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As far as I know I think that when its your first outbreak and the virus is new to your body, it can be common to get more sores while the first ones are healing. This is because your body is learning to fight it and doesn't have a handle on it yet. Which is also why outbreaks are usually more frequent the first year and *typically* decreased with time as your body gets a better handle on things. You could take your valtrex again if you feel the need to or you could also wait it out and see how things go. Totally up to you!

I think that it signals the initial flare of the virus, but I could be wrong. That is, if you ever have the flu like symptoms at all. I didn't have those but I did have a swollen lymph node in my groin on the side my outbreak was on. My IgG test was positive so I've carried the virus for an unknown amount of time but didn't get diagnosed until I had that outbreak.

I know its hard to stop overthinking, I still do it! I'm horrible when it comes to overthinking things. I found out I have genital HSV1 two months after getting engaged to my fiance. Its been over two months now that we've known for sure that's what it is and I still sometimes overthink things like if hes less affectionate or any little thing that could be a perceived as being slightly "off". I have to stop and remind myself that these things happened even *before* the diagnosis and that if it had anything to do with that he wouldn't be proceeding with our wedding, talking about how he can't wait to get married, and taking engagement pictures with me. Maybe opening up to him about how it has impacted your self confidence and worries you could be reassuring. My fiance pretty much never brings HSV up. If anyone does, its me. He doesn't think its a huge deal and therefore doesn't feel the need to talk about it. While to me, I still don't feel normal down below and want to talk about it probably way too much. So to satisfy that need of mine I come here and talk to all of the lovely people on this website!

Anytime!

@Princess83 thank you, I pray for negative results for you and that no matter what you guys can move on together! I have felt "normal" for the most part down there since the outbreak in the beginning of June. If I could get back to feeling normal I would love to just continue as we were before.

I totally understand. I found out I have genital HSV1 2 *YEARS* into my relationship - two months *after* we got engaged. My swab and IgG were both positive so I've most likely had it for at least a few months meaning there's no way to ever know how long I've had it or who it came from. So trust me, I totally get the scared feeling. I still get scared and feel insecure. But he's been so loving towards me even though the physical intimacy has been scarce since diagnosis with me trying to figure my body and all of these weird sensations out

That's awesome @Princess83! I'm so happy to read that outcome :)

@HikingGirl thank you! I had my plan that if anyone asked I would either say someone close to me has it or that I know multiple people who do (which technically through this forum, I do). I keep moving forward every day and trying my best to get back to my old self

Hi all, I wanted to write this post because for the first time since I was diagnosed in June, herpes came up at work. I work in healthcare and it came up because one of my coworkers was describing a patient's symptoms to me and what tests the doctor had ordered. The symptoms were that of a classic primary HSV OB. The doctor had ordered gonorrhea/chlamydia and syphilis tests.. that's it.. I was dumbfounded but now know that so many health care providers are totally clueless about HSV. So I suggested that before any tests get done that she call and ask him to order an HSV swab. I had the opportunity to educate several people at work today about HSV, how common it is, and some of the statistics. I would not be comfortable telling them *how* I know all of this, but I was comfortable telling them the facts. One thing that the girl, who was going to be collecting the tests, said that bugged me was that she was going to double glove and when talking about the lesions (I told her to try to get fluid from one for the best results) that it was gross. I was offended at first. Inwardly, I did not display this outwardly. But the more I've been thinking about it, the more I realize - she wasn't calling the *person* gross, she was simply saying the *lesions* are gross. Which in reality for a primary OB, the way she described it, they very well may be gross! Because lets be honest, lesions aren't pretty! Coworkers and I have referred to wounds and other things as gross before, without meaning that the person is gross or judging them, so I tried to ask myself "why should this be any different?". Of the few people I talked to about it, all but one were surprised about how common it was (threw out that 1 in 6 people have it when its caused by HSV2 and even more if you count the rising HSV1 cases). I told them she didn't need any special precautions, just the standard, because you can't get it from anything except skin to skin contact. So unless someone is touching her genitals then they're fine. I feel somewhat empowered that I didn't let this ruin my day like I could have. I'm still struggling on a daily basis to accept my diagnosis and to live my life happily without thinking about this constantly. So for me, this was a success, and I just wanted to share!

