assuming you do have shingles (your description was not convincing) a person must have had chicken pox in the past. a new exposure to someone with chicken pox may give you shingles (herpes zoster). since chicken pox is contagious a day before many people do not know who exposed them 2 or 3 weeks prior. chicken pox (varicella) is very contagious by direct contact or fomites (objects contaminated by the varicella virus. shingles is really the same virus but fortunately not as contagious. one can get it by direct exposure however. chances are if you have lived in the us for most of your life you have been exposed to chicken pox even if you didn't show symptoms. the virus remains dormant in your body and then reactivates as shingles - any more questions contact your local pharmacy. pharmacists are very educated on shingles and there is a vaccination for it as well which is recommended for anyone over 50. 1 out of 3 people will get shingles in their lifetime. 20 years ago my husband and i both got shingles at the same time i was 36 and he was 56. we had just moved out of an apartment complex where there was at least 10 cases of chicken pox with the little kids. i had chicken pox as a child but my husband said he did not. when we asked the dr. he said it is not contagious that when my husband was little he probably had a minor case and no one knew. i asked how that could happen. my doc says when one person gets chicken pox the next person to get can be so minor they only get 1 or 2 chicken pox and go on never knowing they had it or the virus
how is shingles contagious. when i saw my doctor about a small bump on my arm she said i had the shingles virus. i did not have a rash anywhere on my body. i never had chicken pox but did have measles as a child. i searched the web for an answer but they were confusing. one person said that shingles is contagious and another says that its not. i got a blood test and she said i had the virus. my question is if it is contagious how was it transmitted to me. she said i was exposed who had chicken pox when i was child. help.