😔 How long does the herpes sore dry up?

[notyourmango]

Hi, I'm still waiting for my swab result if I'm positive of Herpes, but as per the doctor he sound so certain that it is actually Herpes. I'm so sad and still crying about it. My boyfriend got tested negative to this, but I still got it. 😞 

I have few questions and appreciate your answers or thoughts please.

I went to the clinic after 5 days that the blisters turned into sores got really painful that I couldn't walk. My doctor gave me antiviral cream, Amox clav and Valacyclovir for 7 days. I'm on my 2nd day of taking it. How long should it take to heal the sores? I been crying because of pain when I move, pee and just walk. 😞 I also noticed that there are like white discharge and sores has white pus liquid that going out too which makes it extra painful. Based on your experience how long it usually takes to dry up the sores when taking antivirals medicine. Lastly, I'm scared because I noticed some people like bumps on my face which are starting to feel itchy right now. Could you pass the virus in the face? I'm so scared right now. Help and all your answers and advice will be much appreciated.

[beihaigirl2004]

I am sorry you are having a hard time. My initial outbreak was awful. Had several in the span of a few weeks. Some days just wearing pants was a challenge. I felt like the cream did not help me. I found warm baking soda baths were more soothing and helped with the insane itchiness. Cool packs also provided some comfort. I also started taking Lysine 2x a day. Its an amino acid supplement. Someone else told me about it and research has shown it tends to help heal breakouts faster. Not sure if they were healing on their own or if Lysine helped but hey no harm. Benedryl helped some with itching. Make sure you wash your hands frequency and especially after touching an infected area. Don't scratch at sores. I actually had to wear gloves at night because I found myself scratching in my sleep. Which probably didn't help. I am not sure if you can spread to your face. I believe HSV 1 is more susceptible to that whereas HSV2 generally is more genital related. However I am still new to this and still learning. I still panic everytime I get bump on my face even though its a hive or pimple.  I hope you get relief soon. Hugs!

[notyourmango]

Thank you @beihaigirl2004 for your reply, really appreciate it. Just wondering if you're taking some medicines too, and is there any sign in the sores to tell you that it's about to heal? 

 

The current state is just so painful that I cry coz I can't handle the pain, I'm not sure if the antiviral are taking effect that makes it more painful :(

[NJRunnerMom]

It took a good 2 weeks from the onset of the pain for the pain to be completely gone for me.  In the interim try using a squirt bottle filled with water and squirt it on the site when you pee to try to ease some of that pain and then dab dry the area with a soft cloth.  That's what I did to ease some of the pain.  Also, make sure that the underwear you have is not resting anywhere near the area because that'll irritate it too.  Wear soft pants if  you can as well.  Hugs to you.  The pain will go away soon so take it easy in the mean time.

[~Minerva~]

It took 6 days for me- I was taking Acyclovir every 8 hours for 5 days. I noticed a big difference on day 3 or 4, and by day 6 the sores were completely gone. 
 

And yes, you can spread the virus to other parts of your body. It’s important to throughly wash your hands with soap and water each time your hand comes in contact with the sores. 

[notyourmango]

@NJRunnerMom Thank you for response, I really appreciate it. 

[notyourmango]

@minerva thanks to you too. Just curious, did your sore bleed first before it dries up? Because I noticed that there are no longer bumps and the white liquid thing inside somehow popped, it's just so red right now like crater, does it mean it's about to heal.  thank you

[mr_hopp]

Welcome @notyourmango! It does tend to take longer for an initial infection since the body hasn't developed antibodies yet, so for each subsequent outbreak you'll have (if any), healing time will speed up. So hopefully that will help put your mind at ease for the future. For now, it sounds like you're doing everything you can, so continue flexing that patience muscle (easier said than done sometimes) 🙂 and let your meds and your immune system do their good work.

Passing herpes from one part of your body to another (also known as auto-inoculation) can happen within the first year of having herpes until antibodies are established, so wash your hands after every time you touch an active outbreak (no worries about viral shedding passing herpes to other parts of your own body when you're not having an active outbreak as there doesn't tend to be enough virus shed to infect).

[~Minerva~]

On 4/13/2021 at 2:49 PM, notyourmango said:

@minerva thanks to you too. Just curious, did your sore bleed first before it dries up? Because I noticed that there are no longer bumps and the white liquid thing inside somehow popped, it's just so red right now like crater, does it mean it's about to heal.  thank you

I did not have any bleeding, though I could see how that could happen. I hope you’re feeling better and more healed up now.