Scared Sh*tless ..

[AshleyS]

.. I'm waiting on my results from my cultural to see if I actually am positive for genital herpes.  My boyfriend and I had sex, unprotected and oral, but I didn't know there was a chance I had genital herpes.  He asked me if I had anything, and I just had a well woman check up, everything came back normal, and I have only ever been with one other person besides him unprotected.  He's been with way more partners than me, all of whom I'm guessing was unprotected because he hates condoms, and my last relationship was 7 years.  Is there a way to contract herpes so fast after being with someone ? I had really bad razor burn on my lady parts, so I had what my my doctor referred to as open wounds down there. Is there a possibility that when I had unprotected sex with him while having the razor burn, that I could have contracted it from him and then the lesions appear so quickly?

[mr_hopp]

Thanks for reaching out, CAS0104. Yes, you can get herpes symptoms within days of being exposed to the virus. The average that I've heard about is within a few weeks, but a herpes outbreak within days of contracting it is certainly possible. I know that with me, I had a full-blown fever within two days of having sex with the woman who I got herpes from. 

The main part that gets me is your scared shitless title. I totally understand feeling that fear upon finding this out. I thought my sex life was over, I told myself all sorts of scary stories about what having herpes meant. But they all turned out being really scary cases of bullshit. ;) I'd love to support you in not feeling so scared. Yes, having herpes changes things, but chances are it's not nearly what you're making it out to be right now. Know that in the scheme of things, herpes is not a big deal. The herpes stigma tends to be many times worse than the actual virus itself and the impact it will have on your life overall. If you need any more support, please consider coming on the line for the virtual herpes support group. Please come. I'd love to hear your voice on the line and be able to support you in this.

[AshleyS]

My doctor said there was no way I could experience it so quickly but I had open wounds .. but I don't know. I'm still waiting on the results, which is causing loads of unwanted stress, I hate playing the waiting game on something so vital.

 

My biggest fear is going back and telling my boyfriend I do actually have it, if that's the case. I don't want him to think I lied when I said I didn't, because I didn't know. He and his friends were just cracking jokes about herpes before I had this come up.

 

I told my ex that I was being tested for it and it would be wise to go get tested too. To my surprise, he just said okay and gave me a hug, then reassured me everything will work itself out. He then made a joke how if he did have it, we would just have to get back together. It took a huge load off my shoulders, and I havent cried since I told him. He said something like this doesn't stand in the way of love, and that even if I do have it, it wouldnt make me any less of a person. He's been fantastic about the entire thing. He knew I was going back to the doctors because what I was told and thought was a razor burn was causing me so much pain, he told me to keep him posted. When I refused to tell him what the doctors said and what they were testing me for, he began to worry. I stopped eating, cried nonstop and just wanted to be alone. He kept pestering me to talk about it, but I wouldn't. He then started asking my sister what was going on, but she kept telling him to back off until I was ready to talk about it. I didnt want to say anything until I knew for certain that I did have it.

 

I just dont know what to do ..