Let's talk infectious diseases, the reason for vaccines: ᶜʰⁱᶜᵏᵉⁿ ᴾᵒˣ ⁽ⱽᵃʳⁱᶜᵉˡˡᵃ⁾

Chickenpox is caused by the highly contagious varicella zoster virus. Varicella is a herpes virus, putting it in the same family as the organisms that cause infections such as genital herpes and cold sores or fever blisters. Unlike other viruses, after a bout of chickenpox is over, the varicella virus hangs around in the nervous system rather than disappearing from the body.

Viruses such as varicella make people sick by invading healthy cells and using them to multiply, so when the body's immune system detects the presence of a virus in the body, it kicks into action, setting off symptoms that can be unpleasant but are designed to fight off infection. So, although a specific virus is the cause of chickenpox infection, the symptoms are brought on by the unique way the immune system responds to the virus.

It is characterized by itchy red blisters that appear all over the body. It is spread by coughing and sneezing, and by direct contact with blisters. The infection will have to be in your body for around seven to 21 days before the rash and other symptoms develop. You start to be contagious to those around you up to 48 hours before the skin rash starts to occur.

The non-rash symptoms may last a few days and include:

▪️fever

▪️headache

▪️loss of appetite

One or two days after you experience these symptoms, the classic rash will begin to develop. The rash goes through three phases before you recover. These include:

▪️You develop red or pink bumps all over your body.

▪️The bumps become blisters filled with fluid that leaks.

▪️The bumps become crusty, scab over, and begin to heal.

The bumps on your body will not all be in the same phase at the same time. New bumps will continuously appear throughout your infection. The rash may be very itchy, especially before it scabs over with a crust.

You are still contagious until all the blisters on your body have scabbed over. The crusty scabbed areas eventually fall off. It takes seven to 14 days to disappear completely.

{You can find all the sources I used by clicking here.}