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Pretty sure I have GH. Have yet to be diagnosed.


positivethinking

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I am 21, just returned from the university, began winter break and am staying at my parents' home. I don't have a car, do not have an open relationship with my parents, and my mother is a housewife so it makes it hard to up and leave to get a diagnosis for what I'm currently experiencing. Just 5 days ago I noticed three pink larger bumps on my fair skin spaced about a cm away from one another. Three days later they began to fade and I developed a cluster of about 10 small bump/sores/blisters.. I am not even sure what they are exactly. I did feel feverish for a few hours the first day I noticed the larger bumps. Additionally I felt achy, I developed somewhat of a sore throat for a day, and my left underarm felt tender to touch. Those larger bumps did not itch or hurt and I never felt anything coming on beforehand, but maybe I didn't notice because this could be my first outbreak. The cluster of bumps I have are quite sore as I walk and when I sit--they are on the close to the crease between my vagina and behind, close to my "gooch"--if that exists on a woman. My boyfriend has HSV1 since childhood and is very understanding. I will see him soon and we will go to planned parenthood to hopefully get a diagnosis. I'm pretty sure I have some form of herpes.. at this point it may just to be to determine whether it's HSV1 or HSV2. So ultimately, I'm asking, this does indeed sound like GH, right?

Another question: When I had those larger bumps I did touch them and didn't know then to wash my hand with warm water and soap. Will it spread to my fingers? Possibly eye if I rubbed it? I wish I could remember if I did. I was so taken by this unfortunate surprise I was not collected enough to deal with things appropriately. Since the cluster formed I've been very careful.

I've been researching so much, but I'm glad I found this site. It seems reliable :rolleyes: It's frightening especially since I haven't been with anyone besides my boyfriend for over half a year. He has performed oral, but never while having a cold sore. I'm really uncertain of when I got it. I definitely never did anything with him or my previous boyfriend (whom I believed to have nothing) during any time of apparent viral activity. Trying to be calm, but of course it's hard to adjust and take things in. Especially since I've yet to be diagnosed! Ughhh... I know I'm lagging. Wish I could take control right now :sad:

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Welcome Positive! I am not a doctor, but your symptoms sound similar to mine. I was diagnosed with HSV-1 and had similar symptoms during my first OB. If your boyfriend does in fact have HSV-1 and he has performed oral on you, then there's a pretty good chance you have contracted the virus. I now have genital HSV-1 from someone performing oral. I'm sure you are fine - but next time you touch an OB make sure you wash your hands. Definitely go see someone asap to confirm everything. If you do in fact have HSV, you're not alone! It's crazy how common this is. This site is great support. :)

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Sneaky little bastard of a virus ---- herpes is hard to pin down as far as "when." Most folks may not ever really know.

Do you have any friends there in town who could help you get to the clinic while you still have fresh sores that could be swabbed and cultured? If you don't get that done, then it is harder to be sure what is causing those symptoms.

You could get a blood test later, but it can't tell you where a herpes infection is located if it comes back positive. So if it shows positive, especially for HSV1, it might just mean you have an old, unrecognized (asymptomatic) oral infection.

Maybe you could tell your mom you were going shopping...and let it seem as though you were going to get her a gift...so it would make sense that you need to go alone?

As far as what you are dealing with, it's not something anyone here can tell from your description. Even a doctor can't tell with 100% accuracy when looking right at it. You need those lab tests to be sure.

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@sc1989: Thanks for relating and for the advice. I also got my period the day the small cluster appeared and my eye were achy for a couple of days when I was experiencing overall body aches and tenderness in lymph node areas. Was your ob triggered by something similar? Or did it just pop up unexpectedly?

