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Chances that this is Herpes?
Hi everyone,
Last month my best friend (23 years old male) invited me join to a threesome with one of his friends (female in her twenties). I've been with my girlfriend for years but this was something I had always wanted to try, so I went ahead and joined.
What happened was that we (me and my friend) took turns between her mouth and her vagina (there was no anal). In other words, when he was at one, I was at the other, and vice versa.
For the oral, neither of us used a condom. However, for the vaginal sex, both of us did.
I know that my friend (the guy) has lots of partners, but he told me that he gets tested often, and so far he has never had a positive test for any STD. The girl, I have no idea.
So to summarize the encounter: protected vaginal sex. Unprotected oral (no ejaculation in the mouth). (Hence my lack of worry about HIV)
Anyway, 2 weeks ago (so 2 weeks after the act) I started having red sensitive areas on my glans. Upon very close inspection, there was also some extremely tiny "spots" that were only visible if I looked really really closely. They were so tiny, that I even thought they might just be skin irregularities. When pulling back the foreskin, I saw that the parts of the skin that were in contact with the suspicious areas on the glans were also red.
Other symptoms included some itchiness and some mild burning when urinating (though not every time). Also, my stream would sometimes split in 2 when I started urinating, which was really weird.
This all lasted for about 5 days, then disappears.
However, 3 days ago, the same problem appeared again.
To freak me out even more, yesterday my girlfriend has those 2 weird red zits on her shoulder!!! Now I'm scared that I gave it to her (before I suspected that I might have it)
I got tested for chlamydia after the initial outbreak. Negative. Doctor said there was no need to test for Gonorrhea or Herpes if there were no symptoms. Didn't wanna argue, especially since I live in Japan and my Japanese isn't super fluent... but most websites says that lots of people have no symptoms, so I still wanted to get tested for everything.
So I found another doctor, and went yesterday. Got tested for Herpes (the one where they stick something inside your hole) and syphilis (blood test). They didn't offer Gonorrhea and Hep B and C, so I didn't ask, but I liked their attitude a lot more than the first doctor, so I might ask for those when I go to pick up my results next Wednesday.
So yeah, I went and got tested, so no need to tell me "get tested", I did. But I'm waiting for my results, and I'm anxious. Based on what I described in my 3rd paragraph, does it sound like Herpes to anybody?
Last month my best friend (23 years old male) invited me join to a threesome with one of his friends (female in her twenties). I've been with my girlfriend for years but this was something I had always wanted to try, so I went ahead and joined.
What happened was that we (me and my friend) took turns between her mouth and her vagina (there was no anal). In other words, when he was at one, I was at the other, and vice versa.
For the oral, neither of us used a condom. However, for the vaginal sex, both of us did.
I know that my friend (the guy) has lots of partners, but he told me that he gets tested often, and so far he has never had a positive test for any STD. The girl, I have no idea.
So to summarize the encounter: protected vaginal sex. Unprotected oral (no ejaculation in the mouth). (Hence my lack of worry about HIV)
Anyway, 2 weeks ago (so 2 weeks after the act) I started having red sensitive areas on my glans. Upon very close inspection, there was also some extremely tiny "spots" that were only visible if I looked really really closely. They were so tiny, that I even thought they might just be skin irregularities. When pulling back the foreskin, I saw that the parts of the skin that were in contact with the suspicious areas on the glans were also red.
Other symptoms included some itchiness and some mild burning when urinating (though not every time). Also, my stream would sometimes split in 2 when I started urinating, which was really weird.
This all lasted for about 5 days, then disappears.
However, 3 days ago, the same problem appeared again.
To freak me out even more, yesterday my girlfriend has those 2 weird red zits on her shoulder!!! Now I'm scared that I gave it to her (before I suspected that I might have it)
I got tested for chlamydia after the initial outbreak. Negative. Doctor said there was no need to test for Gonorrhea or Herpes if there were no symptoms. Didn't wanna argue, especially since I live in Japan and my Japanese isn't super fluent... but most websites says that lots of people have no symptoms, so I still wanted to get tested for everything.
So I found another doctor, and went yesterday. Got tested for Herpes (the one where they stick something inside your hole) and syphilis (blood test). They didn't offer Gonorrhea and Hep B and C, so I didn't ask, but I liked their attitude a lot more than the first doctor, so I might ask for those when I go to pick up my results next Wednesday.