Hi there, I recently went through something similar. I was diagnosed in June, took 1000mg of valtrex twice a day for 10 days. I had no prodromes previously but once I started the valtrex i had prodrome out the wazoo. Zings/stings/tingles all the time! It really improved when I lowered to the suppressive dosage (500ng daily, what you're on) with only an occasional feeling. I did attempt to switch to acyclovir to see if that would help. A few ladies on here have switched to acyclovir and their prodromes stopped completely and they've done great with it. I attempted it for two weeks and I ended up with more prodrome than the valtrex suppressive dose plus other strange side effects. So, I went back to valtrex. That goes to show every one reacts differently to the meds! You could try switching to acyclovir 400mg twice a day and see if that stops the prodromes

@optimist luckily the midwife I saw last, the one who immediately questioned HSV when I mentioned a swollen lymph node in my groin, seems to have more knowledge than a lot of the docs I hear stories about. She did offer me suppressive therapy to suppress and also reduce transmission. She was realistic in saying in regards to sex with my fiancé and I, that we're getting married and probably won't want to use condoms, so taking the medication as well as avoiding sex during an outbreak would reduce the chances a lot. The only thing I can say made me question her knowledge was ordering an IgM blood test as well as an IgG. But other than that, she seems relatively knowledgeable. She used to work at a planned parenthood which may have something to do with that

@optimist - I also had to see THREE medical providers before finally the third thought to swab for HSV. And by that time I was almost completely healed. The first two who saw things at earlier stages should have no doubt thought about HSV. Yet they wrote it off as other things. The first cuts because I described how I had scratched myself prior to the open areas appearing and the second as a fungal infection caused by scratching... again, this shows lack of education on these viruses in the medical community

That's awesome! I'm glad your disclosure went well!!

@optimist I wanted the IgG testing to get an idea of if it was new for me or not. I've been in a monogamous relationship for two years, so this all blindsided me. I was one of the typical stories you hear - I was tested at planned parenthood right when my fiancé and I met so I assumed I knew my full status, not knowing they don't test for HSV. Although thinking back now, even if I had an IgG positive for HSV1 on a routine testing, I would have assumed it was probably oral in the absence of any symptoms. I also wanted to make sure that I did only have HSV1. I was on eggshells until I got the call with the results. The diagnosis was hard enough to accept, I wanted to make sure there wasn't anything else I needed to know about. The sad part is that situation with the person you know probably happens way more than we would like to think. It's along the same lines of doctors telling people they don't have to disclose if they aren't having an outbreak because they can't pass it on. The lack of education regarding these viruses in the medical community is astounding, and I say that as being someone who works in the medical field.

The swab identified it first and then I followed up with a blood test @optimist

@optimist thank you! I have GHSV1 and was just diagnosed the end of June, my outbreak was the beginning of June. My IgG however was positive 9.48 so I've had it for at least a few months and never knew it/was asymptomatic. I now wonder though if my past vulvar pain (started in 2009) was related to HSV. I never had any lesions or opens areas at that point that I know of, but I had nerve pain. Thinking back no one ever did any sort of blood tests while figuring out what was wrong so I will never know for sure. After over a year it was diagnosed as vestibulodynia. I got pretty much 100% better taking a medication for the nerve pain but would flare every year or two. Makes me wonder...

You're welcome! There is so much to learn for sure

You're welcome! It is very much a mystery. I have questions always running through my mind and have tried to accept that I will probably never have an answer for everything! Even going based on others experiences is hard because everyone reacts differently to the viruses. You could always try to go without them (since you don't have to worry about passing it to your partner) and see what your body does. They say the primary is *typically* the worst. If you have another outbreak that's bad or have frequent outbreaks you could then do suppressive. Or, if you just decide for right now you'd rather take them, there's nothing wrong with that either!

