About two weeks ago I got a small cold sore on my lip. I haven't had one in more than five years. I used Abreva and it seems to have gone away. But I haven't been able to find out how long to wait to be safe kissing the woman I'm dating. Nobody at the clinic I went to wanted to do a culture, and they all told me I was paranoid and not to worry. This strikes me as irresponsible no? I plan to ask my gf if she ever gets cold sores. How much does her answer affect our safety. If she has been able to avoid herpes1 so far I don't want to be responsible for giving it to her even though that might be a forgone conclusion at this point. In short, what are the signs that the cold sore is GONE, and does it matter anyway? Have I already given herpes1 to her just by kissing her shortly before I got an infection? These seem like very simple questions, but nobody wants to answer me. Please help. Thank you.