Hi all
I developed the signs of HSV-2 at the start of November, had it diagnosed around 3 weeks ago, I took two 5 day courses of Aciclovar, and was thinking that the initial outbreak was over, although energy levels were far from normal. I'd got over the flu-like infections, the pustules on my penis had pretty much cleared up, and apart from the energy levels and a strange sensation on my left mid-section by my ribs that felt like sun-burn, i.e. sensitive to the touch, but no outwards signs like a rash or whatever (and has anyone else had this ?!?) thought I was coming out of the woods.
But no. A couple of days of stress and a night without much sleep (stress due to normal life, nothing to do with the disease, which hasn't had a massive effect on me psychologically) and the symptoms are coming back - pain in my chest area, no fevers yet (thankfully) and the "sun burn" area is now tender to the touch again. So, I've now got 10 days worth of Aciclovar (1000mg / day) and I'm intending to take five days worth, give it a break, and then see when I need them again (unless people think I should take the whole course).
So, the question is - is 6 weeks the normal period for a first outbreak, or have I had one outbreak and then got hit by another one straight away ? I'm not sure to be honest which possibility would be the worse - the fact that an initial outbreak has been more than double the "standard" length of time I believed it would last, or that a very brief period of upset in my life (which frankly is always going to unavoidable) has lead to a second outbreak before the first one has really ended.
I know that with this, I need to be healthy, get lots of sleep etc etc and to be honest, I am not drinking / partying, am eating well, but I don't like the concept that I might have to face an outbreak at any time where I'm not able to be in bed before midnight or when life throws me a curveball !
Before this happened to me, I would say I was in rude good health. I was a bone marrow donor 8 years ago, and my white blood cell count was so high (50,000+) as to be off the scale - so my immune system seemed to be fairly good and it would be rare that an illness would force me to bed. I could sleep irregular hours, party every so often, with no ill-effects - certainly for someone in their mid-40s, I felt quite good overall about my health and my body's ability to take occasional punishment. Now...I'm not so sure. Yes, a lot of people can have it a lot worse, I know, but 6 weeks of this is pissing me off.
Thoughts ? The prospect of taking Aciclovar for the rest of my life, or having to undergo a strict dietary regime and a guaranteed 8 hours sleep every night fills me with mild despair.
Thanks for reading.