@RealisticGal: Thanks for the tips on how to possibly get out of the house. I am definitely going tomorrow morning/afternoon to the clinic. I told my mom the boyfriend and I are going to see a movie and go shopping, which we may very well do afterwards. I need to take my mind off of this for a little bit. The cluster hasn't bursted/started weeping, and it's still almost as painful as yesterday while walking around. So hopefully they can get a culture on it tomorrow. It just seemed so similar to herpes and looked similar in pictures (yet milder.. maybe because it's HSV1 in the genital region?) that I just began to accept it. I cried and worried a great deal this week, but I feel like if I have it, I'm ready to accept it and deal with it like a challenge and not a threat. How fast will results come back? If I indeed contracted it, I was thinking of supplementing and making changing to my diet (i.e. lysine, zinc, vit c, bioflavanoids, less foods with arginine, lowering alcohol intake, upping exercise, etc). My boyfriend takes medication during his outbreaks and he says I should strongly consider it at least during outbreaks so it will go away quicker, but could supplementation be just as effective? Or should I stick to supplementation on a daily basis and medication during obs? I don't want any negative side effects. And I've never been big on taking anything--not even b.c. Pills other than a multivitamin and fish oil scare me. I just want to be prepared if I'm diagnosed.

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@RealisticGal: Thanks for the tips on how to possibly get out of the house. I am definitely going tomorrow morning/afternoon to the clinic. I told my mom the boyfriend and I are going to see a movie and go shopping, which we may very well do afterwards. I need to take my mind off of this for a little bit. The cluster hasn't bursted/started weeping, and it's still almost as painful as yesterday while walking around. So hopefully they can get a culture on it tomorrow. It just seemed so similar to herpes and looked similar in pictures (yet milder.. maybe because it's HSV1 in the genital region?) that I just began to accept it. I cried and worried a great deal this week, but I feel like if I have it, I'm ready to accept it and deal with it like a challenge and not a threat. How fast will results come back? If I indeed contracted it, I was thinking of supplementing and making changing to my diet (i.e. lysine, zinc, vit c, bioflavanoids, less foods with arginine, lowering alcohol intake, upping exercise, etc). My boyfriend takes medication during his outbreaks and he says I should strongly consider it at least during outbreaks so it will go away quicker, but could supplementation be just as effective? Or should I stick to supplementation on a daily basis and medication during obs? I don't want any negative side effects. And I've never been big on taking anything--not even b.c. Pills other than a multivitamin and fish oil scare me. I just want to be prepared if I'm diagnosed.

Hi PT,

I'm glad you figured out a way to get a timely test done. That's best!

I wish I could guide you on the lifestyle/supplement/medication questions, but I don't think anyone really can. It seems that everyone reacts differently. Some folks find that they can eat, drink, smoke whatever they want without it triggering problems. Others seem to react if they even think about certain foods. Some see good results from supplements, others notice no improvement. Some do well with one antiviral medication while a different one makes them very ill. The best thing I can suggest is that you just see how things go for you. If you are lucky, maybe your primary outbreak will be your worst/only one and you won't need to take intermittent or suppressive therapy or anything else. If that isn't the case, you'll just have to experiment and see what works best for you.

Best wishes! :wavey:

