Is this my 2nd outbreak of herpes? So scared don't know how to deal with this!

Thank you for your reply. I have just come from a swab testing they did a pcr test, I'm hoping this will be accurate as the blister is now 3 days old. He said even if this comes back negative it's not to say I do not have herpes, which hasn't put my mind at ease at all, I feel like I will never get to the bottom of it and I'm so scared to be intimate with my new partner as I do not want to give it to him, I haven't spoken to him about it yet as I want to know for sure before I do. I'm just finding it really hard to cope!

Three days is not old for the pcr swab test, so it should be accurate, provided your doctor got a good sample. I would always choose pcr over viral culture, if given the choice, so you had the best of the best test done.

You can always do the IgG antibody test as well (not IgM), but it won't confirm location, so if positive for HSV1, for example, it could just as easily mean you have it orally, which is the most common for HSV1, but not necessarily. HSV2 typically means genital herpes, however.

That's good to know, thank you.

I may think about doing the igG blood test soon, I do think I have HSV 1 (genital) as I have only had one outbreak (maybe two if this test comes back positive) in a year.

Will the pcr test show whether is it HSV 1 or 2?

Do you know if it's very common for a male to contract HSV 1 from a female genitally? And if he already has HSV 1 orally does that stop him from getting it genitally?

Thank you xx

Yes, the pcr swab test will type the HSV virus found in the sample, if any. It is supposedly not common for gHSV1 to pass from genital to genital contact generally, regardless of gender. Having HSV1 already, such as cold sores as a kid or even as an asymptomatic carrier, should protect against genital acquisition of HSV1, but not HSV2. Hope that helps!

Thank you so much.

Just to clarify, if he doesn't have hsv 1 orally or genitally is it still possible for him to catch it orally from giving me oral if I have hsv 1 genitally? Is it then possible for me to catch hsv 1 from his mouth into my mouth? So have hsv both orally and genitally?

Sorry sounds a bit confusing, hope it makes sense.

Also does taking L-lysine help prevent ghsv 1 from reoccurring?

Thanks for your help so far means a lot xx

Once you have had it for 4+ months, you should be immune from getting it elsewhere. In fact, you're probably okay before then, since autoinoculation isn't very common and usually occurs during the first outbreak, if it happens. Just practise common sense hygiene, so don't touch a lesion then immediately rub your eye, for example.

If he doesn't have HSV1 anywhere, then I suppose there's a chance he could get it orally, but there are no stats on that, so I don't know the odds. I suspect not too high, since gHSV1 usually sheds and outbreaks infrequently.

Lysine is not adequately clinically proven (although there is a study that shows it may hasten the healing of recurrences, etc.). True HSV experts no longer suggest it as a result, but they don't oppose it either, and many people swear by it, so it's up to you to decide and see if it helps. Usually, the experts just recommend a healthy balanced diet to keep up the immune system generally.

P.S. Happy to help!

What baffles me too is the guy I caught this from I also kissed so how comes I never caught it orally either, I've never had cold sores through my life so I would have thought I would have caught it orally too. If I were to catch it orally would I have had quite a bad first outbreak?

I was thinking about maybe going to my doctor and asking if I can start taking suppressive therapy daily just to help lower the chance of my partner catching it as we don't always use condoms, do you think this could be a good idea even though I have only had one, maybe two outbreaks in a year? Im also worried if I do start taking daily antivirals, when I choose to stop I will have a terrible outbreak.

Sorry for the untold questions, you seem very knowledgeable, how long have you had hsv? Is it type 1 or 2. Have you passed it onto anyone? Interested to know. : )

Yeah, I don't know why that happens sometimes with HSV1, but it does. You'd think kissing would cause an oral outbreak, rather than a genital one from oral sex, since the preferred site is oral. Sometimes herpes is rather random!

Why don't you just tell your new partner that you have the cold virus? No need to say where. If he says no problem, because he had cold sores as a child, then you're okay. He may not think it a problem anyway. Personally, I wouldn't go on the daily meds for HSV1 unless outbreaks are very frequent and/or severe.

I sadly have gHSV2. Have had it for over a year now. No sexual relations since I got infected, so I can't really answer your last question. I honestly have no sex drive anymore and just want to protect my body, so I am in total health/detox mode, and that also means no men, no sex, nada. Okay, I might kiss a guy every now and then, but that's it! Lol

It's just a vey horrible annoying virus that I hope one day I can accept but right now I'm not getting any answers!

I just had my pcr results back and it says hsv 1 and 2 not dectected so now I'm wondering did I leave it too late after first noticing the bump? Was it even hsv or just a pimple? Did he do the test properly? All sorts going through my head! Also when I first noticed the bump I squeezed it thinking it was just a pimple so maybe I squeezed the fluid from the sore so they couldn't take an appropriate sample from the sore. I think next step is defiantly an IgG test.

My first outbreak I'm almost certain it was herpes, but that is just me diagnosing myself after reading so much online about the symptoms etc. Is there anything else that is similar to hsv that I could have had. Maybe I'm just wishful thinking. Now I'm back to square one I feel like I don't even want to keep seeing this guy (who I feel like could actually go somewhere) I just feel so confused. I know what you mean about sex drive, I'm so upset I enjoy sex, I'm a sexual person and now I just feel like I'm not the same person anymore!

I hope your hsv2 doesn't cause too many outbreaks, I know how awful they can be. Do you think if I do have hsv which I'm 95% certain I do do you think I have hsv 1 and not hsv 2 seen as I've only had one outbreak?

I have also had cystitis (uti) for the past couple weeks, I've heard that can have something to do with hsv? Have you heard that? Is so annoying and won't seem to go away! X