Please please please can somebody help me! What is this?

Posted , 7 users are following.

Does this look like genital herpes? Very rarely my bf suffers from coldsores, maybe twice / three times a year. One day I woke up and noticed my vulva area was very red and dry. I instantly knew I had an infection and suspected a yeast infection. The next day I went to my doctor and she swabbed me. She believed it was thrush and the test cane back to say that I did indeed have thrush.

Then the next day I woke up and my vagina looked like this:

image

I didn't have any pain, generally or when going to the toilet, I had no itching or burning. Then when I checked a few days later my vagina looked like this:

image

And then it looked like this the next day:

image

I didnt have any typical herpes symptoms except I did experience a little cold, tiredness and achy legs however that wasnt initially, it was more afterwards. I never experienced any ulceration or any type of pain, stinging or itching. I collected my thrush cream and tablets and my vagina improved before the redness returned. I went back to my doctor and she swabbed me for thrush, she didnt think I could have herpes bc she would have noticed it asap when i first came in. The swabs for thrush and some other stds all came back negative. But now 8 months later I am still suffering with vaginal redness, sensitivity when I put pressure and wipe, vaginal dryness and discomfort / burning if my partner rubs my vagina. My doctor has also retested me again and explained that my flora and ph are perfect and that there is no sign of any infection. She believes I could have some form of dermatitis and she prescribed me steroid cream which doesnt seem to be improving.

This is how my vagina currently looks:

image

Im worried all along I could be suffering from herpes? Could herpes cause constant redness, burning, dryness and sensitivity? Could I be suffering from viral vaginitis? Despite not having any sores or typical herpes symptoms? My boyfriend and I have also had unprotected sex and he hasn't experienced any herpes symptoms either. Please if you could help i would be so grateful, im driving myself crazy....

1 like, 21 replies

21 Replies

Next
  • Edited

    i experience the same. i dont think it is herpes at all, it comes in 'outbreaks' and does not stay for months on end. your first outbreak would be most painful and have some kind of sores. i think u are worrying over thise photos for no reason, i do the same. imagine how many little discolourstions and red patches we have down there when we are not looking! its most likely your partner giving u thrush again and again, you have a different infection, dermatitis or vulvodynia (do some research on this). i found a lot of my symptoms were anxiety based, once i stopped stressing so much lots of my symptoms cleared up. let us know if u do find out. i reallt dont think its herpes

    • Posted

      I was afraid I could see some type of sores in the above three pictures but like you were saying, when youre anxious your mind runs wild. I have recently tested negative for thrush and bv. my doctor did prescribe me a steroid cream for dermatitis but it doesnt seem to be getting rid of the inflammation / redness. Hence why my mind went back to it being something to do with herpes, like vaginitis. I dont think Im going to mention this to my doctor as Ive read from many articles and blogs, that unless you have an active outbreak / sores, its hard to determine where exactly your herpes is; mouth or genitals. I just wish I could find a solution to what is going on, its having a bad effect on my anxiety, mental health and relationship 😕

    • Edited

      let us know if you do find out 😃 i hope things clear up for you soon

    • Posted

      I had my appointment today. The nurse examined the pictures and she told me that she thinks it’s nothing to worry about. She explained how it’s a good sign I didn’t experience any symptoms and that it went away the next morning. She also said that a lot of things can cause lumps and bumps down there. She said that it could be viral, herpes or even warts and that the only way to know for certain is to test it. She explained that she doesn’t test unless there’s visible sores, so for the time being she recommends that I just forget about, and if anything ever happens again, to push for an appointment on the day it happens. So to sum it up, I’m basically going to take it as she doesn’t really think it’s herpes and that I should forget about it and go about my life! 😃

  • Edited

    it could still be a yeast infection

    depending on how often you get it

    it can build a resistance to certain medications

    • Posted

      Thank you for your reply!

      Do you think those bumps / blisters are herpes related?

    • Posted

      im not sure whether they were bumps or blisters. they didnt erupt or ooze or ulcer, and they were gone when i woke up the next morning

    • Posted

      ok so its quite possibly just yeast related

      if that is the case get it cleared up properly and see if everything settles down

    • Posted

      well i did test postive for a yeast infection but the bumps were gone. the yeast infection cleared up. the only thing im suffering from is redness and dryness.

      i was really just wondering, whether those bumps or blisters resembled herpes? the majority of people have said no but im just interested in everyones opinion. i do have an appointment tomorrow to show the doctor the pictures

    • Posted

      Thank you very much for your help! Ill update tomorrow after my appointment!

    • Posted

      I had my appointment today. The nurse examined the pictures and she told me that she thinks it’s nothing to worry about. She explained how it’s a good sign I didn’t experience any symptoms and that it went away the next morning. She also said that a lot of things can cause lumps and bumps down there. She said that it could be viral, herpes or even warts and that the only way to know for certain is to test it. She explained that she doesn’t test unless there’s visible sores, so for the time being she recommends that I just forget about, and if anything ever happens again, to push for an appointment on the day it happens. So to sum it up, I’m basically going to take it as she doesn’t really think it’s herpes and that I should forget about it and go about my life! 😃

Report or request deletion

Thanks for your help!

We want the community to be a useful resource for our users but it is important to remember that the community are not moderated or reviewed by doctors and so you should not rely on opinions or advice given by other users in respect of any healthcare matters. Always speak to your doctor before acting and in cases of emergency seek appropriate medical assistance immediately. Use of the community is subject to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and steps will be taken to remove posts identified as being in breach of those terms.