answer:Shingles, or herpes zoster, is a painful skin rash caused by the chickenpox virus. It usually starts as pain, tingling, or burning on one side of the body and can progress to very painful blisters on the skin. My mom has had shingles and will have a flare up, usually on the right side of her torso, when she’s really stressed out. I had vulvar pain that went unexplained for several months. When I explained the sensation to my mother, she was convinced it was shingles. It wasn’t, but knowing that’s what she feels with shingles makes me glad my problem was treatable. Just feeling clothes touch the area was extremely painful. Ouch. As for advice, stress relief exercises as a preventative measure if stress causes a flare up.