Prodrome Symptoms after Outbreak visibly gone?

[oms2001]

So... I started seeing a new guy recently. A few days after having sex with him for the second or third time, I started noticing symptoms that I initially mistook for a yeast infection. Itching, discomfort, unusual/odorous discharge. I am prone to yeast infections so this wasn’t a huge surprise to me, and I was able to get diflucan prescribed from my Doc over the phone, which I started taking immediately. Well, a day or two later I decided to make sure what I was experiencing really was a yeast infection, so I went to an urgent care hoping to get help fast. At this point I was having pelvic discomfort and aches as well. They did an exam, tested for BV, trich, chlamydia/gonorrhea, everything came back negative. A day or two after that I started getting the worst symptoms - burning and irritation when urinating, excessive liquid discharge, etc. Finally went to see my OBGYN and she did a pelvic exam/swab test and suspected HSV, so put me on antivirals just in case. Well, while awaiting my results I started taking them and symptoms were clearing up very well. Now I have no more burning/irritation and I was pretty sure the OB was virtually gone. Now all of a sudden starting yesterday the flu-like aches started coming back, but no visible signs of OB. I was notified online that my results came back from the lab, and HSV-1 was detected from the swab, with no signs of HSV-2. I have since told the guy I’m seeing about my results, but I still have not received a call from my doc’s office with the results. Luckily, the guy I’m with has been extremely patient and understanding and is getting tested as well. My question is... is it normal to experience prodrome symptoms like the flu aches and nerve pains after the initial outbreak has seemingly disappeared? I’m sort of freaking out right now and it is flu season so I don’t know if this is related to the herpes or indicative of something else entirely. I’ve also read that valacyclovir can cause flu-like side effects, so I am unsure if I am having a reaction to the medication. I’m also wondering if it’s possible that this is the onset of yet another outbreak so soon. I’m still coming to terms with/learning about the virus, so I don’t feel like I’m extemely well informed. Any insight would be greatly appreciated. Thank you

[HikingGirl]

Welcom, @oms2001. It’s possible this is a new infection for you (the HSV1) and you’re experiencing an initial outbreak. (It’s also possible the symptoms are unrelated, of course!)

 

My own symptoms are so mild as to be hardly noticeable, so I’m not speaking from experience here, but I’ve read that it’s common with new infections to either last several weeks, or for an outbreak to recur very quickly in the first few months of infection, which sometimes can feel like one really long outbreak. I tried Valtrex for a while (I wanted to find an antiviral I tolerate well for transmission reduction when I start dating again) and it caused me to have frequent zingers/tingles throughout the day. Switching to acyclovir stopped that and the itching that was my primary symptom.

 

When HSV is very new, I found it helpful to keep a calendar of symptoms so I could watch for patterns and just learn my own body. If you’re not having painful lesions, you could also try stoping the Valtrex to see if you notice any changes.

 

One of my favorite resources of basic information about HSV is this short handbook written by an expert in easy-to-understand language: https://westoverheights.com/herpes/the-updated-herpes-handbook/