Hello to all. I join you as another new victim of this virus. Although the tests haven't come back yet, there's no doubt in my mind that I am infected. I have sores genitally, on my lip, AND on both nipples. I guess I'm still in shock, but I know that it's best to share this experience both with those of you who have been through this, and those of you who are going through the initial shock right now, just as I am. Quick question- my doctor said that in terms of treatment it doesn't really matter which type you have. After reading some of your posts, I'm not sure if that's true or not. Any ideas?

Thanks in advance for any words of encouragement or advice.
Red0916

Hi Red,

I'm so sorry to hear that you've joined our ranks! And to have caught it in 3 different locations must be especially stressful. http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/frown.gif You WILL get through this though. Reaching out to connect with others, like you're doing, can help a lot. You might check around your area to see if there's a support group for herpes.

It's true that drug treatments will work for both HSV-1 and HSV-2. The drugs don't always work equally for everyone, but that has to do with the person's metabolism not the type of herpes they have. The type of herpes can affect the frequency and severity of outbreaks, depending on location, but even that varies greatly with each person too.

There are some creams that are marketed for HSV-1 (usually found as oral cold sores) but that could be more of a political/social distinction than a medical one. The manufacturers might not want to point out that HSV-1 is in fact herpes and in the same family as genital herpes, so they might prefer to market it for "cold sores only." However, some people have reported success using cold sore cream for HSV-2 as well.

Everyone's system reacts differently to both herpes and its treatments (both chemical and alternative). The only way you'll know what works best for you is to try different things over time.

I'm glad you found us. There are other support resources out there on the Net too. You're definitely not alone. http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/smile.gif

TheOneInFour

Welcome, although I'm sorry you have to be here. I was diagnosed about 2 months ago, and my initial outbreak included around my anus, genitals, nipples, and I even on my finger tip! My doctor immediatley put me on valtrex twice a day for ten days, then one a day for suppressive therapy. I was so scared that future outbreaks would be like my first one...it was excruciatingly painful, and got to the point that my eyes would tear up when I walked. Heck, during my first ob, when I could barely walk without letting on I was in so much pain, a fried ran up behind me an smacked me on the ass really, really hard (she was drunk and goofing around), and I almost fell on the ground screaming, tehe :P One of the hardest things was also not being able to tell anyone why I was feeling so crappy...except my b/f of course, who has been a lifesaver for me. He never knew he was carrying it, as he never had an ob, so he feels extremely guilty and constantly feels like he has to "make it up to me"...but hey, I'm not complaining about the daily massages and all the sweet things he does, hehe, and if he starts to p*ss me off or anything, I just joke and tell him he better not stress me out, or the herpes may come back. I have found that joking about it helps me deal with it alot better http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/smile.gif Are you still with the person who gave it to you? Anyway, I hadn't really had any symptoms again, although I have noticed tingling sensations, but I'm not sure if Im just being paranoid and its all in my mind, up until a week ago. I had one (yay, only one, compared to the hundreds I had for my primary ob) bump, and it was gone in a few days, and didn't really hurt much at all. I feel pretty relieved now that I know future outbreaks may be this minor. I was worried that with every ob, I would again get it in all four places, and it be horribly painful. I'm soooo relieved! Anyways, the reason I'm telling you this is so you know that it may not be so bad as you may be thinking it will be, and don't judge your future ob's on your first one. The ones on my nipples were horribly painful, were yours? I almost took out my nipple rings because of them, but I'm glad I stuck it out. I don't think I have met anyone else on here that had it on the nipples, looks like we have a pretty exclusive club http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/smile.gif I did find that putting Abreeva on my nipples helped alot. I'm not sure what type I have yet, I'm actually going today for a IgG blood test to find out. I have my fingers crossed that it's type I (hopefully it is, since the ones on my nipples obviously came from his mouth), so that should mean I will get recurrances alot less than if it's type II. Do you know your type? Well, good luck, this board has helped me tremendously in dealing with this. I no longer feel that its the "end of the world" like I did for the first two weeks. I also frequent the herpes board over at webmd, it's pretty informative, but I really like this one much better. Don't be afraid to ask any questions on here, everybody is very helpful!

Devastated,

Thanks for your reply- it definitely helps to hear from people who have "been there". Right now I'm still in shock, and still uncomfortable from my first obs. The guy I got this from was just a one night stand, and even thought I DID use condoms, it didn't protect me from his mouth! The sores on my nipples are so uncomfortable, that I can't wear a bra, but that's not too terrible since I'm a 36AA. I just heard about abreva today, so I bought some, and I put it on one nipple, but not the other. My own little experiment to see if it makes a difference. I'll let people know if it seems to work. I don't know what type I have yet- not even sure if the test the doctor took will tell me. I guess I want to ask him about going on Valtrext to prevent outbreaks- sounds like it worked for you. Thanks for the encouragement!

Red0916

Well, hopefully since you apparently got it from his mouth, it will be type I (that's what I'm hoping for for me also). I have read that type I usually recurs very seldom if not on the mouth, like .01 times a year or something like that. I'll keep my fingers crossed for both of us! I hope to have my results back in about a week. I had to keep bandaids on my nipples for quite a while, and that helped quite a bit. You'll have to let me know if you have any luck with the Abreeva. It sure comes in a tiny tube for the price, doesn't it? hehe, I've also been taking L-lysine supplements daily, I've heard they help suppress herpes.

Yes- I couldn't believe the price on the Abreeva- but I figured if it works it's worth it, and if not I just won't buy it again. Is it really true that type ! tends to reoccur less? There's so much mix info out there that it's hard to know what to believe. I don't need bandaids on my nipples, but I definitely can't wear a bra, and only loose tops until this goes away. It's nice to talk to someone else with the same thing. I'll let you know how it's going for me- please let me know how you're doing too.

red0916