So there's this annoying commercial on television that plays all the time, trying to convince people to get the Shingles vaccine. Never really gave it much thought, honestly. I'm beginning to think I should have. About two weeks ago, I woke up from a nightmare at 3 in the morning with my back on fire. I honestly thought I'd slipped a disc. It wasn't until two days ago, after developing an odd rash on my chest, that my doctor explained reality to me. That back pain was the initial sign of the shingles virus, embedded in the muscles in my mid-back. I've got a rash that wraps from mid-chest, in a band about three inches tall, across my right side to my back. Apparently, it infects a band of muscles on your body, and if not kept in check quickly, can spread even wider than that. Now, I've had other injuries and illnesses. I've dislocated my shoulder, broken bones in my feet, had arthritis and ACTUALLY slipped a disc before. So far, I think this is more painful and unpleasant than ANY of those.

Imagine this: Take that area affected by the virus. Now, pick 20 spots in that area, mostly on my chest but some across the back, under my arm, and so forth. Those spots feel like someone is jabbing a thick needle into my body at random intervals. When they don't hurt in sharp jabs, any area with the rash has that low-grade painful burning kind of feel you get when you scrape a few layers of skin off. ADDITIONALLY, the entire area also ITCHES like nobody's business! Unless you SCRATCH it, then all the itching turns into that painful burning, only more so.

Now remember that this started in my back. Directly opposite the rash on my chest is a muscle in my back that has been infected by the virus. That muscle is tensed up and won't UN-tense on its own, sending spikes of pain through my back when I try to move, and exhaustion and a deep throbbing ache when I'm not moving.

If THAT wasn't enough, remember this is a single muscle group - at random intervals, the pain spikes from the rash on my chest will sync up with the pain spikes from the muscle in my back and send a sharp jab of pain directly THROUGH my body, from front to back, going directly through my right LUNG. When that happens, my breath is forced from my lungs in a gasping burst of shock that makes my wife think I'm annoyed or irritated, when in reality I'm having issues catching my breath.

To summarize: Painful, itchy, bleeding rash on chest; deep ache in muscle on back; rash under my arm; spikes of pain in my lungs. Anything else? Oh yeah, I can't SLEEP more than four hours at a time because of this, so I'm exhausted and sleep deprived on top of everything else. The shocks of pain through my lung is mucking with my asthma as well.

So given all that, you'll understand what I mean when I say that muscle relaxants, however mild, are my friend right now. The doctor gave me a big freaking horse-pill to bring the actual virus under control, which does seem to be working. He also gave me a mild muscle relaxant. With the tensed muscle in my back relaxed, the pain in my back is mostly gone. The shocks through my chest are mostly gone. Most importantly, I can SLEEP now. Really, it is amazing how much better a good night sleep will make you feel. :)