HSV 1

Hello, I was diagnosed with HSV 1 today. For the last 6 days I have had awful symptoms and lost 6 pounds. Today received my positive test result and began crying in the Dr's office. This is obviously my first encounter to the virus due to the severity of the symptoms over the last 6 days. This was only the third time I have had sex with this guy and never had a problem until now, but this was the first time we performed oral sex. What are your suggesstions for telling him, I am not passing blame but have been really sick. Since so many people have HSV 1 and may never even know is this something I must tell him? As I said we havnt been dating long, and he may not even know he has it. Also if he were to have a blood test but never any symptoms would it come back positive for HSV if he is a carrier?

[gracefromHHP]

what testing did you have done that came back as hsv1+? was it a lesion culture of your genital symptoms?

even the best blood tests we have still miss 1 out of every 10 hsv1 infections. odds are your partner will test accurately for hsv1 on blood tests but he might not. just be open and honest with him about it all and go from there.

grace

[stargazer7]

I tested positive from a Genital lesion. I also have blisters below my lip.

[stargazer7]

This virus hit me really hard. I have never had cold sores in my life. But I had every awful symptom they describe with the first encounter. Pretty much bed ridden. Its really hard to drink when your throat hurts so bad your molars hurt, not to mention the fact it hurts so bad to urinate that you have to squeeze a stress ball to not scream with a RAW throat. I have never been hit herder by anything in my life. As of now I am just trying to come to terms with how to tell the guy I may have caught it from (there has only been him) and hope he is understanding. The other thing I am having the hardest time dealing with emotionally is the soars on my face (about 6 of them) I haven't been able to bring myself to go to work because this is very personal to me and I work in a Hospital so the MD's and staff will surely make an assumption I don't want being made. I am on Acyclovir 400mg 3x/day. It has been just a bit over 24 hours since the initial dose. My mother seems to be having a harder time dealing with this than me. She said she didn't want me to see this guy again...I'm 28 years old. Sorry I wrote so much just a little overwhelmed with everything. Thank you for your support!

[gracefromHHP]

cold sores are very common. no reason to stay home from work just because they are visable. since this is a newly acquired infection for you, it will take time until your oral and genital lesions heal and I doubt you can take a week or more off work?

go to the drug store and pick up a can of dermoplast spray ( the blue can for the genital area, not the red can ) . it's usually under $10. it's a spray on anesthetic and is helpful for pain relief.  you also can use a "squirt" bottle when you urinate, fill it with luke warm water and squirt it over your genital area as you urinate to help dilute the urine so it stings less.  

for your cold sores, try steeping a tea bag, let it cool some and use it as a compress on the herpes lesions there to help with pain relief.

as a mother, I can tell you no matter how old you are, we still want to protect you but since oral herpes is incredibly common, in fact 1 out of every 2-3 people you know has it, asking you to stop seeing someone because of this isn't really all that rational ( not to mention at your age you'll do what you want anyways ). You didn't know and sometimes hsv1 is transmitted to the oral area through kissing and the genital area through oral sex.  

so you still haven't talked to your partner yet? give him a call and let him know what is going on. you could probably really use a shoulder to lean on right now :)

[stargazer7]

Thank you for all of your help! Lucky enough I had some vacation time and I took 3 sick days which gave me a week off. By the time I came back (yesterday) the sores on my face were looking WAY better :-) I was able to tell my partner on Friday. He knew he had it, just wasnt aware of any sores at the time.

Even though I was a little upset he knew of this and didnt tell me it was refreshing to have a good honest conversation about it. He was surprised I had never had a cold sore in my life. He said he has had it since the 4th grade. I let him know about the complications of a first time effect on someone and explained it would be helpful for someone to know about this so maybe they or I could have treated it more effeciently and faster. I tried to be treated for a yeast infection, strep throat, a bladder infection, a fungal infection, a genital tear...etc...

My mother has gotten a little more understanding. I just hope I dont have bad breakouts in the future. Thanks again for all of your help. I wouldnt have wished what I went through in 8 days on anyone! I lost 6 pounds in 6 days :-(  Thanks again!

[stargazer7]

What is your suggestion for future breakouts? In terms of which pill you reccomend and cream for both areas.

Genital?

Oral?

I had blisters in both areas. THANKS SO MUCH!