It's been 4 Years with Herpes (HSV-2) and Symptoms Keep Getting Worse.. need advice
Posted , 3 users are following.
Hi,
I caught genital herpes (HSV-2) when traveling in South-East Asia in 2014, after the condom broke with a girl I slept with. I have done a lot of research on this since and I'm so sad there doesn't seem to be any proper treatment for help.
My initial outbreak was just one painful blister that quickly disappeared with a course of Acyclovir for 5 days. Since then I had some more outbreaks near the top of my penis, which to be honest weren't really that bad and I managed to get rid of them quite fast with Acyclovir. Since I had outbreaks quite often, I was prescribed suppressive treatment of two 200mg Acyclovir tablets per day.
Most articles online state that outbreaks typically get less significant and frequent over time. However, for me it's been the complete opposite as my outbreaks keep getting worse and worse. It's now been 4 years and I can't find a solution for this.
Instead of just getting a few blisters on my penis, I have started getting large packs of blisters on my buttocks. I don't care about these so much, but I also get a very swollen lymph node in my groin and get fever-like symptoms. I feel so terrible I have to take a day off work and the gym. If I notice it early enough and eat lots of Acyclovir I can manage but even a day too late and it can last may days.
My lifestyle is extremely healthy; I go to the gym 4 times a week, eat very healthy and balanced and rarely drink alcohol (if I do, an outbreak is almost guaranteed). I sleep 8-9 hours a night and my job is not stressful. I'm still on suppressive treatment of Acyclovir (2 x 200mg/day) and also eating 1000mg of L-Lysine along with vitamin-C, multivitamins, fish oil etc.
I don't understand what I can do more to stop these recurring outbreaks? I recently broke up with my long term girlfriend who caught the virus but luckily didn't mind it during our relationship. Her immunity is so strong that she only had a minor outbreak once which disappeared in 2 days and never suffered it from since.
I'm so worried right now as I have many new sexual partners. I'm using condoms of course but I find it really hard to enjoy sex with a condom. The future doesn't look very bright for me if I want to have a long-term relationship and not use condoms.
I have just switched to Valacyclovir (Valtrex) which is 15 times more expensive than Acyclovir where I live, hoping this will be more effective with suppression. I read some clinical studies showing that it is slightly more effective.
Any advice?
0 likes, 2 replies
haz83342 santa35734
Posted
It all depends on individual variabilities. You have to observe your triggers. I think if you revise your life you will find you do something that makes it going worse. May be some diet items. Also, i read that some times vigorous exercise can make it worse. Try to shift to mild or moderate exercise and lets see. I agree with you shifting to valtrex 500 mg per day. Increase lysine dose to 2000-3000 mg per day.
Did your gf got hsv from you inspite of using condom??
Do you use condom now with all girls? Did anyone of them caught herpes from you inspite of using condom?
Actually my dr told me i can avoid condom if im sure no outbreak.
Wish to hear your reply.
Good luck
santa35734 haz83342
Posted
Hi,
Thanks for the reply. Very hard excercise (bodybuilding / weight lifting) has been an important part of my life since 16 years old and unfortunately making my routine more relaxed is not an option, as after 10 years of training it requires a lot of work to keep improving. My gym routine is 4 days a week which is not extreme by any means.
L-Lysine dosage increase sounds like a good idea. On another forum I was also recommended to up my suppressive dose of Acyclovir to 800mg/day instead of 400mg/day. This was supported by one online article but I'm not sure whether it's unhealthy for permanent use. Valtrex is so expensive and I'm already spending a fortune on other drugs that I have to take permanently (Testosterone, anti-estrogens) due to suffering testicular cancer when I was younger.
I never used a condom with my girlfriend, except for the first few times since I cannot have babies. I actually discovered the herpes while I had already been a few weeks with my girlfriend and we had sex in any case because we didn't know what it was at that point. After realising, I of course always avoided sex during outbreaks but sometimes it's not possible (i.e. it's starting but I don't notice until after having sex). My ex-gf just had a minor outbreak once and really wasn't bothered about it at all. In the country I live Herpes is very unknown and there is no hysteria surrounding it.
I use condoms with all girls I sleep with, except for one regular partner who doesn't have any other partners than me and we both have been tested for all STDs. I never let her near me if I have any signs of an outbreak starting but I'm quite worried about the possibility of infecting her.
I find it very difficult to enjoy sex with a condom as it removes 80% of feeling for me. I have started taking Viagra because I easily lose my erection after putting a condom on, especially with a new girl that I'm not 100% comfortable with yet, which is quite sad.
Good luck to you too!