oral sex-2nd try - Herpes Message Board

megan1830 · 03-06-2008, 06:12 PM

The first msg was cut off for some reason...

My boyfriend and I just found out that we both have genital herpes. We are wondering if there are any "tricks" to performing oral sex without spreading them???

catharine101 · 03-06-2008, 06:36 PM

Do you both have the same strain?? If you do, you don't need to worry about it. You can't be re-infected with the same strain. I suspect you share a strain and that one of you gave the other.

kitkat1955 · 03-07-2008, 12:08 AM

Be very careful... Even though you both have the same strain if you have an open sore, even an unnoticeable tiny one, or if viral shedding is happening (which has no visible signs or symptoms) you can spread it to other parts of your body... Like your mouth, hands, face, etc. I've also seen it in a medical book on some one's ear.

catharine101 · 03-07-2008, 05:39 AM

Auto-innoculation (spreading it to other areas) usually only happens within the first year of having the virus - before your body has built up it's antibodies. The tone of your email suggests that you've both discovered this by chance, through a blood test. You don't mention anything about having outbreaks. If you've found out through a blood test, and you've never had outbreaks, chances are you've both had it for awhile (more than a year).

If you know you just got it, you can perform oral sex using condoms and/or a dental dam. But nothing is a 100% guarantee.

megan1830 · 03-07-2008, 11:07 PM

Thanks for the response... What do you mean by "strain"?