Sexual Health Buzz

Sometimes when people read my Herpes Biography they have more questions to ask about what’s going on with me today after all these years. I don’t mind answering these type of questions at all. In fact, I am compiling a list of Frequently Asked Personal Questions about my life and what’s it been like having herpes all these years.

1.) When you took Valtrex for two years and after had that one little outbreak did you or do you have anymore outbreaks?

Let’s see … I’ve had herpes 14 years now. I would say that I probably get an outbreak maybe once a year … if that?

2.) Did you shower when you had an outbreak like it didn’t exist?

The only thing I don’t do if I’m having an outbreak is scrub too hard in the shower. You know … you kinda have to take it easy when you are cleaning sensitive areas down there. I tend to use a wash rag pretty regularly so if I’m having an outbreak, I might choose to wash and soak in the bathtub instead.

To be honest, my outbreaks don’t last that long because I can usually tell when I’m about to have one. I pop a Valtrex as soon as possible and only have to take them for about 3 days.

I think you can pretty much bath however you want to with or without an outbreak. Obviously you’re going to want to take it easy on yourself so as not to irritate an already sensitive area. I hope that makes sense.

3.) Did you ever take a bath with your babies? And of course when you had no outbreaks?

Yep! I always took baths with my girls when they were babies. They are still small enough that sometimes they think it’s fun to bathe together. Sometimes we shower together too.

When I’m having an outbreak I don’t take a bath at the same time but even if I did and didn’t know I was having an outbreak … my kiddos would not contract herpes from me that way. Herpes is spread through skin to skin contact through sex, oral sex, anal sex, kissing … some form of sexual contact AND only when the virus is present and active on the surface of the skin.

You are not going to contract herpes from a bathtub, toilet seat, or shower stall. That’s just not how it works AND the virus can not survive on surfaces for too long anyway. And you’re not going to contract herpes from a swimming pool either. It’s all good.

4.) When you had an outbreak and after you showered did you dry it with your towel and used it the next day?

I think what the answer to this question boils down to is whether or not you share towels with your friends and/or family members. That’s not a very good practice in terms of cleanliness. Each person should have and use their own towel, not because of herpes, but just because sharing towels just like sharing drinks is not a very good idea.

5.) When you had an outbreak did you clean your toilet and bathroom sink everyday?

No Way! lol :] You don’t have to clean your toilet seat and/or bathroom sink every single day because of herpes. That’s just not how transmission works so go easy on yourself with all that cleaning.

Here are more questions that I’ve answered over the years.

Dear Glaxo Smith Kline,

I’ve been meaning to give you some feedback for quite some time and a member that joined our group today has motivated me to take some time to contact you.

I feel, as one of the largest and most respected drug manufacturers, you have a tremendous opportunity to educate the public but you seem to be avoiding the topic in your advertisements. I am one of the moderators of a worldwide support group for those with HSV (herpes simplex virus) and we have seen a disturbing rise in members joining that have HSV1 genitally and contracted it from someone through oral sex when the person honestly believed that it was ‘just a cold sore’.

It would be so awesome if just one company (you?) would have the nerve to identify cold sores / fever blisters as being herpes especially since up to 80% of the population has it and it CAN be transmitted to someone’s genitals.

I just wanted to give you my feedback and, hopefully, you’re listening.
Thank you! – Jennifer

I believe GSK sent back some sort of automated response. So… we decided to go ahead and post this letter via the blog just in case someone high up would see it here. Thanks!

Here’s what other’s had to say about Valtrex Commercials

Just wanted to pass along a positive experience I had the other night since this is always a big question for me. I was on a second date with a guy who is really into me. After a movie, dinner, and a couple of drinks, we were in the car and it was the moment of “do I drop you off or bring you home with me”? He wanted me to bring him back to my place. I told him that I would love to make out with him but I didn’t want to go too fast. He said that he too didn’t want to “have sex”. After a few minutes of agonizing over what to say, I told him the following:

“One of the reasons that I want to go slow is that I have herpes. If we have sex I want to do it conscientiously and intelligently. It’s harder for a man to get herpes from a woman and I am on medication which decreases the chances more, but it’s still possible.”

He said something about using condoms and I told him that that’s not 100% but that I have a couple of friends who have been in long-term relationships with men who haven’t gotten it. Then he said that he really liked me and it was ok.

I took him home and we had a great make-out session!

I will let you know what I truly think about taking Acyclovir. I had read not too long ago on your web page that you had no recent response from other’s taken this medication.