So yeah, I went and got tested, so no need to tell me "get tested", I did. But I'm waiting for my results, and I'm anxious. Based on what I described in my 3rd paragraph, does it sound like Herpes to anybody?
like I said previously, nothing else you can do at this point. totally up to you how to explain all of this to your gf if you plan on avoiding sex or want to change any sex practices you were having up until all of this to try to protect her just in case.
your risk was minimal for hiv - it's not a real risk from oral and you had protected sex. It's not worth testing for just from this unless you just really need the peace of mind.
if you need help with any future testing, just add the test results to this post so it's easy for me to glance back through it all before replying - thanks!
your risk was minimal for hiv - it's not a real risk from oral and you had protected sex. It's not worth testing for just from this unless you just really need the peace of mind.
if you need help with any future testing, just add the test results to this post so it's easy for me to glance back through it all before replying - thanks!
"I re-read your entire post and nothing here sounds like herpes. Stop jumping the gun here."
Well, alright.
Perhaps you're right, or perhaps it was a bad explanation on my part.
I did find a description of herpes which somewhat matches what I had (but without the lesions, only the red "base"), but none of the images of herpes that I found looked anything like what I had.
However, after looking at it, the doctor did say that he thought it was herpes, so I'm not entirely convinced either way.
" How about you wait for symptoms be seen and have them swabbed for culture and typing"
You mean if symptoms return?
Because the time when I got swabbed (at exactly 1 month) the symptoms were pretty much at the worst that they've been yet (that was the same time when the doctor looked at it).
But anyway, I will take your advice and just get tested again in a while, and try to stop worrying until then.
By the way, you guys agree that HIV is not a risk for me, right? You just don't get that from the mouth, even if there are other STDs there to facilitate its transmission? I know this isn't the HIV forum, but I figured I'd throw that question in here instead of making a whole new thread over there just to tell the exact same story.
Thanks a lot for all the support!
Well, alright.
Perhaps you're right, or perhaps it was a bad explanation on my part.
I did find a description of herpes which somewhat matches what I had (but without the lesions, only the red "base"), but none of the images of herpes that I found looked anything like what I had.
However, after looking at it, the doctor did say that he thought it was herpes, so I'm not entirely convinced either way.
" How about you wait for symptoms be seen and have them swabbed for culture and typing"
You mean if symptoms return?
Because the time when I got swabbed (at exactly 1 month) the symptoms were pretty much at the worst that they've been yet (that was the same time when the doctor looked at it).
But anyway, I will take your advice and just get tested again in a while, and try to stop worrying until then.
By the way, you guys agree that HIV is not a risk for me, right? You just don't get that from the mouth, even if there are other STDs there to facilitate its transmission? I know this isn't the HIV forum, but I figured I'd throw that question in here instead of making a whole new thread over there just to tell the exact same story.
Thanks a lot for all the support!
hsv2 orally doesn't shed that much.
hsv1 genital infections are the cause of 30% of all genital herpes infections.
hsv1 genital infections are the cause of 30% of all genital herpes infections.
hsv 2 doesnt shed that much? or does hsv 2 ORALLY not shed that much? does that go for hsv1? how common is spreading hsv 1 to genitals via oral sex?
valtrex doesn't work that fast to clear up your symptoms in a day or two.
as I said, your symptoms don't even sound like herpes going on.
at this point, repeat your blood testing in a few months and should you get a return of symptoms, be seen within 48 hours of their appearance ( do not take any valtrex for them ) for a lesion culture and typing to confirm.
as I said, your symptoms don't even sound like herpes going on.
at this point, repeat your blood testing in a few months and should you get a return of symptoms, be seen within 48 hours of their appearance ( do not take any valtrex for them ) for a lesion culture and typing to confirm.
You are getting a little ahead of yourself.
Yes you can test negative and it be a false negative on the igg test. You have a baseline at least. Where you are going wrong is automatically assuming that you have herpes because of some symptoms that can actually be a fungal infection or something else. I re-read your entire post and nothing here sounds like herpes. Stop jumping the gun here.
HSV transmission really doesn't work in the way you think. Nor does HSV-2 like the oral area. How about you wait for symptoms be seen and have them swabbed for culture and typing. Be seen within 24-48hrs and if nothing appears getting one final type specific igg test 12 weeks after your encounter.
Yes you can test negative and it be a false negative on the igg test. You have a baseline at least. Where you are going wrong is automatically assuming that you have herpes because of some symptoms that can actually be a fungal infection or something else. I re-read your entire post and nothing here sounds like herpes. Stop jumping the gun here.
HSV transmission really doesn't work in the way you think. Nor does HSV-2 like the oral area. How about you wait for symptoms be seen and have them swabbed for culture and typing. Be seen within 24-48hrs and if nothing appears getting one final type specific igg test 12 weeks after your encounter.
Ok, so I just came back from the doctor, and it turns out, I tested negative on everything.
Most likely, this is because it was too early (the test was done exactly 1 month after the act). I did have SOMETHING, because I didn't just imagine the symptoms. The doctor thinks so too, especially when I told him that the Valtrex got rid of my symptoms super quick.
