Herpes II?

[west66]

Hi I'm concerned I may have contracted genital Herpes II.  I've had two new sexual partners recently. One encounter on Nov 11th and another this last Tuesday, Dec 2nd. I used a condom for oral and vaginal sex in both cases. Neither partner exhibited any outward signs of a Herpes infecton. On Nov. 18th I got a bad headache that went away with IB profin. A had a mild re-occurance the next day but again IB Profin took care of it. I felt normal for about a week. Then on Nov 24th I got a fever/muscle aches with mild throat congestion/light cough. The fever came and went but was mostly gone in about 5 days though I still had a light backache for a day or two. I felt normal for 3-4 days and now today Dec. 5th, I noticed a tingling on my left inner hip, just an inch or so outside my pubic hair region that's been semi constant for about 10 hours. It feels like a phantom 2 inch 'hair' or 'string' lightly chafing me. No signs so far of bumps, sores, or blisters, and in fact no other symptoms right now at all. How likely is this Herpes?  If not, what else could it be?

[west66]

Sorry, yes I know asymptomatic shedding is common. Rare meaning it doesn't happen everyday and that it's far more likely to get it from someone in the middle of a visible outbreak. I had read on average this type of asyptomatic shedding happens 2-10 days out of the year for people so odds of getting it from a one time encounter is indeed super low.

I did not know prodome is only for recurrent Herpes and not for first outbreak. Thanks, good to know.

Two day mark- everything I'd read said that prodome transition to sores/blisters stage is anywhere from 2 hours to 2 days. So I was going to wait this out for the full 48 hours but I see now I'm worked up over very little.

I hadn't heard that the odds are so low in contracting Herpes even with an infected partner for a 1 time exposure. Not sure if that takes into account periods of non-symptoms and condom use but that makes me feel better.

Thanks again.

[HowardH]

"asymptomatic shedding (which I know is fairly rare)":  That's wrong. Asymptomatic shedding is very common in people with HSV2. But there is nothing to suggest you have HSV2, so it's not an issue.

"prodome stage can sometimes NOT lead to blisters"  Prodrome is an issue only for recurrent herpes. It usually doesn't apply to the first infection. For initial herpes, the first symptom almost always is sores/lesions.

I don't know what you mean by a "recommended two day mark".

There really is no basis for being concerned about herpes in this situation. Believe it and do your best to stop worrying about it.

[west66]

I appreciate the comment and perspective. One's head can get carried away sometimes.

I had a feeling this was the case on the fever/headache but since the info out there can be vague I wasn't sure on the normal timeline for symptoms. I realize the odds of getting infected are low between lack of symptoms on the women I was with, diligent condom use etc.

I just hear about asymptomatic shedding (which I know is fairly rare) and how the prodome stage can sometimes NOT lead to blisters that starts to undermine my confidence. Such stats make it hard to enjoy sex!

I'll give it another day to be sure so I can pass the recommended two day mark. The mild tingling in the same area on my inside hip persists but not quite as badly as yesterday. It's possible this is a supressed/pinched nerve from an slightly awkward position my underwear elastic ended up in when I woke up yesterday morning but I'm not used to such a symptom being this noticable and long-winded.

I'll hold off testing then unless a rash or bump/blister suddenly appears.

Thanks for the advice.

[HowardH]

Welcome to the herpes community.

There is no realistic chance you have herpes. Online sources and other educational materials generally include fever, muscle aches, and "flu-like" symptoms as occuring with initial herpes. However, they often fail to make clear that these symptoms by themselves almost never are due to herpes. If those symptoms were due to herpes, you would have first had obvious blisters, sores, and probably inflamed lymph glands. Also, cough and nasal congestion have absolutely nothing to do with herpes. ("Flu-like" only means headache, fever, and muscle aches, not cough, congestion, etc.)

And the same applies to oral or genital "tingling". Herpes sores can tingle, or tingling can preceded development of blisters/sores by a day or two. But without visible lesions, you can be sure that symptom isn't herpes.

In addition, the chance of catching HSV2 from any single sexual exposure is under 1 in a thousand even if your partners were infected, and you have no evidence that they were.

So all is well, no worries about herpes. I don't suggest testing, and you can safely have sex with other partners without putting them at risk.