Is one herpes out break after the other normal?

[kristanova2012]

Okay, so I caught Herpes simplex Virus type 1 genital last year around July. Since then I have had 3 out breaks from being stressed out with my life. But now it's on the 4th out break.

 

My third out break began in the beginning of this month, October. So I took the medicine I was given. Valacyclovir HCL. It cleared up in a week, but recently I have having a itchy feeling down there, I thought maybe it was a yeast infection, since I am prone to getting them.So I bought the medicine for that. It came with an anti itch relief medicine and it helped with the itchy feeling!

 

But then the itching came back once I was done taking the medicine.. so I checked today, and now and there are two bumps again in the same spot. Is this common? I'm not sure why it came up again. Should I go to my gynecologist? Or just stop over reacting and take the medicine I was given for out breaks? thanks.

 

(whenever I have an out break there is the itchy feeling, no other symptoms.)

[lelani]

Hi Kristanova....regular episodes suck. I had them constantly (back to back literally) for about 5 months after my first. None now for about 7 months. I think you answered the reason why you are having them in your second sentence. Have you de stressed your life since then...? Stress is a major contributor to episodes...

 

You are still in the first year and your body is getting around having this virus and working out how to supress it. It is normal..if there is a normal with H...so don't freak out. Eat well, excercise, do things that bring you joy and get rid of things that don't (or re frame how you thing about them). Just nurture yourself...you don't need the gynocologist :-)

 

Hope this episode goes back to sleep quick. x

[Kristin (breatheandletgo)]

Lelani is right, Kris. Be gentle with yourself and find ways to reduce your stress.

 

Everyone has varying opinions on medication. I take my antivirals all the time when my stress level is high just to keep breakouts at bay. Lelani (who is a wise and beautiful woman...and my board BFF) has a totally different approach to managing her outbreaks. She uses only natural supplements that support her body's immune system.

 

Everyone has the right and responsibility to find their own way...but when you are newly diagnosed all of that can just add to your stress and confusion.

 

So...follow your doctors advice right now. and yes, take the antivirals for your outbreak. (and like L, I had back to back outbreaks for a while too). Epsom salt baths help dry out the blisters and feel really good. I have also read that bathing in Epsom salts regularly helps your body absorb nutrients from the foods you eat more efficiently. Could be a crazy myth, but who cares!? It feels great anyway. :)

 

There will be time to figure out what works best for you later. For now, take the meds while you have an outbreak. Call your doctor if you have questions. That is what they are there for...

 

Breathe deeply.

 

Nourish your body with healthy foods and get plenty of rest.

 

Look for ways to nourish your soul. In other words, be your own best friend right now. Your body is working hard for you fighting this virus.

 

You are not alone and we are here for you!

 

Sending you a big hug,

Kristin

Aka breatheandletgo

 

 

[NotAlone (previously Alone]

Kris, i so hear you! I just went trough 4 weekt with three(!!!) episodes! Before that i had them every second month lasting for 2 weeks.. And they were getting worse every time! Never been taking anything medical before this last three-in-a-row episode that really pissed me off! Antivirals was my last way out.. And god knows I took it! After a visit to my doctor I packed my bag and went on a roadtrip with my girls.. Now, one week later I'm symptom free :-D

 

Just put your thoughts somewhere else, listen to your body, do you're thing like before herpes, and you'll see that it will go to rest :-)

 

You will be fine :-)

 

Big hugs to you :-)

[lelani]

Just checked back in K to see how you were doing....and I love the posts coming in. Breathe is right...you need to follow what feels right for you. If it feels right to take the medication then go for it...and if you already have it handy then you don't need to see a doctor again.

 

Alone is right too...you will be fine. Your body is just adjusting and it takes time. I found a great mantra when I had back to back episodes that helped.."My body is continually healing even when I have outbreaks"...I said it over and over again every day as it was better than the sad and self pityful thoughts I was automatically coming up with!!

 

Another hug coming and I hope you are feeling a bit better. x

 

[Guest]

I'm new to having genital herpes, but I've had HSV I my entire life. One thing I have learned (and it is a medical fact): viruses HATE, absolutely can't stand, vitamin-C. There is no miracle about C, but I think it is key in keeping the immune system strong, and I wonder if high blood-concentration levels keep the virus at bay. I take a good amount every day, and I seem to have less colds (and I'm a teacher!). And I barely ever get cold sores anymore (although time naturally lessens the amount of outbreaks, too).

 

Also, folks are right about stress. Stress destroys your body's ability to suppress the virus. In fact, no matter what I do with my diet, and how "exercised" I am, too much stress has almost always been the culprit in getting the sores. Meditation and/or yoga are excellent ways of reducing stress (although it takes time and motivation to these things).

 

And yes, multiple outbreaks are normal. When I was a kid (weaker immune system) with HSV I, I would get a cold sore....horrible for a kid! Finally, after an eternity...like 1-2 weeks, the sore on my mouth would heal. And then....damn, another one. Sometimes, I would have a group of them, like a cluster. And then sometimes before one was even gone, I'd get another!

