Democratic California Senator Dianne Feinstein suffered serious complications in her battle against shingles that kept her away from the Senate for two months, the New York Times reports. The 89-year-old suffered from encephalitis, a swelling of the brain, a condition suffered by some shingles patients that can lead to memory loss, confusion, insomnia, and other issues–perhaps evident in Feinstein’s recent interactions with reporters where she insisted she had been active in the Senate when she had been under medical care in California. Feinstein also contracted Ramsay Hunt Syndrome which impacts the nerves around the ears and can cause twitches, numbness and hearing loss.