I did a quick board search and I didn't see much about lemon balm, so for all my fellow herpes sufferers out there, I thought I'd bring it to your attention.
Lemon balm, also known as "Melissa" is in the mint family, and it's a simple herb that's effective against herpes. At least, according to a couple of reputable sources and a well known medical center, it is.
For various reasons, financial being one of them, I decided not to take Valtrex daily. (Gosh, that stuff is **expensive** if you don't have insurance!). I still have some, in case of an outbreak, but I didn't want to take a synthesized compound every day, and after taking it for nearly three months, it didn't seem to do anything for me- I had three outbreaks, and they all lasted over a week, so, so much for fewer outbreaks of lesser duration!
When I heard about lemon balm, I picked it up in capsule form, and I got H-Balm, which is a tincture type of solution with lemon, balm, tea tree oil and some other ingredients.
Three times, I've had prodrome, have used the topical solution and taken the capsules for three days and NO outbreak! Hurray! The first time, I worried it was too good to be true and maybe I didn't have prodrome at all, but the second two times, I had a symptom that for me, confirms an outbreak is on the way.
The H-balm solution wasn't painful, but it does create a warming sensation. I got used to this after the first couple times, but be ready for that. Also, I've only used this for GH; I've never had a cold sore, although if I did, I wouldn't hesitate to use it for those sores. The H-balm is pretty fragrant. It smells a bit like tea tree oil, and very, very lemony. Since it gets applied to the warmest areas of the body, well, you get the idea. I asked my husband, and he said I wasn't noticeably fragrant at all, but if you're going to be wearing shorts and running around in the sun, it's something you might want to consider
Lemon balm is fairly inexpensive, and I had no trouble finding it- health food stores, Whole Foods, and those kinds of places all had it. The H-balm I had to order, but a little seems to go a long way.
The disease stinks, but having a way to keep it a bit more under control makes it more tolerable.
lemon balm 
