Beowy

Awesome. Thank you, WCSDancer2010.

Thank you, WCSDancer2010! I'm weighing it for sure. granted, my 2 outbreaks were a year apart, but I don't want any - plus, I would like to cut down the risk of gifting my partner with it. :)

After a discussion with another member here about suppressive therapy (FitGirl mentioned it has been a life changer for her) I thought I would throw out the question: What are the chances that taking low dose Acyclovir daily for suppressive therapy would eventually lead to building a tolerance/resistance to the drug like taking certain antibiotics does? I'm seriously considering going on suppressive therapy but the last thing I want is to build a tolerance to where I have no place to turn if the OBs start coming back, or a bad one hits. If you are or have been on suppressive therapy, can you share your experience with me? The pros and cons? I take BP and cholesterol meds daily, so adding one more pill is not a big deal to me. Thank you in advance.

Most definitely will consider that. I know even getting these things yearly is very depressing for me. My doc feels 100% sure I was infected by my ex over 20 years ago - he had Herpes and disclosed, but he also said he knew when an OB was coming and we would avoid sex. So I'm thinking all is well. 20 years later (last year) I get a grandaddy of a first OB so I'm 9 kinds of confused, especially when my 'now partner' tested negative. I have a good tolerance for most drugs, and even this high dose Tx doesn't really bother me, so I will be calling today to see about the possibility of suppressive therapy.

Thank you, fitgirl. Actually, my MD originally put me on 800mg 3x day for 14 days! I was much farther along in my outbreak then, too - almost a week in. I was hoping that taking this dose for 3 - 5 days would lessen the symptoms and duration. *sigh* Last time it took a full 3 weeks to heal. To me that's a long time.

It's been almost a year since I joined the forum upon having had what I think was my primary (definitely my worst) OB - haven't had one since until now. I have Sacral Herpes, and the sores (4 or 5 small spots on either side) stay up high at the tail bone or just inside the buttocks about an inch down from the tailbone (sorry to be so graphic). I thought I felt prodrome symptoms 2 days ago, but it's hard for me to distinguish because I also have piriformis strain that triggers the same kind of pain in the same area, hip/sciatic, etc. Then I started to feel the mild itching up at the top of my crack (uh oh) so I did the 2-mirror look, and there was a red spot forming on the place where the worst sore was last time. None of the others yet, just the one. I jumped right into my supply of Acyclovir, 800mg 3 x daily, hoping to keep this at bay, reverse it, minimize it, or whatever. I noticed the breakout yesterday eve, I took 2 pills before going to bed, and 2 pills so far today. The sore is worse and beginning to look open already, and I've had 3,200 mg of Acyclovir. This kind of disappointed me. I thought if I hit it right away it would recede right away, or at least not get any worse. Did I wait too late? I started the meds as soon as I saw the sore, which appeared seemingly hours after the itching. Ugh. If I keep hammering the meds for a few days is it possible I may still keep this to one spot, and maybe abbreviate the duration of the OB? Speed the healing? What has been your experience? Also, my partner is aware of my HV2 - I was afraid I had exposed him last year but he tested negative. We are both in our 50's. He is supportive of me and this is in no way a deal breaker for him. He's happy as a clam just getting a good back scratch. But he does love to give me fun. We do not live together, so we don't always get to choose our times together. With the location of my OB (I never get any on my actual ladybits) is staying front-to-front, and keep him away from my sacral/lower back area a viable option to have sex? We often bypass penetration anyway, and just give each other oral or pleasure by hand (which is probably why I didn't infect him last year when I had a full-blown, rip-snorting OB, before I knew what I had. Thank you for any and all feedback.

Thank you. I've emailed my doc for a refill. :)

I'm reading where it's normal to start people with genital herpes on 200mg 3 to 5x daily - or 1000mg/day max for 5 days? My doc hammered me with 800mg of acyclovir 3x daily. That's 2,400mg per day, for 14 days. I just took my last one today and I still have visible spots (upper butt crack/tailbone is where I break out). The skin is pink and new, but I'm sure I'm still shedding and unsafe for sex yet. This could be because I was 10 days into the OB before starting the meds, but you would think that dose would knock it out better than it did. If my initial OB was June 19 and I am still not completely healed over, I'm thinking the acyclovir was ineffective, period, and I am healing at the rate I would have without treatment. Any feedback? I'm also thinking I should request a second Rx to keep on hand - I think I know my prodrome symptoms now - pain down the back of one leg. I went decades without am OB (or one that I would notice), so I'm hoping it's decades before another one. At 58 I'll be 6 feet under by then (lol). And I'm hoping that this grandaddy of an OB is not an omen that I will be getting them more frequently now. But if so, I'm thinking I'd better have something on hand.

I can attest to Dancer on that. I've been on Acyclovir for 10 days now for what I think is my first OB, and I can still see the spots (broke out on tailbone area). They are getting better every day, but I was out of state when I broke out and didn't start the meds until I got home and went to the doctor. By then the OB already had a good toe hold. Sometimes I don't think they're ever going to heal up completely. I have 3 days left of this stuff and I'm thinking about asking for one more script just to keep handy until I see how often I have OBs. Sorry, didn't men to hijack this, but i wanted to attest to Dancer's early treatment statement.

