Hi there,
I am new to this board .
I just signed up today ,
I have herpes and usually get about 1 out break a year , it last 3 -4 days .
The very first out break was really really bad , but since then , livable.
That is until 3 weeks ago , YES 3 WEEKS .
I noticed the first sign of an outbreak coming small blister, so I bought abreva right away and followed directions,
OMG you wouldnt believe what happened to me . My lip swelled and swell , by the 3rd day half of my bottom lip was a herpe , no kidding and as big around as a canadian quarter. My lip was so swollen I didnt want to leave my house , But of course you must . Any way I started searching the net about abreva , I didnt find much info, so I called the number on there web site , this happens to some people they tell me ,
I was shocked, no where does it say this on the package or web site,
I was so in shock of how large my lip and sore was i was going to take photos as proof , but that would be gross .
So any way after i tell them on the phone that I was swollen and the sore was way way worst then ever even the first time, they say yes that happens to some people. you should stop using it. So I stopped using it. I am right now on day 21 of this sore on my mouth its still big , not swollen any more , but still runs from the top of my bottom lip well below the lip line,
So just to let you know abreva says they will give me a refund , well thanks , But they never asked how much I paid.
It was over 18 dollars canadian. for a 2 gram tube, so i have to send them the unused part of the tube and wait for a refund , I did include the receipt for them . But really poeple dont use this stuff, from the looks of my lip i think i have about a week of healing left , and today is day 21.
so if any one know any good creams , please tell .

My husband tried this too with not luck. He kept using it for 4 days and the sore just got bigger and bigger. Finally he just put Carmex ($2) on it and it started going away. He called and told them it didn't work at all and they sent him a check for his money back right away! Carmex works better than anything he's tried. If he can feel it coming on...if he puts some on it it won't even come up at all! Usually though, unfortunately he wakes up with one that's already big! They come up that fast!:mad: He started taking a 500 mg of Lysine every day and has not had a cold sore in probably 3 months...not one since the Lysine daily...before Lysine, it was probably one a month! But it doesn't keep the genital sores away. :rolleyes:

You are right i would recommend Carmax for an outbreak. It work tremondously A friend of mine told me to use it all the time to prevent future sores instead of just using it when u see a sign of a sore. Because yes they can just pop up in a matter or an hour.

so just an update , today is day 33 !!!
finally the sore has healed , I have a large red/pink spot on my skin just below my lip.
I have not yet got a refund from abreva or heard back from them .
Stay away from abreva , I cant believe this stuff was suppose to help me , what a crazy crazy month that was, imagine the largest herpe you have ever seen on your lip and below your lip for a month.

If the carmex doesn't work for you... or the lysine (which doesn't work for everyone). Then go to the doctor and get a precription for acyclovir. It's a generic/older version of valtrex, and it's a lot cheaper. It's on Target's formulary list for their $4.00 prescription plan, you just have to make sure you get the dosage that is on the plan.

It will lesson the time that you're having the outbreak. There's also a precription ointment, Zovirax, however, it's expensive.

I agree, carmex is great. I first bought it for oral herpes and i found it worked better than anything and also for times when my lips were dry or chapped as it conditions my lips nicely.

I had a tiny bit left in an old container and recently began applying it to the spot where i would normally get my genital herpes o/b. You never know it could work down there too :)

As for product refunds, if something isn't working or you get a bad reaction or is faulty, always call them and they generally give you a refund no questions asked. The info and statistics they get probably helps them improve products too.

Hey, i just thought i would put my 2 cents in this post, My boyfriends has HPV2 & HPV1, Just last week he got an outbreak on his lower lips.. He didnt know that he was infected and he went to go get tested and the test came out positive, He tried using Abreva and nothing happened the doctor recomended Herpescin-L an the outbreak was gone in less than 4 days. I recommend you use it...! It's worth it