 

It can be mentally challenging, and I think it is a vicious circle--the stress from the outbreak helps to cause the next outbreak! I think the folks here are giving the right advice....tell yourself you are powerful--your body is strong, and will beat the virus down (I do this as I ingest vitamin-C..."How do you like that, you son-of-a-***!!). And try meditation. I am older now, and I have recently been doing this (something I thought I would never do). I have to say, it is very powerful--some of us (me) tend to despair too much, and that stress just further destroys us.

 

abrazos,

Michael

[Kristin (breatheandletgo)]

I loved your post, Michael. ;)

 

Kris, you have been in my thoughts, sweetie.

 

I am a big believer in vitamin c as well. Natural forms and supplements. I am 42 and often get mistaken for being younger and believe clean living in addition to yoga, meditation and good nutrition have contributed to that.

 

My biggest challenge to overall health is stress and learning to manage it well. (my username is a reminder for me). And the more I learn about herpes and shame, the more I believe that the most harmful part of this virus is the way it disconnects us from ourselves and others physically. Herpes is a virus that has the potential to change our relationship with our bodies (being in a heightened awareness, monitoring for symptoms) and then our ability to be loved and touched and connected with others without this hyper-awareness. Both are so necessary to being able to relax and be well with ourselves. Feeling a loving embrace we can lean into, experiencing being fully in our bodies and at the same time being fully present in soul and spirit when we are giving and receiving pleasure sexually. These are some things herpes can steal from us, even if we are with a partner who accepts us because we are challenged in our own self-concept.

 

Like Michael, I have had HSV-1 up North :) forever, though I rarely have an outbreak now, but I never disclosed about it because I didn't even realize I should! If I had a raging cold sore, I assumed I should avoid kissing, but I remember how my boyfriend through college called them my 'finals blisters' instead of fever blisters or cold sores and NEVER referred to them as herpes and when I would try to avoid kissing him he'd pull me in and kiss me anyway.

 

I remember once when we were making love and I started to go down on him and realized I still had a little bit of a blister on my lip, so I stopped and said baby I shouldn't...see?... and him saying...omg are you kidding me? I don't care! the punch line? He was Pre-med...he knew exactly what it was. He just really didn't care. He didn't want me to feel stressed being in my body with him.

 

I haven't had many sexual partners (my high school sweetheart, my ex-husband of 19 years and my Pre-med college bf...high school sweetheart came back after my separation/divorce to give me HSV-2) so I am new to the whole have you been tested scene...and the stress of even thinking about being intimate with another man again is enough to give me an outbreak, so I have a lot of work to do. HSV-2 has changed my life.

 

A guy in my yoga class asked me to go have a drink with him the other night and I made an excuse (let's hope Adrial isn't reading this or he will kick my ass). I try not to make eye contact with men in the elevator or in meetings at work and I pray they won't ask me to lunch. And when they do, I make excuses. I long to be with someone, but I'm just so afraid. Not of disclosure as much as just living in and with the stress of giving it to them. I signed up for a herpes dating site for one day and then deleted my profile because I don't think that's the answer either.

 

I got a massage on Friday and I cried the whole time. Besides hugging on my kids, it's the first time I'd been touched in a while. I was so embarrassed for getting so emotional. It made me think about my friend who is a NICU nurse and spends so much of her day just holding sick babies to make them well because research has proven that babies in distress need to be held and touched, skin on skin in order to thrive. I can take care of my body and be healthy, but real wholeness is being fully in my body without fear or shame and letting myself reach for human touch and connection without fear or shame. Or without getting stressed about it...

 

This was a really long post to say...I have a long way to go and I've been diagnosed w/hSV-2 for almost a year. Give yourself time to take it all in. It's a journey. We're with you

 

Be well,

 

Kristin

[lelani]

I think we all have a long way to go...just when we think we have together something pulls us apart to start again - it may not be in the same place but we have to re evaluate and deal with the emotions it brings up.

 

I loved your post too Michael (and Kris hope you are doing hun)..and kristin you have such a way of expressing things - I am crying as I write this. "feeling a loving embrace you can lean into...." and "real wholeness is being fully in my body...". Those sentences are so eloquent and describe exactly how I feel when I am missing being free and open with someone spiritually and sexually...it seems like so long since I had it. With a

having HPV all my adult life and now this I am so used to being super aware of my body in relation to being sexual with someone else. It took reading this for me know deep down that I have a long way to go too, even when i think I've come along way.

 

I have got past the no eye contact thing...only I realise I have just taken it a step further and do the 'just friends' routine so I don't have to get too close. It seems easier to live without the worry of passing it on to someone, that affects me more than the challenge of disclosing.

 

Yeah its a journey with all its twists and turns and trip ups...its about getting up and dusting off, keeping going and keeping looking ahead and having faith that you will get there. I'm so glad I found all of you here...you challenge me and inspire me.

Thanks :-) x