I’ve been experiencing back pain over the last week or so. At first, I thought it was due to a mosquito or bug bite on my back. Yesterday, I noticed the pain was getting worse, and the redness had spread to the front of my body as well. Today, I went to the doctor again, and he diagnosed me with shingles, which is a reactivation of the same virus that causes chicken pox.

I always thought only old people get shingles, but there’s apparently a trend in younger people in the last few years as well. I hope the symptoms don’t get too serious, but I’m not too hopeful. It’s already gotten a lot worse since yesterday, and I had to lie down for half an hour today because it was very difficult to focus on work with the pain and fatigue. I ended up sleeping for about 15 minutes, and was drenched in sweat when I woke up. I feel better now, so maybe the pain comes in waves. Anyway, the doctor prescribed some antiviral medication for me, so hopefully that’ll help me recover faster.

After this is over, I need to review my commitments because stress may be a trigger for shingles. My baseline stress level has been elevated for the past few months from trying to raise a baby during the COVID-19 crisis, so I wouldn’t be surprised if stress was the cause of this shingles episode.