herpes or foliculitis

[johnbbb]

How do you tell the difference?

[johnbbb]

Thanks for the help and encouragement.

[shandy92]

From my perspective I'm swaying towards foliculitis. Herpes sores are usually painful and from experience my bumps from inflamed hair follicles never caused much discomfort at all. And I've noticed hair growing from them also  

You've done the right thing in getting testing and take it from me, I've been in a very similar scenario and I let herpes swallow me up and it makes your situation a hundred times worse. Try your very best to keep your mind off your genitals. Have a thorough check in the shower once a day until you get your results.

Good luck.

[johnbbb]

I posted earlier about a lot of other things I was worrying about. Those fears were pretty well put at bay, but my genital mound started feeling itchy. So, I took a beard trimmer to the hair to see what was underneath.  The red bumps I see all appear to have a hair coming out of them. One was bigger than the others and hard to see the hair. It is a deep red color. It doesn't hurt though. It's also about an inch above my penis and to the left, near where my leg and pelvic area meet.

My anxiety lately awaiting my blood test results for a badly decided short lasting protected sexual encounter with a sex worker has been driving me nuts.  I'm scared about finding something that validates my fear of having contracted herpes.

Am I right in thinking foliculitis?

[shandy92]

Herpes sores can be very painful, sometimes shallow like an ulcer and containing clear fluid.
Infected hair follicles usually look like red boils. They're very common down there. I've had plenty myself. They don't cause much discomfort and mine are almost always pus filled. Herpes sores aren't filled with pus.
Location is also a giveaway. Herpes sores crop up at the point of contact so the penis shaft usually.
Are you worried about a bump? Perhaps describe it and someone here can express their specific opinion