Getting Chicken Pox as an Adult.

This weekend is my first since I recovered from chicken pox. The varicella infection wasn't too bad -- I researched the disease and found out I needed to take medication within 24 hours of the outbreak so that's what I did.

I went to the Emergency Room on February 4 after work (around 9:30 pm -- had to talk to my team first) and got my prescription, then just had to endure the symptoms for the next two weeks.

My research online tells me the following:

• When are you contagious: first 2 days BEFORE the first pock shows up all the way until all the pocks dry up. It doesn't matter if the scabs haven't fallen off yet, you're good to go. Most people wait until the scabs fall off though because they look ghastly but note that you won't infect other people.
• What to do if you think you have chicken pox: see a doctor and make sure you take the medicine prescribed within 24 hours of the first symptoms (i.e., the horrid pocks). Classic medicine is usually Acyclovir though there are other alternatives now. I got Vacyclovir -- supposedly untested on kids. I took it twice a day for 5 days
• Over-The-Counter Medications: I was advised to take Loratadine, a non-drowsy antihistamine taken once a day for 7 days to help with the itching, and Paracetamol, in case I get fever. I read online that taking Aspirin during a varicella infection is dangerous because it might lead to a complication called Reye's Syndrome. I don't know what that is though. Of course, I also bought 3 bottles of calamine lotion as I didn't know how itchy I was gonna get.
• What I went through: There are other symptoms, but I'll list down what I had -- fever on the second night, abdominal pains for three days, and 37 pocks (the average outbreak is 200 to 250 pocks so I was pretty lucky; you get less than 50 if you take the medication in time). Most of the pocks were on my torso, under my armpits, slightly above my waist, some at my back, some on my legs, and several in my scalp -- none on my face, thank goodness, but I think I had one under my tongue. I accidentally popped one on my leg. You're not supposed to pop it because you may get a bacterial infection and it WILL leave a pockmark (like a small crater) on your skin so I cleaned it and put Betadine on it. I don't think I got a bacterial infection but the scar can't be helped. The pocks I had BEFORE I took Vacyclovir were noticeably bigger and had liquid in them compared to the ones I got AFTER I took the medicine. The others were just small red spots. I stopped getting new pocks on the fourth day and they started drying up and turning black on the fifth and sixth days. My skin was very sensitive from day 11 to 15, otherwise I was okay. I went back to work on day 14. It's now day 17 the scabs have all fallen off though the spots where they used to be are still slightly redder than the rest of me. I read somewhere I'm supposed to slather on sunscreen and stay away from the sun because my skin will be sensitive for a while but I do that normally anyway (I'm one of those who uses an umbrella on a sunny day) so no biggie.
• What I did (besides taking medication): I took showers twice a day to help with the itching, which was tolerable most times, but I hated having an itchy scalp. Good thing I had Clear Anti-Dandruff Shampoo with Cooling Menthol! Woohoo! I used mild soap on my body and dried myself off by patting my towel gently over my body -- no hard rubbing or I might break a pock. I had stopped using body lotion during the duration of the disease but on the 12th day I started putting lotion on my skin around the bigger pocks (which were drying up but still big and ugly) but I put them directly on the smaller ones (they looked like small black spots). It helped with itching as my skin wasn't as dry anymore.

So the Varicella virus now lies dormant in my body, to rise up again as Shingles (otherwise known as Herpes Zoster) if and when my immune system goes down. This just means I have to make sure to take care of my health.

Okay, gotta go now. Hope this post helps adults who get chicken pox. Note though that this is now a PREVENTABLE disease; it's not even a rite of passage for kids like it used to be. There is a vaccine for this. Ask your doctor about it.