This also means that I never caught my girlfriend's HSV1 in the past, despite being with her for 4+ years (otherwise, they wouldve shown up on the test). So if I got something, I DID get it from that other girl last month, hence why the symptoms appeared 2 weeks ago.
This is actually a good thing because it means it could still be HSV1 (and most likely is, since I got it from somebody's mouth), the same one that my girlfriend already has, which means I can't pass it to her because she already has it in her body (right?)
However, I'm worried that it could still be HSV2. Although it's unlikely to get it from the mouth, I'm wondering if perhaps my male friend had it without knowing it, passed it to her mouth, and thus maybe gave it to me in that manner...
Lastly, the doctor gave me more Valtrex for another 5 days, but since I don't have any symptoms I'm wondering if I should just keep it for when it happens again? I'm asking because I got some pretty annoying headaches starting on the second day after I started taking it (I usually never have any), and some nausea as well. I'd rather take that drug only when necessary, if that's an option.
Looking forward to everybody's insight on this.
Most likely, this is because it was too early (the test was done exactly 1 month after the act). I did have SOMETHING, because I didn't just imagine the symptoms. The doctor thinks so too, especially when I told him that the Valtrex got rid of my symptoms super quick.
This also means that I never caught my girlfriend's HSV1 in the past, despite being with her for 4+ years (otherwise, they wouldve shown up on the test). So if I got something, I DID get it from that other girl last month, hence why the symptoms appeared 2 weeks ago.
This is actually a good thing because it means it could still be HSV1 (and most likely is, since I got it from somebody's mouth), the same one that my girlfriend already has, which means I can't pass it to her because she already has it in her body (right?)
However, I'm worried that it could still be HSV2. Although it's unlikely to get it from the mouth, I'm wondering if perhaps my male friend had it without knowing it, passed it to her mouth, and thus maybe gave it to me in that manner...
Lastly, the doctor gave me more Valtrex for another 5 days, but since I don't have any symptoms I'm wondering if I should just keep it for when it happens again? I'm asking because I got some pretty annoying headaches starting on the second day after I started taking it (I usually never have any), and some nausea as well. I'd rather take that drug only when necessary, if that's an option.
Looking forward to everybody's insight on this.
If enough time hasn't passed since the encounter (3 months) you will run into a false negative. Now some people do have a false positive but grace can look over your results and tell you if that is something that needs confirmatiory testing or not.
Testing can miss some infections (1 out of every 10). So it can happen by typically the majority will test positive by 3 months.
Testing can miss some infections (1 out of every 10). So it can happen by typically the majority will test positive by 3 months.
Alright!
Is it common for the Herpes test to give false negatives?
I'm asking in advance, because I'm wondering what I'll do if everything tests negative... I mean, I did have SOMETHING abnormal, but none of the STD I looked up had any descriptions that were similar to what I got!
Is it common for the Herpes test to give false negatives?
I'm asking in advance, because I'm wondering what I'll do if everything tests negative... I mean, I did have SOMETHING abnormal, but none of the STD I looked up had any descriptions that were similar to what I got!
you can get hsv2 orally but the odds of contracting it there are low. folks who have hsv2 orally, don't shed the virus much at all so the odds of transmitting it to someone through oral sex are even lower yet.
best you can do at this point is properly cover your bases with proper testing and go from there.
best you can do at this point is properly cover your bases with proper testing and go from there.
"the reason I asked about cold sores is because cold sores are hsv1 orally."
Always?
Because if so, that must be the one my girlfriend has... which means I really don't care much if I get that one, honestly, because it almost never causes sores.
My main worry is that I have something that my girlfriend doesn't have, because then she'd know that I cheated, plus I could pass it to her, and I'd feel pretty bad about myself if I did that.
That's why I'm mostly worried about the second type, because I heard it was more of a ***** to manage, and since my girlfriend doesn't have it, she'd know I picked it up from somebody else.
However, I heard that HSV 2 can also infect the mouth.. so there's still a possibility that the unknown girl passed it to me from her mouth, right? Especially since the red spots I got didn't look anything like cold sores.
Based on my description in my first post, do you know of anything that could cause something that looks like that?
Always?
Because if so, that must be the one my girlfriend has... which means I really don't care much if I get that one, honestly, because it almost never causes sores.
My main worry is that I have something that my girlfriend doesn't have, because then she'd know that I cheated, plus I could pass it to her, and I'd feel pretty bad about myself if I did that.
That's why I'm mostly worried about the second type, because I heard it was more of a ***** to manage, and since my girlfriend doesn't have it, she'd know I picked it up from somebody else.
However, I heard that HSV 2 can also infect the mouth.. so there's still a possibility that the unknown girl passed it to me from her mouth, right? Especially since the red spots I got didn't look anything like cold sores.
