I am a 57 year old female, 5' 3, 118 lbs. I have a recurring rash...it first started on a 3 inch band on my waist, right at the top of my slacks. It would itch like crazy, I would scratch and break open the skin, and little scabs would form and within a week it was usually gone. As it returns every month or two, the rash (about 3 inches in total area) is lower and more in the groin. When it itches, it looks like hives- red raised area with welts, which goes away, leaving red bumps. I ocasionally have cold sores, but this doesn't hurt or burn like a cold sore, and the spots don't look like the cold sore bumps on my lip. Does this sound like shingles? I do get anxious a lot. A dermatologist looked at it a couple years ago and said it wasn't shingles and thought I might be allergic to something. Benedryl seems to help. It doesn't hurt...the itch just comes and goes. It's always on the same side of my body, usually close to where it was previously.