I’ll let you know, I’m all new to this and I am in no way a doctor, but I am going to medical school right now. Hopefully I will learn more as I go. I will keep other’s updated.

Everybody has their own kinds of remedies for herpes. If it works, more power to you.

This is my story so here goes

I am covered right now by some very good insurance, so I’m very lucky in that department than most. God was looking over me at the time. You see, I had to go in for major surgery weeks back and my immune system at the time was shutting down. My husband had enrolled in time when it all started crashing in for me. “The news of my life” I had found out that I had contracted the herpes virus this year of 2009.

In my case and only talking from “MY” experience, my first outbreak was not that bad and I only one blister out of it. I still was not clearly, out of it yet. I was still recovering from the mental aspect of it. Who, why, where??

My doctor had told me since my first outbreak was not that bad, she really thought I really didn’t need to spend the money to be on suppressive medication everyday like most. I’m not a big pill fan before all of this, but I wanted to deal with it my own way. So I got on Acyclovir.

It kinda made me feel that I was in control of my own body and it had helped me mentally for my own reason’s. Like being responsible in controlling of my new husband’s well-being. So I thought, who knows? Hey it’s making me feel better taking it. To this day, he is still herpes free.

The doctor had told me it was a good choice to use that everyday over Valtrex. Acyclovir has been around for a very long time and people that had taken it for whatever reasons over twenty-something years had really no side effect’s from it. No liver damage!! That’s good enough for me.

Trials are still underway with Valtrex and little is known what it can do after a couple of years of taking it, but I’m sure we are still safe. We will know more in time. I’m not in any means saying that this is better than Valtrex. My first outbreak, I had Valtrex for my first blister and it did go away very fast. But that’s me! I’m just saying with cost and taking it every day, I would go with Acyclovir when you first start out.

If you have little or no outbreaks you might think it doesn’t work as fast as Valtrex to get into your system or does it? Hmmm… I think that is up to the person and with what kind of immune system they have at the end… Is all about how our bodies can fight it I say, eat well with the medication for starter’s. It’s up to you rather you want to take suppress medication or not. For me, this is what’s working for me to take control mentally.

Later in time I will stop it and see how my body can handle everyday situation’s…at least it doesn’t hurt taking it when you need to. It’s there and that’s why it’s there.

Good Luck,
CCC

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Jessica Dickerson says:
April 3, 2009 at 12:37 pm (Edit)

Folks, Angela is all over the web promoting her insane idea that all people with herpes should be on antivirals. She is probably a drug rep fighting to keep people ignorant to natural approaches to health. Don’t give such people your energy.

Posted On: Lemons to Control the Herpes Virus

I have never said anywhere that ALL people should be on antivirals. I have always said that everybody is different and that the only thing that’s been clinically proven to do anything for the herpes virus is Valtrex, Famvir, and Acyclovir.

I have never been nor will I ever be a drug rep. I think you are just ticked off that I know what I’m talking about.

If you think rubbing Lemons all over your herpes outbreaks is going to help you, then by all means GO FOR IT!

In the meantime, I think it’s important to be clear here that Pregnant Women with Herpes need to have a way to keep the virus in check so that they can protect their unborn babies and have vaginal deliveries.

There are also people out there that are trying to protect their uninfected partners from contracting herpes. Since daily suppressive therapy with a clinically proven herpes antiviral reduces asymptomatic shedding by about 95% and the frequency and intensity of outbreaks all together, no.. I’m not going to tell people they should be rubbing their private parts with lemons.

Are you THAT ignorant or just plain stupid?

Giving people the facts about herpes and what is clinically proven to actually do something for OR about herpes does NOT mean I work for the pharmaceutical industry OR that I’m not open to holistic approaches.

I’m only speaking the truth and sharing the FACTS as to what I know about this virus, so I can understand why die-hard naturalists are ticked off by that. It sorta puts a damper on their business surrounding natural and alternative therapies. It sorta makes it difficult for you guys to make money now, eh? (As if their industry was not a billion dollar industry in and of itself!)

For those out there that are interested in checking out Alternative Therapies for whatever reason you think you need to be sure and do so through this resource: NCCAM

Always check with your doctor too because not everything is OK to take whether you can grow it in your backyard, mix it up in your kitchen OR obtain a prescription for it through a licensed healthcare professional.

As for Jessica Dickerson — you can just BUZZ OFF for all I care.

I’ve had HSV for about 6 months or so. I caught it from a new partner who says she had no idea she was infected. I was so annoyed and hurt that I ended the relationship but we have recently become friends again. She is still adamant that she has no outbreaks and I now believe her. Just goes to show how easy it is to pick up this bloody virus!