Huzzah! Thanks for sharing! (That's really encouraging. :) )

That's exactly what my breast cancer surgeon said. When I went for my initial exam with her after the biopsy and Dx, she felt some swelling of the nodes under the armpit on that side. She said I was having "reactive nodes" due to having been poked, prodded, squished and biopsied. Apparently they don't like all that harrassment that and will swell in protest. ;) Since they have a lab right there, they went ahead took a biopsy of the nodes to be sure, but they were negative - just pissed.

Awesome.

I'm grateful for the knowledge that I am not a being who's been flung out to sea alone, but rather a link in a remarkable, loving human chain. Thank you for this place.

Thank you both for the feedback. I'm not suffering too badly so I will ride it out - I have a week left. There's always Tylenol and Immodium. :D

Awww, thank you. He has been absolutely amazing considering our situation. He's been a rock. I'm kinda like you. I think if I wore bottoms and laid on my tummy instead of my back, I could at least finish out the sessions I paid for. The last couple of times I went I upped the time to a full 20 minutes, trying to darken my tan before the Florida trip, and I could feel the heat hard on my tailbone, but i didn't think anything about it since that's the part of me that bears the weight up against the bed when I lie on my back like that.

Thank you, WSCDancer. I remember once upon a time (1997 to be exact) I had all of my neck and shoulder lymph nodes pop out for several weeks, and I had a run down feeling then. That immediately followed two big events in my life - the birth of my grandson in one hospital, and my mom having breast cancer surgery in another hospital (like mother/like daughter, huh?) and me running back and forth between the two. It took 2 rounds of Augmentin at the time to clear it up. Nobody ever gave me a clear diagnosis for it, but when they ran a blood test (to check my white count et al) I tested positive for Epstein Barr. I wonder if this is all tied in somehow, and my joint achyness, armpit node tenderness, and slight malaise is the Epstein Barr joining in concert with this breakout. My Doc told me as he was writing the script, "I don't care if your butt is PRISTINE in a few days, take ALL of this to the end." lol.

Me again. :) Has anyone here experienced side effects of Acyclovir? I've read what is listed on the drug sites as possible side effects, as they are required to do, but I know what's possible. It's possible that I could get struck by lightning if I go outside. I'm hoping there are some "you will most likely experience this" or "this is what Acyclovir does to me" type of information. I'm having some joint pain - mostly in my hip/pelvic bones, and some bouts with diarrhea. Also, my axillary nodes on the same side where they removed a couple of nodes is tender. I can't tell if these symptoms are from the drug or from the actual outbreak itself. Thank you in advance for any feedback on the effects of Acyclovir. They have me on 800mg 3X daily for 14 days. If this is normal then I hesitate to go on any sort of daily suppression drug until I know what the frequency and severity of my outbreaks are going to be.

Swab test is back. Positive for HV2. Praying at this point that the tanning bed was my trigger, and if I stay out of them my outbreaks will be few, far apart, mild, or never come again. If stress were my trigger one would think I'd have broken out during my cancer diagnosis and treatment. *sighs*

YES, I'm with you on the cancer curing priority, or I might not be here to wallow in self-pity over my occasional nuisance virus. Perspective is everything. Thank you for the reminder. I'm not so sure that even if they are trying they will ever find a cure. That seems to be the nature of viri. If they could cure viri we would have done something about the common cold by now. And definitely HIV. I've lost a couple of very dear friends to AIDS, one of whom I personally cared for until his last minute. Now a vaccine? I have more confidence that will come before a cure.

He is definitely a sweetie, and I don't feel deserving right now. I'm 58, I've had multiple marriages, and I've been sexually active since I've been single. I should know to go get tested. This was my first hint of trouble, but that's no excuse. My head tells me that this isn't the end of the world or even the end of us, and my grieving periods are coming farther apart, but still there are times when I water up at the drop of a hat - right in the middle of doing something I will need to just stop and go have a short pity cry. Ironic, they could cure the breast cancer, but I can't cure this.

The doc thought it looked like classic HP2 blisters, plus they were on both sides and he said if it were shingles it would just affect one side. He did do a culture last Tuesday, but I haven't heard back yet. Maybe today. My partner is negative now, but will re-test in a few months in case I did infect him while on vacation and he just hasn't had time to build antibodies. Personally, I don't know how I didn't infect him during the last 10 months if asymptomatic shedding occurs. We've been pretty frequent and .... "athletic" for lack of a better term, lol. I can't get over how well he is taking this. Here are some of the things he has said: Me: If you want to back away from this, I completely understand. Him: What. Where would I go? Me: I dunno. You could leave yourself open for other women. I would still help you with the CDs and... Him: And what kind of life would you have? What would *you* do? Me: There are dating sites for people with herpes. If I really felt I had to be with someone I could go there. Or, I could just keep to myself - that wouldn't bother me, either. Him (with a small smile): Ummm, no. We will be fine. Before you I went seven years without. I think I can wait through any outbreaks you might have. Me: But what if you test positive in a couple of months? Him: Then I will do what you are doing now. Him: I'm not leaving. How's that for an answer? Me: ... Him: What would you like tonight - a back rub, a hair rub, or just snuggle? And then on chat the next day I told him thank you for the encouraging words, that I could use all I could get. His reply: "you are fine you are pretty you have a great heart you are smart how could I walk away from that?" -- -- -- -- -- I will post my results when I get the call, but I'm not expecting good news. :/ Thank you again.