@HikingGirl thank you for checking! That's what I was thinking, my mind comes up with all kinds of questions! I wouldn't think there's any way to easily study this, unless someone is diagnosed via blood test when asymptomatic and swabbed for shedding (in study format) and then outbreaks later on and has the same swabbing performed @Katidid you are a true veteran! :)

The answer is yes to the first two questions - you can't pass the same virus back and forth, once you have it, you have it :) sex can trigger an outbreak from what I've read. It's different for everyone of course, but friction seems to be the culprit so I've read using plenty of lube is recommended. As for his chances of never having an outbreak, that's hard to say. The majority with these viruses go years or forever without one, or with symptoms so mild they don't recornize them for what they are. So it's definitely possible. There's unfortunately no way of knowing for sure

If you have he virus strictly genitally then no, not at all!

@Katidid it's amazing how much there *is* to know about these viruses!

Hi all! I have read and know that you're most contagious during your first year of having the virus. So my question is: if you have HSV and carry it for a period of time before you have an outbreak (possibly years), are you most contagious for a year after that first outbreak? Or was "the most contagious" year the initial year after infection? I know when you have an outbreak happening that's when you're most contagious in general. I'm more curious about the viral activity with asymptomatic shedding and such, as they say this decreases with time, so in theory even if a first outbreak was years later the viral shedding should be lower years into the infection correct? Hopefully the question makes sense!

Hi there and welcome! If I don't answer the majority of your questions I apologize, I'm on my phone so it's hard to keep track of the post and my response as well as a computer. If you and your girlfriend were both virgins when you met, it is very plausible that you could have transmitted the HSV1 to her via oral sex. 2/3 of the worlds population (yes, you read that right!) have HSV1, per the world health organization. Most of the recorded cases are probably oral, but 50% of new genital herpes infections are due to HSV1 thanks to oral sex. You *can* have oral HSV1 and *never* have a cold sore, just as many carry genital herpes (both strains) and never know because they don't have symptoms or symptoms so mild that they mistake them for something else like an infection, shave bump, ingrown hair, etc. What test did your doctor perform on your blood? Hopefully an IgG! That is the most accurate (next to western blot). If your IgG blood test was positive, you can safely assume you've had the virus for at least a number of months. For most, post exposure, it takes a while for antibodies to form (IgG is an antibody to the virus, not the virus itself). It can take up to 16 weeks post exposure to show up on an IgG test. So assuming neither have been with anyone else, you could have transmitted it to her. If she carries oral HSV1 and has for some time, it's unlikely she autoincoluates the virus to another part of her body. Typically when you have the virus established in one location (like having a history of cold sores) it's not likely to get it in another (genitally), BUT it is *not* impossible. There is unfortunately no test to tell you where the virus is unless you have a swab performed on an outbreak that comes back positive. Question - I'm assuming your girlfriend had a swab of the lesions done which was positive for HSV1, is that correct? If so, did she have a blood test performed as well? Id be curious if her IgG would be positive. I'm relatively new to this - a month and a half in - diagnosed with HSV1. I have some days better than other and trust me, I get the worrying about every spot. I've been trying to treat my body as I did before the diagnosis and use the explanations from before for the things I see - such as shave bumps. I've had the virus for an unknown amount of time, my swab was positive and so was my IgG meaning I've had it for at least months. I got tested when I first met my now fiancé and thought i was in the clear, what most don't realize is standard testing doesn't include HSV. And even if it did, and I came back with HSV1, I probably would have been told to assume it was oral unless I showed symptoms otherwise. Have you read up on the statistics - how common HSV is and transmission rates? I think educating yourself will be the best way to help you feel better. And get back to being intimate with your girlfriend :) there are some great links on this site, here are a couple I can find from my phone https://infogram.com/Everything-You-Didnt-Know-About-HSV-but-wish-you-did http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2015/herpes/en/ https://herpes.org.uk (Stats are different than US stats because it is UK based, but still a good resource) And lastly, do yourself and your girlfriend a favor and Google Ella Dawson. She is amazing. She has genital HSV1 and is an open book about it. It could help both you and your girlfriend feel better! She's helped me tremendously

Being upset by a diagnosis doesn't in any way "fuck over" anyone; it is that individual's feelings and theirs alone. This forum is here for support and that includes embracing those having a hard time and uplifting them, not making them feel bad about the way that they feel. That doesn't do anyone any good.