I know you can't get chicken pox twice and basically once you've had it, the virus is always in your system, it just lays dormant or something. If it resurfaces, it does so as shingles, which is considerably worse and more painful, as it is the inflammation of a nerve, or so I believe (don't quote me!).

As far as I knew, you couldn't catch shingles from somebody like you can chicken pox, but I'm not 100% certain. I'd definitely ask the Doc about that one to be on the safe side.

Lesley - as for your thing about coldsores, I have been told that cold sores (don't get grossed out or anything here) are actually part of the herpes family of virus. Like chicken pox, the virus lays dormant in your body and quite often resurfaces when people are stressed, run down etc. It's a different thing to chicken pox, but works in a similar way IYKWIM.