It is very painful. I guess compared to the cancer I view the shingles thing as something temporary, therefore even though painful, there's light at the end of the tunnel with it. (Not that there isn't with the cancer - just different levels of threat there.) Have you spoken with her about it? I'm positive she would forgive you - you had no way of knowing. ((hugs)) to you both.

I'm no expert, but I've had shingles (and chicken pox as a child), and I can tell you that stress and suppressed immune system can cause that virus to pop out, too. It may have been exposure to your chicken pox, but your friend may have been exposed to varicella earlier in life and the stress and treatment of cancer may have her in a run-down state to activate what was already in her system. In other words, a coincidence in timing. If you did inadvertently expose him/her, try not to beat yourself up over it, your friend will forgive you. As uncomfortable as shingles can be, beating the cancer will be the foremost thing on your friend's mind. Been there, too.

Thank you, Kanoa. He's being great about all of this. Even after (especially after) finding out he was negative. I'm dying a thousand deaths inside and he's all, "It will be ok" and can't wait to get back to intimacy. He's leaving that to my direction. So another question on the mechanics of this virus, let's assume this thing did lay dormant for a decade or two, or that any prior outbreaks were very mild. Now that I've had a grandaddy of an outbreak does that mean I will probably get these more often, as in 4 - 6 times per year as the reading material out there suggests? Because if that's the case, at 3 - 4 weeks to heal and some buffer time to stop shedding, I'm going to be out of commission most of the year. That's a lot to ask of a partner. Thanks again.

Hello. Thank you for including me in the membership here. I'm 58 and just found out I have HV2. I'm pretty confused about some things, hoping someone here can help since my Google-Fu doesn't seem to find my particular circumstances. I started seeing a man last September (10 months ago) and we have had a crazy busy sex life - all good for both of us. I will mention that he is married, and he and his wife have been barely speaking roommates for the past 7 years, with that unlikely to change. They have 3 kids in college, one in med school, so he's going nowhere for a while. I'm okay with that, I've been single now for 9 years and am not ready for a full-time live-in relationship. This works for both of us, (who knows down the road) and we are monogamous. We decided to take a vacation to Florida for a week. I jumped into the tanning bed and got my base tan so I wouldn't burn on the beach. I'm a 3-year breast cancer survivor and didn't want to invite another form of cancer by burning. Right before we were ready to leave, I stayed 20 minutes in the bed and I could feel my tailbone burning a little by that evening. It even itched a little at the very top of my buttocks. I've had that happen before when I got sweaty or had to sit too long - I would put hydrocortisone cream on it and it would be gone in a day. We were intimate the entire week. The spot didn't heal up quickly like before, and I even got a second place that itched and burned. I kept putting cream on it. I didn't have anything on my labia, anus, or vagina - just the very upper part of my buttocks and tailbone. By the time I got home I knew something was up. I managed to stand in front of a camera and take a picture of it since I couldn't see it with a mirror. It looked like herpes to me, and I'd never really seen herpes other than pictures. I called the doctor the next morning, I also called my fella and said, "We may have a problem." After some explanation and an apology from me for possibly exposing him, (if it didn't come from him) he assured me it would be ok, just go see the doc. I told him if he came into the relationship with it I would forgive him and we would deal, and if I gave it to him would he forgive me. He said of course. Doc took one look at it and said herpes 2. He was also 99% sure the tanning bed triggered the outbreak. He took a culture of a fresh cluster of blisters and put me on Acyclovir 800mg 3x daily for 14 days. I told my fella to go get tested the next day. He did and came back negative, so I've not gotten this from him, and we have not practiced safe sex. Here's the thing. I've never had anything like this in my life - never an outbreak with blisters in several places. This acts like a primary outbreak. It's been burny-itchy, but not necessarily painful. I don't feel sick, but like I said - never anything this bad. I am 15 days post first symptoms, 5 full days on Acyclovir, and these sores are just now starting to look better. No new ones have come up, but they have been slow to heal. I know I could have been exposed 20 years ago, but would I just now be having a first outbreak, or would my first outbreak have been barely noticeable. I thought first outbreaks were the worst, and generally occurred within 20 days of exposure. Also, is it normal for Acyclovir to be so slow to heal these, or is it because I was a good ten days into this before i started taking it? I'll save my emotional destruction and fear over this for another post. I appreciate any feedback from you good folks. Thank you in advance.