PLEASE HELP! I was diagnosed with HSV2 this morning.

[hellomynameis_]

About a week after having PROTECTED sex ONE time, I noticed a bump in the vaginal area. I went to the doctor the next morning to get it tested and it came back positive for HSV2. I found out this morning and am devastated but am trying to stay strong and be positive. I do have a few questions, though. 1. Is it possible that the person I got it from had absolutely no idea he had it and has never had any symptoms? That's what he claims. 2. The doctor and I both thought for sure that it was nothing more than an ingrown hair, but 5-6 other small bumps started to form around the first one so she wrote me a prescription for Valtrex just to be safe. It was never particularly painful or itchy (maybe because I caught it and started treatment so early?) and I've heard that future outbreaks are usually not as bad as the first (which I didn't consider to be particularly bad at all compared to what I've read). Is that true? 3. Should I continue to take Valtrex daily even if the sores seem to have gone away for now? They lasted a total of exactly one week. OR should I continue taking it to prevent future outbreaks? I would really like to have as few as possible and for them to be as painless as possible but am not sure how to go about it properly. 3. Is it likely that I also contracted HSV1? I have had no symptoms and am not sure if they'd have shown up by now or were even tested for because they swabbed the sore I had and did a culture (I was never given a blood test). THAT to me would be extremely upsetting because I have a 9 month old daughter and it would break my heart not to be able to give her kisses. :'( AND LASTLY, will it ever be possible for me to have a healthy sexual relationship with someone in the future without passing on what I have? :/ If so, would taking the suppressives daily benefit that? Thank you SO much for your time and consideration. I really appreciate it and look forward to hearing from you.

[gracefromHHP]

I've always had that part of "the talk" before I traveled to meet anyone myself.   Even though you never know if sex is going to happen when you meet up, best to get that info out of the way.  the two of you can't make educated decisions about what precautions to take until you know who has what. same as it's not all about your herpes either - you want to protect yourself from anything he might have too!!

grace

[hellomynameis_]

I was diagnosed with HSV2 about two months ago and am still in the process of learning to accept it and remain positive. When I first found out, the advice and support I received here helped me quite a bit, but I have another question. I have been talking to a guy I dated a few years ago and things seem to be going well (potentially in the direction of us getting back together). He lives in a different state and we've been planning a trip for me to go visit in a few months, but I haven't told him that I have herpes yet. I think it would be best to discuss it before I get there in order to save us both time and money if the conversation ends up going badly, but he'll be the first person I've talked to about it and I would really appreciate some direction as far as how I should approach it and what kind of information to give him regarding transmission rates. I take an antiviral medication every day and have heard that that in combination with using other forms of protection makes it much more difficult to pass on, but the last thing I want is to give it to anyone else and would like to know just how much of a risk he'd be taking. Thank you!
Oh, and I forgot to mention (although I'm not sure whether or not it matters) that I've only had one mild outbreak.

[hellomynameis_]

Thank yo so much, I really appreciate your support and advice. :)

[gracefromHHP]

yeah that's definitely a big red flag :(


will you still find love even with genital herpes? of course you will!! it's easily controlled and very common. some folks will hear herpes and run but most partner's won't.  Easier to find a partner who is ok with you having herpes than it is to find out that is mature, responsible and honest.  

[hellomynameis_]

Thank you, you were helpful. They did a culture to determine that it was HSV2 but I am going to call and go in to get a blood test for both just to be aware of my status. I have chosen to cut ties with him because he has chosen to lie to me about quite a few things. He just informed me this morning that he did in fact know that he has HSV2 but "didn't think it was important to tell me because we used a condom and he didn't think it was during an outbreak". I'm very angry, but trying to focus on how to take care of and protect myself in the future. I'm just hoping that I can one day find someone who understands and accepts me even with this condition. I want to be able to have a healthy relationship with someone. :/

[gracefromHHP]

has your partner sought out type specific herpes igg blood testing yet to know his status? that is the next step. are you still involved with this person?  could he have had hsv2 and never known it?  most people who have hsv2 have no idea they have it until tested. since it's not a part of routine std testing, most people truly are clueless about their status.

Odds are that you have never been tested for herpes before this so indeed seeking out type specific herpes igg blood testing for yourself is also going to be useful. It's important to know your full hsv1 and hsv2 status.  It's getting a bit late now for blood testing to help you determine if this is a newly acquired infection or not but if your partner tests negative for hsv2 on igg blood testing, then  you'll have better answers to that question too.

so how to treat your herpes from this point forward? Totally up to you. you never, ever have to treat herpes if you don't want to. If this is a regular partner, once you know their status, that will help with this decision too.  

grace

[Dsb22]

Im not an expert but I have done A LOT of research on this as I am unsure of what I might have, but from what ive read herpes symptoms will show up 7-21 days after infection, yours came and went in a week when did you start taking the antiviral how long after noticing syptoms because that could be responsible for why your symptoms were gone like i said idk im.not an expert these are just opinions based ony own experiemces and research, my symtoms behave the same except they come and go with in days,  genital herpes you typically feel itching then develop blisters they pop and have discharge it becomes a lesion and are suppose to be very painful, but I do believe it is possible for someone to have herpes and not know it, or you can get it and possibly npt see symptoms.for months or even a year(s) ,  you should get a blood test done , ive seen many doctors about this red the herpes hamd book you name it, most doctors said it was nothin and one took a quick look and said its herpes and prescribed zovirax, o was devastated, I wemt to get my igg blood test done and I was negative for hsv2 and positive for hsv1 this osnt about me but what im sayin is that sometimes doctors are so quick to diagnose you with out proper testing. I hope I helped in some kind of way I know this is frustrating

[hellomynameis_]

*I DID perform oral sex on the same day that I had the intercourse that led to this diagnosis. I guess what I'm trying to ask is, is it possible for me to NOT have contracted HSV1 if I did contract HSV2?