SundayMorning81

@Grace78 I had my first outbreak in November 2022. I haven't gone 1 week without an OB since and have taken 1g Valtrex daily since December because that's all doctors can think to do in possibly helping me. At 15, I was diagnosed with hidradenitis suppurativa, which have worsened since my initial ob. In my late 20s, I was diagnosed with idiopathic itching. I'm now being referred to infectious disease because my doctors do not understand why I'm not responding to treatment and think all of it might suggest autoimmune disorder. I'm also experiencing perimenopausal symptoms, which is likely contributing to the obs. Just an utter mess. Anyway, I don't workout regularly and I'm still experiencing moderate symptoms. I say moderate because that first ob was AWFUL! My partner and I haven't had sex in 7 months because of the discomfort I feel. I feel sad for him... pretty sure he might die if we don't have sex soon. Funny, but not! I'm desperate, though. HSV completely changed my QOL. It's been hard. Have you talked to your doctors about what may be happening with your lack of response to treatment?

Thanks @AlliKat12 for the support and sharing your experience with me. Any chance you were on antivirals during your initial outbreak? Mine have just been so consistent since it started, even on antivirals. I know some folks are resistant, and I could very well be one of those people. But the fact my dermatologist is stumped is disheartening. I get from what I've read on this site many doctors have no idea about how to handle or understand this virus. Hard to fathom given how long this virus has been studied and been in existence.

Update: I spoke with my doctor and she is stumped on why I'm not responding to Valtrex. She has offered gabapentin and a topical for the pain, but I'm declining the gabapentin due to the side effects. She's going to speak with some colleagues to see what other treatment options I have. She wants gynecology to see me, but they can't get me in until Jan 20th. I have since inquired with Terri Warren for options, as she's an expert in the field. I also read something on Pritelivir trials. I'm really needing sleep more than anything. This virus read flares up at night for me which makes it hard to sleep.

Oh... and how are your ob's now? I'm worried I'll be an outlier and not get repreve. This is miserable.

Thanks so much for the reply. It's hard to understand how an initial ob lasts given the literature out there. This has been an awful experience. It's definitely like you described yours... I'll have a blister or two show up and in those 2 days or so I'm miserable. They'll start to heal and two days or so later I'm having additional symptoms. I feel tingling most of the time. Nights are the worst. I'm pretty sure my SO has HSV1, also. My ex had HSV2. My current SO and I have been together over 3 years and have unprotected sex because I didn't know I had this. He has basically assumed he has it, too, now. We haven't had sex in a while and pretty confident he's loyal. The ex wasn't. I reached out to my doctor yesterday to get her thoughts. Waiting on a reply. I have no idea if the Valtrex is working or not becuase I've been consistent in taking it. But it seems others have such a great experience and I don't feel I am. I'm afraid to stop taking it though. The lidocaine and cortisone does little for me too, but I use OTC stuff. Is that what you use?

Oh... I forgot to mention, I got a flu shot on 11/4. I'm wondering if that impacted the sudden outbreak. I haven't been stressed and had previous covid vaccines without issue. It may be coincidental, but I'm suspicious that had something to do with the outbreak.

I started having pain near my anus on 11/12/22. I couldn't sit comfortably and thought it was a hemorrhoid. Two days later I had insane burning and itching, so bad I had to take time off work. I developed what looked like an ulcer just outside if my anus by day 4. Day 6, I met with my GP and was referred to a dermatologist. On 11/22, the derm swabbed the ulcer and said she was confident it was herpes, started me on 1g of Valtrex, told me to sue desitin (didn't help), and sent me on my way. I was officially diagnosed with HSV2 on 11/28, started on another round of Valtrex because I continued to break out in sores, horrible itching and burning, in addition to intense tingling and was encouraged to start suppressive therapy for a year starting tomorrow on 500mg Valtrex daily. The derm thought I may be experiecing neuralgia, but that eventually subsided. On 12/4, I developed what I suspect are two swollen lymph nodes, one on each labia, that are painful. I am currently tingling around my anus which indicates I'm getting new sores as current ones are healing in various part of my gential. It will be month on 12/12 that I had my first outbreak. I wonder if I've been having reoccurring outbreaks during this month or this is still part of the initial outbreak. I had flu-like symptoms during all of this, chills are lingering. I wonder if Valtrex is for me since it doesn't seem to be impacting the outbreaks or I should try acyclovir. Sitz baths help, but i have vaginal dryness now. My docotr prescribed hydroxizine for sleep becuase the tingling and itching is worse at night. I worry this won't get better for me and I'll continue to have sores. I'm pretty confident I got this from an ex, but there's just no way to know. My current partner has cold sores but cannot remember which strain of the virus he has. He recalls his outbreak to be awful and lasted several months. He's never had a genital outbreak to his knowledge. He's been super understanding through all of this. I'm worried how this will impact our physical intimacy long-term. Sex is important to him and something we've struggled with due to difference in desire. I've started taking l-lysine, b12, multivitamin, zinc, and vitamin d in hopes it'll help. I've used femiclear and it's somewhat helpful. I think it does attend to the blisters/sores pretty well. But the itching can be unbearable. My main question is really am I still in my initial outbreak or am I just experiencing an outbreak every few days now? Thanks for any feedback. It's much appreciated.