Based on my description in my first post, do you know of anything that could cause something that looks like that?
the reason I asked about cold sores is because cold sores are hsv1 orally. You can transmit hsv1 from the oral area to the genital area even if an obvious cold sore isn't present. Since your sex was protected but the oral wasn't, hsv1 would've been the bigger risk for you, not hsv2.
At this point, get a type specific herpes igg blood test for yourself since it's on your mind and go from there. If your regular partner has hsv1, you need to know your own status so the two of you can discuss what precautions to take together in your regular relationship.
grace
At this point, get a type specific herpes igg blood test for yourself since it's on your mind and go from there. If your regular partner has hsv1, you need to know your own status so the two of you can discuss what precautions to take together in your regular relationship.
grace
Well, now that you mention it, I'm not sure I tested for Herpes last time.
Also, I've never had a cold sore as far as I can remember, but my girlfriend has had them on the mouth since she was a kid (the kind that isnt an STD), so I wouldnt be surprised if I tested positive for that one. Even though she hasn't had one in at least 5 years.
However, there are 2 types of Herpes, correct? So what I'm worried about is that I caught the other type, the one that my girlfriend doesnt have. And, I mean, since my red itchy spot came out 2 weeks after the time that I cheated... it would seem like a pretty big coincidence if it was my girlfriend who gave it to me!
Especially since we've been together for years, and I've never seen her with a cold sore, and never had one myself!
As for not looking like herpes, I'm reassured to hear that. I was looking for some bubble-like sores with pus inside, but so far I havent had any. Unless they were the tiny dots that I saw in the red zone... I mean, the internet said that some people have symptoms so mild that they never notice them, so who knows, right?
I'd actually prefer if it was something else (that I can get rid of), but I wont know for sure until wednesday. The Valtrex worked, though. Right now it looks as if there had never been anything abnormal with my skin. Would Valtrex work if it was something else than Herpes? For example, Syphilis or something?
Anyway, thanks for the reply! Much appreciated.
Also, I've never had a cold sore as far as I can remember, but my girlfriend has had them on the mouth since she was a kid (the kind that isnt an STD), so I wouldnt be surprised if I tested positive for that one. Even though she hasn't had one in at least 5 years.
However, there are 2 types of Herpes, correct? So what I'm worried about is that I caught the other type, the one that my girlfriend doesnt have. And, I mean, since my red itchy spot came out 2 weeks after the time that I cheated... it would seem like a pretty big coincidence if it was my girlfriend who gave it to me!
Especially since we've been together for years, and I've never seen her with a cold sore, and never had one myself!
As for not looking like herpes, I'm reassured to hear that. I was looking for some bubble-like sores with pus inside, but so far I havent had any. Unless they were the tiny dots that I saw in the red zone... I mean, the internet said that some people have symptoms so mild that they never notice them, so who knows, right?
I'd actually prefer if it was something else (that I can get rid of), but I wont know for sure until wednesday. The Valtrex worked, though. Right now it looks as if there had never been anything abnormal with my skin. Would Valtrex work if it was something else than Herpes? For example, Syphilis or something?
Anyway, thanks for the reply! Much appreciated.
the zits on your gf's back aren't herpes going on.
have you and your gf ever been tested for herpes before? are you sure herpes testing was part of the testing you had done 2 years ago? it's not a part of routine std testing.
can you recall ever having had cold sores before?
your symptoms do not sound like herpes going on but at least you had a lesion culture done to be sure.
grace
have you and your gf ever been tested for herpes before? are you sure herpes testing was part of the testing you had done 2 years ago? it's not a part of routine std testing.
can you recall ever having had cold sores before?
your symptoms do not sound like herpes going on but at least you had a lesion culture done to be sure.
grace
Oh, and another detail about the red areas: the line between the red and the normal skin is very clear. No gradation or fade from red to normal. It's like a clear line. Red, and then not red.
Also, I'm a 25 years old male, and havent been with another girl than my girlfriend for 2 years before that incident. I did go with a prostitude 2 years ago, but got tested for everything several times during the following months and everything was negative.
So if I have something now, it HAS to be from what I described above.
Also, I'm a 25 years old male, and havent been with another girl than my girlfriend for 2 years before that incident. I did go with a prostitude 2 years ago, but got tested for everything several times during the following months and everything was negative.
So if I have something now, it HAS to be from what I described above.
Oh, and I forgot to ask. Yesterday when I went to get tested for herpes they gave me Valtrex, which I'm supposed to take twice a day for 5 days.
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You are reading content posted in the Herpes Community
Herpes spreads by oral, vaginal and anal sex.
Herpes sores blister, then burst, scab and heal.
STIs are the most common cause of genital sores.
Millions of people are diagnosed with STDs in the U.S. each year.
STDs can't be transmitted by casual contact, like hugging or touching.
Syphilis is an STD that is transmitted by oral, genital and anal sex.
