So after seeing my doc on Friday and being told it looks like herpes...but he wasn't sure...but he was fairly confidant...but it could maybe be ringworm....I called him back today to see about getting a blood test. I'm going in tomorrow. It's amazing how cavalier he was about Herpes. He just rambled if off like I had the flu, wrote my scip and was gone. I was still in a state of shock. I don' t know why he wouldn't have ordered blood tests right there on the spot. I guess i'm just a little...alot disappointed. I've gone to him for 8 years and he's been wonderful. I know HMO doctors are very busy. It just seems to me that having a viral infection or any infection that could potentially be passed on to another person, would warrant a little more discussion. Oh well, thank god for thist board. I've been out of my mind since friday and this is my only outlet to discuss what's going on in my life right now. So thanks to all of you. I should have my results back by the end of the week.

My doctor acted like it wasnt a big deal as well. Im sure they see so much of it that it isnt a big deal to them, but as the patient its a very difficult thing to go thru. Then again would we really want a doctor to make a really big deal out of it? Then we'd feel even worse about the diagnosis. His reaction made me realize that Im definately not alone.

What in the heck is wrong with these doctors...and why doesn't anyone of them test for herpes when you ask for an std test?????

My doctor was basically like oh Sh*t look what you got..oh well you stuck with it. I was standing there with my mouth open like huh..what??

I went back to him atleast 3 times for the next 3 days just to sit down and talk and ask questions..he literally blew me off...as if to say..girl stop tripping!!! I just don't get it! uuuuuggggghhhhhhh!!!!!

That's so true. My doctor was like, "oh, it's really nothing, I think you have type 1. you probably touched yourself when you had a cold sore. bye. click." He said he "thinks." So now I am not sure what type I have (genitally), but I have to admit I almost don't want to find out. All I know is I got it from my ex fiance, it showed up years after we broke up, but he never got tested for it so I didn't know what type he had either. On the other hand, it's also true that the doctor's reaction somewhat comforted me. He treated it as if it were just an ingrown hair (that's what he thought during visual diagnosis). I have to say that for me, the psychological aspect of it is the worst, not the physical. I still haven't talked to anyone but one friend about it. I am dreading bringing this up if I get involved with someone romantically. I wish I had gotten married in the years when this damn thing was dormant and I had no idea I had it.

I don't have a clue as to why doctors don't test for this on a frequent basis. My doctor was not too concerned with my herpes either... and after knowing my diagnosis for a few weeks, I realize that was the best reaction he could've had. I do wish he could've provided me with more information but I just feel that it's my responsibility more than anyone's anyway so that's how I'm on this board, I chat with other people who have it, I just got a book on it, I've called the Herpes Hotline and I've even found solidarity in one of my coworkers who's had it for decades.
I think it's up to each one of us to inform those close friends or relatives we trust so that they too demand a test especially a blood test whenever they suspect something.
I'm sure most of us have relied on doctors to test us for whatever they believe we need to be tested for and as a result have not been properly screened for this or some other std's. In my case, I have absolutely no clue if I was infected in the past year or it may have been back in College for all I know, after all... I was never ever tested for it nor did I notice any obvious symptoms. For me feeling a mild itch (almost unnoticeable) every once in a while was normal... who knew?

You know, I had a pleasant surprise last week in this department. I was diagnosed (genital type 1) in February by my GYN, and had seen her for follow-ups and stuff. Then I saw her for my annual and she said I should go see my internist about my blood pressure. Well I went to see him, and had to tell him about how I'm on Valtrex now. He was very knowledgeable, talked a lot about how genital type 1 is becoming more and more common... he even told me about a study they just did here in the Atlanta area, where they blood-tested like 1000 (I think? Could've been more) people, half male & half female, aged 21-40 or something like that, and fully a THIRD of them had type 2! But 80% of that third had never had symptoms. And 85% of them had type 1. He just went on about how common it is, and asked me a few questions about my dating life and how I was handling it, but nothing too uncomfortable... I was very pleasantly surprised.

Thanks to all of you that responded. After living with this for about a week, I too am glad my doctor did freak out. I did go back for blood work and will have the results on Monday. I'm still holding out...or hoping it's some strange skin thing that he's never seen before. The lesions are starting to clear up and I'm alot less stressed than I was a week ago. The thing that sucks so much is not knowing how long you could have had it. I just recently had sex for the first time in a while and then broke out. So at first I thought it was him (that's if I for sure have H) But, after doing my research I could have had it for years. I'm a pretty laid back person and rarely ever let stress get to me. Just recently I found out that I could be losing my job an started to freak out. That could have triggered and OB. Oh well I'll know for sure on Monday. Thanks to all of you for sharing your experiences.