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HSV2 getting WORSE over time?


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Hi!

I'll try to keep this long story on the short side.I'm a 35 year old single woman. I was officially diagnosed with HSV 2 about 6.5 years ago, but I was having outbreaks for about a year before that. I was in denial about what was happening. At the time, I had a stubborn case of HPV (obtained from an unknown source when I was around 24 years old.)  My labs showed that I was dangerously close to cervical cancer. Where most cases of HPV clear on their own within 2 years, mine persisted through LEEP surgery and several years of abnormal paps. When I had my first herpes outbreak, I was convinced it was just symptoms of my HPV so I did not go to the doctor, but I had several outbreaks. My diagnosis came later. I was at my gynecologist for a routine visit when the doctor asked, "Do you have herpes?"   "Not that I'm aware of," I responded.  She'd noticed the scabs of my most recent outbreak which was clearing. I asked to be tested and came back positive for HSV 2.  Great. Now I'm the girl who has gotten not one, but TWO STIs ?!?!  NOT great for the self-esteem.  I had relatively new boyfriend and I had to go home and explain to him that I've had herpes the whole time we've been dating without knowing it.  He took it surprisingly well and we had a 3 year relationship and he never contracted it. During our relationship, I became pregnant and I did hours of research on pregnancy and herpes. Everything went smoothly and my son is fine. I actually had significantly less (if any) outbreaks while I was pregnant but immediately following the birth of my son my outbreaks returned with a vengeance. My outbreaks are very closely related to my stress level and being a new, single mom with a full time job is VERY stressful.  My outbreaks  even spread to new areas of my groin. Then about 5 months ago, I was sitting on the floor with my toddler on my lap. He pulled one of those maneuvers where he flung his head back and I caught his hard skull right in the mouth. The next day, I noticed my swollen lip had broken out with herpes on the exact spot that experienced the trauma. I panicked!   Do I have HSV1 also?   Has my HSV2 somehow spread to my face? WTF is going on here? It was a bad outbreak, being that it was the first one in that location and eventually tea tree oil was the only thing that got rid of it. Cut to today, and what I thought was a bug bite on my forehead just above my eyebrow now looks to me like cold sores!  Interestingly enough, the lymph nodes in my jaw on the same side are swollen.  I did some research to confirm that you CAN in fact get a herpes outbreak on your forehead and that initial outbreaks often coincide with swollen glands!

I thought herpes outbreaks got less frequent as time passes. I've heard so many stories about people who get one or two outbreaks and then never experience them again, yet mine are getting worse and are spreading to other areas of my body!     Any other "veterans" around here that are experiencing anything similar?

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It could be possible that you spread it to other areas before but just didn't have breakouts. It's also possible the person could have infected you there without u having breakouts. Hsv 2 can also be given contracted orally and everywhere else. It's just less common. I also have throughout body as well as throughout face.  It can just start getting worse after a while. Everyone is different. But it does happen. But a big stresser can be the trigger than brings it out.  Like u getting knocked in the head. Or ur pregnancy. So I think all ur stress is what is bringing it on.   Not that I'm accusing ur husband or anything but u tested with him? 

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I am experiencing my second outbreak since initial diagnosis two months ago... now I have two ulcerated lesions and they hurt like absolute hell. I’m on daily valtrex too.. double up meds three days ago and yesterday it clearly seemed to be getting worse. Wth. Wondering if this is normal too... how can I deal with this pain. How long until these mfers heal?!? My boyfriend and I didn’t engage in sex last weekend, seems like it’s gonna be three weeks!  He has shown no symptoms ny the way in our 14 month relationship.  

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18 hours ago, Guy00 said:

It could be possible that you spread it to other areas before but just didn't have breakouts. It's also possible the person could have infected you there without u having breakouts. Hsv 2 can also be given contracted orally and everywhere else. It's just less common. I also have throughout body as well as throughout face.  It can just start getting worse after a while. Everyone is different. But it does happen. But a big stresser can be the trigger than brings it out.  Like u getting knocked in the head. Or ur pregnancy. So I think all ur stress is what is bringing it on.   Not that I'm accusing ur husband or anything but u tested with him? 

Just seems strange that I've been diagnosed for like 7 years before having outbreaks on my face.  My lymph nodes on that side are painfully swollen, too.   My outbreaks are VERY closely related to my stress level which is almost always SKY HIGH.   I'm not married.    I met the father of my son AFTER I started having outbreaks so I know I didn't get it from him...  He's never been tested, but he's never had any symptoms. We've been apart for 3.5 years now and as a single mother with a full time job, I don't really date (no time for that) so it's not like I could have picked up another strain from someone.

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16 hours ago, nik77 said:

I am experiencing my second outbreak since initial diagnosis two months ago... now I have two ulcerated lesions and they hurt like absolute hell. I’m on daily valtrex too.. double up meds three days ago and yesterday it clearly seemed to be getting worse. Wth. Wondering if this is normal too... how can I deal with this pain. How long until these mfers heal?!? My boyfriend and I didn’t engage in sex last weekend, seems like it’s gonna be three weeks!  He has shown no symptoms ny the way in our 14 month relationship.  

Nik, in my experience, the first couple outbreaks can be vicious. Usually the first ones are the worst ones. The longest I've ever had to wait for it to heal was probably about 10 days and that was probably before I had medication so you should get relief soon. I definitely recommend tea tree oil. It really seems to help speed up the process,  but ONLY on external lesions. DO NOT get it in your lady parts. It's not comfortable!

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I was diagnosed 4 years ago. I had my first outbreak due to stress last year, until then completely asymptomatic before that one. I recently was working my new job managing my family's farm. I had a genital break out that was extremely painful two weeks prior to going out in the field. I broke out on my right wrist with blisters and my left arm. My left arm also had a rash develop. That actually was poison Ivy. I had what I thought were a few bumps on my eye that were developing but again it was poison ivy. I was thinking my immune system kicked into over drive fighting some of the poison oak and Ivy that I encountered and the stress and I broke out in various spots. I also thought I had a breakout in my thigh. Googling that just makes you think you have immunocompromised disorder though. 

I also had herpes (whitlow) fingers and such for longer than I ever had genital herpes I believe I got that from wrestling in High school. That had been small things that popped up never knew what it was before research. 

So to answer my virus content was high and an opportunistic setting also allowed for Herpes to develop in places that it had never developed on my body before. 

 

 

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