Intimacy with uninfected partner

[JJ987]

How does having non-symptomatic herpes (both type 1 & 2) affect sex/intimacy with an uninfected partner? Do you have to keep taking supressive medication? Any kind of advice etc would be helpful :(

[petal130]

Most of your information is incorrect.

HSV1 is not more "severe" than HSV2, or vice verse. As a matter of fact, people with HSV2 (which is predominantly genital herpes), can have very painful outbreaks! HSV1 "prefers" the oral area, and HSV2 the genital area, but one can have (much less common) oral HSV2, or genital HSV1 (which accounts for about 30% of all new genital herpes cases, mostly transmitted via oral sex). The caveat is that oral HSV2 rarely sheds or causes subsequent outbreaks; same goes for genital HSV1.

Washing up after sex does nothing more than make you smell nice and clean. The virus works its way into the body during the sex act itself.  After sex is over, it's too late to make a difference. If washing was a way to prevent transmission/infection, it would surely be recommended.

With genital HSV2, Valtrex DOES in fact reduce the frequency of outbreaks by 70%, and viral shedding by 80-90%, which means it in fact reduces the chance of transmission. Valtrex taken suppressively, plus a condom, for instance, means there's only a 1% chance annually that a female with genital herpes might transmit genital HSV2 to a male! And the opposite, one in which the male has HSV2 and uses condoms and suppressive therapy, means only a 2-3% annually chance of transmission to a woman.

Most of this can be read in the Herpes Handbook, here:
http://www.westoverheights.com/genital_herpes/handbook/view_the_chapters.html

[greeneyedblonde1]

Back to your original question and once again, another posting about 1 and 2 being locations.  You have 2 which can be anywhere and means that it is mild.  You have 1 which means it can be anywhere but can be more severe.
Valtrex will not prevent the spread.  Nothing will.  Not even a condom.  ANY skin to skin contact can spread it.
Make sure you both wash thoroughly with soap and water-go take a relaxing shower so you and she do not feel like you are hurting the other's feelings by needing to go wash.  The best time to have sex is after you have the outbreak and it's gone.  Although you can still spread the virus it is the least worst time (I know that's not grammatically correct)

[JJ987]

Hi Grace

Where in the US would you recommned that I come to do a confirmatory test?

[gracefromHHP]

as I recommended in your other post, you need to seek out someone in your area who is more familiar with options in your area and ask them for help. I really can't help much outside of the US with options for confirmatory tests.

grace

[JJ987]

I repeated the teest with the same lab and the results were the same (low positive for both type 1 & 2).

I am not in the USA so I don't know what options I have wrt confirmatory testing. :(
Maybe i need to come to the USA to do the tests.

[gracefromHHP]

did you follow up on your test results to confirm your status yet?

[JJ987]

yes, i did post my result on another thread:

http://www.medhelp.org/posts/Herpes/Confused-igM/show/1280324?personal_page_id=1606358#post_5861544

my partner says no they don't have it. don;t know what test they did.

[gracefromHHP]

have we looked at your lab results for you so that you know if you need additional testing or not?

your partner will need tested to know their own status. You can't make educated decisions about precautions until you know who has what.

grace

[JJ987]

I have been reactive to both hsv 1 & 2. Partner (potential) does not have it...at least hsv 2 for sure. not too sure about hsv 1.

[gracefromHHP]

It makes no difference whether you get obvious cold sores or obvious genital herpes recurrences, you are still just as infectious either way.

which partner has hsv1 and hsv2?

has the other partner been properly tested or just assumes they have neither?

How does the infected partner treat their hsv2?

grace

[Mistakeguy789]

This is something you should discuss with your partner.  Taking supressive therapy helps lower the risk of shedding the virus without symptoms and helps shorten outbreak times.  I would advise that you speak with your partner about your HSV status and let them decide at what level's of caution they wish to take.