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    • sgt98
      Hey @WilsoInAus ok thank you, I will do my best to move on and stop trawling forums haha. 
    • WilsoInAus
      Hey @sgt98 but there is no feasible infection or outbreak to suppress and antivirals do not suppress an initial outbreak in any event 
    • sgt98
      Thanks @WilsoInAus I understand apologies for this but the only other thing I am worried about is that I did take a course of Famvir on day 1 as I felt like I was having an outbreak of cold sores and am worried that has suppressed the initial outbreak genitally 
    • WilsoInAus
      Hi @sgt98 it is not feasible to obtain a HSV-2 infection from receiving oral sex - only HSV-1 is feasible but you've already got that and immunity from any further infection with HSV-1. You do not need any further tests for HSV. You're feeling regret, try to forgive yourself and calm down, let the rational take over. You know the answer here and it won't be long until you believe it too.
    • WilsoInAus
      Hi @NerdP423 and welcome to the website. You raise a lot of points and I think the best way to address your concerns is add some comments at each key point. I've copied your note again below and added these comments in square brackets. I appreciate any insight (even speculation) as to what has been going on with me. I'm a 37y/o M. I last was intimate with a new partner on 2/11/2022, and a few days later started having a huge amount of discomfort in my face. [The first thing that happens though is that herpes causes lesions or at least some skin based disruption. Other symptoms are then related to the actions of the immune system responding to the virus. Without lesions, it is highly questionable that the ailment is related to herpes, yet testing is useful if you have concerns as you have done so.] About a month after that [herpes causes issues within days, if the first 'symptoms' are a month later - its extremely unlikely they are related to herpes], significant discomfort downstairs, however every test I have ever taken for HSV 1 and 2 has been negative. Here are the details: Face: Previously, some significant tingling and itching on the right side of my mouth, lips and chin (still there, but milder) [herpes does not cause general tingling and itching, it can cause a reasonably concentrated feeling of itch/throb from which a herpes lesion appears within hours]. Occasional hot flashes near my right eye, cheek and ear [herpes does not do this, it may be a immune response to something, or stress]. Sometimes it will feel like the skin is crawling on the right side of my face [herpes does not cause a general crawling sensation]. Never seen anything that looked like a traditional cold sore [that's extremely telling, even people with associated atypical symptoms will have experienced herpes lesions]. Occasionally, the left side of my face will have a momentary feeling of skin crawling, but it's so mild that I am not really worried about it. Downstairs: Thankfully, most of these are now milder than they were before. Occasional momentary pinch of pain at the base of my genitals. [herpes does not cause a general pinch feeling.] Aching pain in my boxer area (groin, leg folds) [nor this] Occasional feeling of cold in my boxer area, butt, or lower back. ( also in my shins and occasionally even my arms) [nor this] On 4/30/2022, I had been in discomfort for almost two months. I scratched an itch, noticed it hurt, and then checked - I did have an open ulcer down there. Took myself to the ER to get swabbed, came back negative. [If this was a PCR then this will be very conclusive.] Practitioner said it may come back negative because it was already open. However the lab report noted that it definitely didn't look like what you'd expect a typical first herpes outbreak to look like [how would the lab know??]. All blood tests negative so far. I had two western blots, the second one was nine months after exposure. [Two negative Westernblots!!! Many that's real convincing]. All other swabs also negative. I went to urgent care, because I know the timeliness of when the Swab is taken matters. One time, a swab was not done, because practitioner said it was folliculitis and wouldn't swab it (It was at my belt line). [Belt line is highly unlikely to relate to herpes.]   A blood test revealed I had low-ish B12 (technically in range, but at the very low end, especially for a man of my size). I had a series of B12 injections, and I am taking a B12 supplement. I am not taking any lysine or arginine at the moment. I was taking the Arganine to see if I could induce an outbreak. [This is irrelevant, there is no known linkage between herpes outbreaks and arginine/lysine intake - its a myth - and B12 infers nothing.] I think what I am asking is - has anyone here ever repeatedly tested negative over and over again over long period of time, before getting a definitive answer, be a positive test, or something else? [The answer to this is: Extremely few people with a HSV-1 infection and even more rarely HSV-2 test repeatedly negative on Westernblot and actually carry the virus. Of the cases that I know of that had delayed detection by a swab and negative blood tests in the meantime (and that's only 3-4 cases), they had some form of lesions within days of infection but did not obtain a swab for various reasons and then obtained a positive swab of a subsequent lesion with the record being 11 months later. A couple of the cases did have some 'background' symptoms they thought might be related to herpes but that isn't ascertained and some did not have any unusual symptoms at all apart from the lesions. Hence as you did not have lesions around your mouth or lips within days of the last sexual encounter as is exceptionally common for a primary oral HSV-1 infection, that pretty much rules out herpes orally as it is. The fact that you had no genital symptoms for a month also rules out genital herpes. I am not aware of anyone at all who has genuinely gone on to test positive by swab or blood in your specific circumstances. There are hundreds if not more than a thousand experiences on this website alone that are similar to yours that are truly negative for herpes I'm one of them!]  
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