Ed Sheeran just shared something that probably surprised a lot of people. The 35-year-old singer revealed he has been dealing with shingles for the last month. "Wouldn't recommend it, but on the mend now," he wrote in a recent Instagram post. And if you are wondering why that is notable, it is because shingles is not something you usually associate with someone his age. This is supposed to be an old person's disease, right? Except it is not always, and Sheeran's case is actually highlighting something more people need to know about.
What Shingles Actually Is
First, the basics. Shingles is caused by the same virus that causes chickenpox—something called the varicella-zoster virus. Here is the thing though: if you had chickenpox as a kid, the virus did not just disappear. It stayed in your body, hanging out in your nerve cells, just waiting. Sometimes decades later, it wakes up and reactivates. When that happens, it is called shingles.
So you cannot really catch shingles from someone else if you have not had chickenpox. But if you have had chickenpox—which is most people in their 30s and older—you are at risk. The virus is already there, just dormant. Which means basically anyone who had chickenpox could get shingles at some point in their life.
Why It Hurts So Much
Shingles causes a painful rash that usually shows up as a stripe of blisters wrapping around one side of your torso. But the pain comes before the rash. People usually get burning, tingling, or sharp pain first—sometimes days before you even see anything on your skin. Then come the blisters, the intense itching, the sensitivity to touch. Some people also get fever, fatigue, headaches, and light sensitivity.
The reason it hurts so much is because the virus reactivates along nerve paths. It is not just a surface-level rash like a regular skin problem. It is irritating the nerves underneath, which is why the pain can be really intense and why people describe it as burning or shooting pain.
What Happens After Shingles
For most people, shingles lasts a couple weeks to a month. But not everyone gets off so easily. The biggest complication is something called postherpetic neuralgia, or PHN. This is where the nerve pain just keeps going—sometimes for months or even years after the rash is gone. For some people, it is debilitating. That is why preventing shingles is actually important, not just about dealing with a bad rash.
Why You Should Care
Sheeran's diagnosis is a reminder that shingles is not just something that happens to elderly people in nursing homes. It can happen to anyone who has had chickenpox. And if you are in your 30s or 40s and have not thought about it, maybe now is the time. If you are 50 or older, the vaccine is something worth talking to your doctor about.
