Sexual Health Buzz

There is no way to tell on your own when you are shedding.

For those that don’t know what “shedding” is… it’s mostly to do with asymptomatic shedding.

You see, folks that have herpes don’t always have the signs OR symptoms that you can see OR feel. In fact, there are many people out there that have herpes and do not know it because they don’t get signs OR symptoms.

But… just because those folks don’t get signs or symptoms doesn’t mean that it’s not possible to pass herpes on to a sexual partner.

People that don’t get those classic signs or symptoms still go through what is called: asymptomatic shedding. That means that the virus has traveled the nerve pathways inside the body, has made it to the surface of the skin, and you can’t see or feel it. So no, we don’t always know when we are shedding. Especially if we don’t typically get those classic signs or symptoms.

But for those folks that do get outbreaks that they can see or feel… the asymptomatic shedding can happen before, during and after an outbreak. The asymptomatic shedding usually occurs at the typical area of the body where you might have an outbreak.

That’s what I know about Asymptomatic Shedding OR just plain old Shedding. Remember, people with herpes are not contagious all the time. And those that don’t get outbreaks that they can not see or feel do not shed all that often.

I hope that helped to answer your question. Feel free to ask more questions if you want to OR just post them on our message board.