Sen. Feinstein says she's home from hospital and recovering from shingles

[RandySF]

California Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein — the oldest member of Congress — said Tuesday that she has returned home from the hospital where she was being treated for shingles.

“I want to thank everyone for the well wishes and the hospital staff for providing excellent care,” she tweeted. “I’m recovering at home now while I continue receiving treatment and look forward to returning to the Senate as soon as possible.”

Feinstein, who announced last month that she would not seek reelection in 2024, said in a statement last week that she had sought treatment at a San Francisco hospital. Since her diagnosis during recess, Feinstein, 89, was not present for several roll call votes and a high-profile Judiciary Committee hearing with Attorney General Merrick Garland.

Shingles, which is not life-threatening is a viral infection that causes a painful rash. About 1 in 3 Americans will get shingles during their lifetime.


https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/03/07/feinstein-california-senate-shingles/

[Effete Snob]

1. "Shingles, which is not life-threatening..."

Ugh. I had it in a very awful spot, too. Terrible affliction.

For what was she hospitalized? I can't think of a hospital in the country that would admit a patient for shingles.

[mucifer]

2. I have a relative who got it in his vocal cords and for months couldn't swallow .He had to

get a feeding tube. He was in his 50s MUCH younger than Di Fi. Luckily he recovered and got the tube taken out. He was hospitalized for a week from the shingles.

[Effete Snob]

3. Wow

I didn't realize you could get it internally. ugh.

[Hekate]

11. A second-cousin's wife had a case that attacked her brain. She was not the same after...

They were my mom’s age.

I’m sure that’s rare, but what a horror complications can be.

Just about everybody got chickenpox before vaccinations — hell, my own kids got it when they were preschoolers back in the early 1980s. Shingles will still be with us for quite awhile.

[Haggard Celine]

4. I don't envy her.

I've had shingles twice and it was awful, although the first time I had them was a lot worse. In the time between the first and second bouts they had developed some anti-viral drugs, which were given to me and the second time wasn't really that bad. But that first time really made an impression. I had these huge blisters around my waist and they were painful to touch, but someone had to touch them to rub on the salve they gave me. It gave me some bad scars on my back for a long time. They said my back looked like raw hamburger meat.

[mcar]

5. Shingles sucks

I had random severe pain for a year after. Was glad to get the vaccine last year.

[Farmer-Rick]

6. They have a vaccine for that

I wonder why she didn't get it?

I had just gotten the shingles vaccine when a friend got shingles. I went to visit her and I was fine though shingles is just the reactivation of the chicken pox virus. So, not sure if you are exposed to shingles you are more likely to get it or not. Either way I was fine and never got any symptoms.

I saw how awful the pain was for my friend. OMG, it is horrible. The leading cause of suicide from pain is due to shingles.

Also if it breaks out in your eyes or face it can lead blindness or other complications.

It is a horrible disease. Get your vaccine if you have had chicken pox.

[DURHAM D]

7. I can not read the article. It is behind a paywall.

Does the article state she did not get the vaccine? You can still get it even if you have had the vaccine.

btw - I have a cousin who has not had the shot as he was advised not go get it for some reason. So far he has been lucky.

[Farmer-Rick]

9. Yeah, the older vaccine had its problems

The new vaccine that I got back in 2018 was supposed to solve those problems and is more effective. It is considered safer for compromised immune systems.

Yeah, you can still get it after getting the vaccine....they aren't 100%.

[Hortensis]

8. Feinstein was vaccinated against it, Farmer. Glad to see all these posts

about how awful sequelae can be if it causes nerve damage.

My husband has had temporal arteritis, each episode quickly following extreme, uncontrolled emotion; the pain was dreadful, and once I pointed the possible correlation out we've had no more outbreaks of either.

It's downright shocking to learn that post-shingles pain is the leading cause of pain-related suicide in elderly patients. My husband says he can believe it.

[Farmer-Rick]

10. Oh did she? Good for her

They aren't 100%...too bad.

Sorry to hear about your husband. That pain my friend had makes me keep my vaccines up to date.