My initial episode was pretty bad and my Dr gave me Valtrex for it. I was then o/b free for about 5 weeks but a sexual encounter kicked it off again. My Dr then gave me Acyclovir which also worked. This cycle continued for a few months and I noticed that the medication seemed to work on the initial o/b BUT that it also seemed to merely postpone a more severe o/b until the medication had finished. At this point the o/b came back worse than ever so I decided to stop with the medication and look for another solution.

I tried Herpeset which did nothing for me except lighten my wallet considerably. I then tried Dynamiclear and have found as follows:

The 1st time I used it it cleared up a very minor o/b overnight and I was initially very happy. The next o/b was a lot harsher and I used Dynamiclear again. It cleared the ulcers quickly but I noticed that another o/b developed immediately in a new location that I’ve never had an o/b on before (I usually get o/b in two places). I treated this o/b with Dynamiclear and another o/b broke out in a new area again! This one was treated and another o/b broke out in the original place BUT this o/b is so small that I almost didn’t notice it. It consists of 2 tiny scratches and no blisters or ulcers. I have just treated this latest o/b so will have to see how this one pans out. All this has taken just 5 days which is pretty quick to have 4 separate o/bs.

I have read other reviews stating that there can be an initial game of ‘chase the virus around the penis’ but that it settles down sooner or later. I hope it’s sooner in my case because I’m bored of the game now but it could all be worth it.

This product review was sent in by Al.

I wanted to share my story with everyone… I wrote you when I first found out I was HSV positive but before the actual results came in. People who has posted their stories have really helped me so I wanted to help as well.

It was well… the beginning of 09, what a way to bring in the new year. I was so scared. I am 23 years old, in the midst if finally finding that amazing someone after quite a few heart aches. I had sore in my genital area and I knew it was not right… I was thinking Herpes but then I thought no way.

The sores where there for a couple days and I couldn’t take it anymore, they were getting worse. I called the doctors to get in right away because I had no idea what was going on.

I then proceeded to call my boyfriend whom I ended up waking up since he works all night at the hospital. He is a med student and a very busy guy. I felt bad for waking him up and he asked if he could call me later and I said yes. But he could hear just in my tone that something was wrong so he asked if I was okay and I just broke out into tears.

He tried to calm me down and reassured me that if it was herpes it wasn’t from him, he had been tested for everything just a couple months back so he said he would go get tested again and to let him know what the outcome was and we would work around it. He was the one telling me about herpes and the different strains and how I could have gotten it a long time ago and had never had an outbreak. I guess being a med student has its benefits. I was still very upset.

I went to the doctors several hours later… the day was dragging on, I felt like i sat in that waiting room for hours and when she examined me and just by looking at it she said she was pretty sure it was the HSV virus, I felt my heart sink. All the worry, am I going to lose this amazing guy I had met just three months prior, where did I get this, will he stay with me? I felt so incredibly dirty.

After I left the office, I called him… no answer. Waiting for him to call me back was horrible. When he finally did, I saw it was him calling and just broke out in tears. How was I going to tell him that its more than likely this horrible virus. I told him straight out that she was pretty sure it was and that she put me on Valtrex. I cried even harder when I asked him if he was sure he wasn’t going to leave me. He said “babe, I told you that I like you and that we can work around this. I am not going to leave you because of this.”

When the doctor called me to tell me I was positive with HSV 1 I was a bit more relieved that it was the lesser of the two “evils” and my boyfriend was also glad to hear this news, it was the strain he thought I had too. When I told him, he asked me how I was and just hugged me. He kept asking me showing that he cared.

Months went by and our sexual relationship slowed down a lot because of his busy schedule. Then being all paranoid I got myself thinking that maybe he was just making up excuses not to come over, not to make love with me because I was HSV positive.

That all changed when he finally had time to come spend some time with me in his busy schedule. We were making out and it got to the point where we stopped and looked at each other, he told me he was debating whether or not to just go for it like we had in the past without a condom or to just put one on. I told him it was up to him, that I know he is clean and that he knows I’m not. He is well aware of the chances and we ended up not using one. Later he told me that he didn’t care, that he plans on being with me for a long time anyways. I just hugged him and smiled.

Here I was worried that he had been staying away because of it but here he is not caring and willing to take the chances. If he isn’t the most amazing guy I have ever met, I don’t think one exists.

~ Kristen

Do you have a story you would like to share?

If you do, send it to me and I will be more than happy to post it for you.

