes zoster virus, as in the same strain as Chicken Pox. Shingles is a reemergence of the illness. That said, exposing someone who has neither vaccine to an active instance of the illness can infect a new person with chicken pox, or trigger a relapse in someone who has had chicken pod but not the shingles vaccine, causing them to manifest the symptoms of shingles. So no, not everyone has it, yes there are vaccines, and if you are in the at-risk group you should consider getting one, barring anything that makes you at risk for negative reactions to vaccines. If you've had shingles previously, you should discuss if you are still a candidate for vaccination as shingles victims are at risk for relapse.

Per the CDC: Shingles cannot be passed from one person to another. However, the virus that causes shingles, the varicella zoster virus, can be spread from a person with active shingles to another person who has never had chickenpox. In such cases, the person exposed to the virus might develop chickenpox, but they would not develop shingles. The virus is spread through direct contact with fluid from the rash blisters caused by shingles.

It was minor, one blister and a load of swelling It's just a scab now, so back to work in a few days!

It's not a nice thing to have! I've been off of work for 2 weeks now

My apologies, but I couldn't resist. Hope your quality of life doesn't suffer too much from them.

Don't worry, I found it funny! It's nearly gone now

You do know that it will stay inactive with you for the rest of your life, with the ability to become active and cause another bout of shingles at any time?

Per the CDC: Shingles cannot be passed from one person to another. However, the virus that causes shingles, the varicella zoster virus, can be spread from a person with active shingles to another person who has never had chickenpox. In such cases, the person exposed to the virus might develop chickenpox, but they would not develop shingles. The virus is spread through direct contact with fluid from the rash blisters caused by shingles.

Exactly. The lack of education in people these days is seriously disturbing. Thankfully, I have a grandmother who's been a nurse for over 35 years. I know it's not the same as a doctor. But she has multiple degrees, and she's a lot more knowledgeable than younger doctors. So I'm grateful for her and to learn all that I can. All though to actually use this myself, I'd need a degree myself.

Per the CDC: Shingles cannot be passed from one person to another. However, the virus that causes shingles, the varicella zoster virus, can be spread from a person with active shingles to another person who has never had chickenpox. In such cases, the person exposed to the virus might develop chickenpox, but they would not develop shingles. The virus is spread through direct contact with fluid from the rash blisters caused by shingles.