Should I Be Tested for HSV2?

[derp]

Hi, I am 22 years old and this is my first time posting. In September of 2010 I was diagnosed with vulvodynia. After first, I thought I was having reoccurring yeast and bladder infections, but then I began to developing intense, almost crippling pain on my vulva. We were all stumped, so my OBGYN referred me to a vulvar specialist near my home. The specialist diagnosed me with generalized vulvodynia and I am now on Gabapentin. The Gabapentin is helping, although it has been a very slow recovery process. I am also taking probiotics and Candex, which have really helped. I began to read up on chronic vaginal pain and discovered that some women reported vaginal pain with asymptomatic HSV2. Both the OBGYN and the specialist did NOT blood test me for herpes. I mentioned this to the specialist and he felt it was unnecessary, because so many people test positive and never develop symptoms. The OBGYN also felt it wasn't herpes related, because I never had any sores or symptoms of genital infection. If it is any consolation, my boyfriend of 9 months was tested recently and came up negative for both HSV1 and HSV2.

I'm pretty sure I have HSV1, because I occasionally get cold sores on my lip (as a result, I rarely give my boyfriend oral sex.) Should I get tested for HSV2 because of the vulvodynia? I am very hesitant to, because I'm not sure how I would deal with a positive result. Part of me feels like I'm better off not knowing... any advice?? :(

[gracefromHHP]

yaz alters your hormones differently than other birth control pills do. you might even want to try switching to a different birth control. A straight run of the mill pill ( and really cheap ) like ortho novum or something might be better for you and see if that cuts down on the vaginitis issues for you.  

femdophilis is terrific and I always recommend it myself! It really helped me break a 4 year cycle of vaginitis!!  just wanted to make sure you were using one of the better probiotics :)

best of luck!  I went through years of pain issues genitally and getting to the bottom of them was difficult :(    I know how frustrating it can be as well as how it interferes with all of your life in general when you have pain :(  

[derp]

Thank you so much for being so helpful, Grace. This situation has not been an easy one, but all the doctors, nurses I've encountered on this subject have been wonderful.

My boyfriend and I used to go back and forth with using condoms, for a while we thought I had a semen allergy. I have also been on Yaz for the past three years, but I don't think it is creating too many issues with yeast. We started using Durex Avanti because pure latex condom was irritating. For about a week after having sex with a latex condom my vaginal fluids would smell like decaying rubber.

We have also had an issue with using lube. We stopped using KY because it would also irritated the skin, so we started using organic, water-based lubes, grapeseed oil and this British lube called Pure Silk. I am also using Jarrows Femdophillus (2 capsules a day). Occasionally, if I feel a yeast or bladder infection coming on, I will take 5 drops of good Oil of Oregano 3 or 4 times a day.

[gracefromHHP]

when hsv2 causes intense pain, it's with a newly acquired infection. You've been with your bf since before this happened and he tested negative for hsv2 on his testing so you know you didn't recently contract it.  

some women never figure out the cause of their vulvodynia unfortunately. It's a blanket term for pain in the genital area and it does totally suck when you have it and can be very hard to treat.  continue to be seen monthly as needed to get properly tested for yeast and bacterial infections vaginally to make sure that they are not further complicating things.  have they done an ultrasound too?

do you use condoms with your  partner?  do you use lube too?  which probiotic are you using?

so should you get tested for herpes? well honestly I'm a fan of periodic testing for herpes regardless but even if you do test + for hsv2, it's not likely the cause of your symptoms though certainly you'd want to make sure you kept it under control so it wasn't adding further to your issues. You definitely would want to know your herpes status prior to pregnancy.

grace