Shingles is a skin rash that develops on half of the body, in a belt-like pattern.
Most of the time, shingles is very painful. Sometimes the pain from shingles starts several days before the rash appears. Fortunately, in most cases the pain of shingles gradually disappears over several weeks or months. Most people with shingles will have no pain or just a little pain one year after the rash. Chicken pox is caused by the varicella zoster virus, a herpes type of virus.