Help help help! How effective is suppression therapy? With Valtrex? My mate doesn’t know I have it and our sex life was finished. then he went and got meds to start it up again. Now I’m panicked. I rarely have outbreaks that I know of. And online articles seem confusing … “shedding is reduced to 8% of the days with suppression therapy” means nothing to me. I’m so confused as to what my odds are to not transmit the virus to him. I can’t find anyone who really knows. My dr. even isn’t sure!!! Do you know anything that may be helpful to me??? – S

Suppressive therapy reduces outbreaks to the point that people don’t experience them like they did when they were first diagnosed. So if outbreaks are a problem for you then suppressive therapy would definitely be the way to go.

For those couples where one has genital herpes and the other doesn’t, suppressive therapy is helpful in reducing transmission to the partner that doesn’t have it. In fact, suppressive therapy reduces transmission by up to 50%. You add condoms to that and I would say that is pretty good protection.

Suppressive therapy also reduces asymptomatic shedding by about 95%. So for those people that do not get outbreaks that they can see or feel.. then they would be reducing the chances of their partner contracting it from them even further by being on suppressive therapy.

It’s really up to the couple to figure out what they want to do though.. that’s why it’s so important to talk about your sexual health, your std status, and make a date to go and get tested together so you will both know and understand what you are dealing with before you have sex.

If you decide that you have more questions feel free and post those on the Shut Up N Post! STD Message Board, ok? – A

I grew up in a family that wasn’t against premarital sex, but was warned of the risks of unprotected sex. my sisters were 5 and 8 years older than me, and i saw some of the mistakes they made involving sex. one of my sisters had a herpes scare when she was about 18 or 19. i swore to always use protection because not only did i not want to end up with herpes or something worse, but i saw how my other sister made fun of her behind her back.

well, now i’m 18. i work front desk at a hotel and get hit on a lot. i usually don’t accept. then, a construction worker who would be staying there for months hit on me, and something attracted me to him. even though i know i could get fired for having any kind of relationship with him, i went for it. he told me everything i wanted to hear, and without pressure, i slept with him. things were fine, i never had any symptoms.

we continued our relationship for weeks and weeks, and he told me he wanted something more than sex before anything happened. well, a little over a month into it, my vagina started to hurt really badly. i figured it was from rough sex we had the night before, and really thought nothing of it…until it became worse later that night. then i put it off on the new soap and laundry soap that i had used.

the next day, things were so much worse. i had all these nasty painful bumps all over and my vagina was swollen and itchy. i went to the gynecologist the next day and after looking for about 10 seconds, she automatically said herpes. i’m still not entirely convinced it’s herpes.

i don’t get the culture results until next week, but she told me that even if it comes up negative, she still says its herpes. i was put on valtrex, and really made to feel like a slut. regardless, i’ve never felt so much pain in my life. it hurts to sit, it hurts to walk, it hurts to urinate, everything hurts.

regardless if it turns out to be herpes, a severe yeast infection, or an allergic reaction, i’ve learned my lesson. not only did my doctor make me feel like a slut, a classmate at college filled my herpes medication, and i cried the entire day feeling dirty and degraded.

i made the mistake, and now i’m dealing with it. i told my mother, and she was more supportive than i ever thought she would be. she didn’t get mad, and she didn’t judge. i’ve been praying all night that i don’t have herpes, but even if i don’t or even if i do, the lesson is definitely learned.

and now i know that these things can happen after even just one time of intercourse without proper thought before hand. even if you think you know the person, even if they have no symptoms, things happen. i just hope someone out there doesn’t make the same mistakes.

This story was submitted by A. If you’d like to submit your story to be posted please do so. To read the rest of the stories submitted please visit: Inspirational True Stories

Here’s the situation:

I do not know if Im having a OB no sore on my genital, my butt hurt some and between my legs, also feels like I have swollen lymph nodes in my armpits and near my chest. what can this be. I feel like this all the time almost. do you have OB every day if you dont take meds?

Here’s what I think:

I don’t know if you are having an outbreak either. The best thing you can do is to track your symptoms and stay in touch with your doctor who will be the best person you can count on to help you. You might even give your doctor a call and communication what’s happening to you so they will know what to do. After all, what if your symptoms are not herpes related?

I have had genital herpes for 13 years so no, I do not get outbreaks every single day. In fact, I hardly ever get outbreaks as compared to when I first contracted herpes. If I do get an outbreak I tend to take 500 mg of Valtrex twice daily and that seems to do the trick in about two or three days time.

Hope that helps!