How systemic is herpes?...

[Ms.Informed]

Hi, Everyone,

I'm on week 10 on this (or these) outbreak and have just finished 2 weeks on a yeast med and hydro cortisone cream. Went to my doctor AGAIN on Thursday and she said stop the yeast med cause it isnt working and give the hydrocortisone cream a little more time, if that doesnt work come back and have a punch biopsy done. She now says she suspects that I started out with a genital herpes OB and now it has taken on a life all it's own. This is the same woman who still insists there are no blood tests for herpes.....

I did find it interesting that she said if it goes on long enough, that the nerve impulses go on overload and it won't matter what I use, the sensations will continue until the cycle is broken by numbing the nerves in the area temporarily.

As I said in an earlier post, I have to leave town to find an STD clinic that can test me properly and I am TRYING to work. I told the Dr. it feels like there is crawling under my skin. Other times it feels like I'm being poked with something sharp all over the area. To me, this has been nothing short of insane, of course I know I'm not the only one.

I do have a question about something I've not seen addressed so far. Has anyone ever heard of a correlation between the herpes virus and autoimmune conditions such as uveitis(inflamation of the inner eye)? Iknow that you can have herpes in your eye but I'm thinking more about reoccuring inner eye inflammation. I have uveitis, crohn's disease and herpes and wondered if they were all connected. Ms.

[WaxedWrong]

putting cream on the sores just makes it worse.

usually with a outbreak there is yeast, so you prob cleared that up by now, but the outbreak can look like a yeast infection, with the discharge, and itching/redness.> its very common.

get your self some vitamins, or a rx if she even suspected it was herpes she should have given u a rx to hold you over till you got test results.

[sunny1]

priclky wigly

now i thought my mind was going, i have lots of outbursts like you describe MsInformed.

sometimes i'll just be sitting there and BAM! i feel like a patch of my skin is under attack from below the skin...feels like dozens of tiny needles poking me all at once...could be on my legs, arms...mostly legs and arms now that i think of it...

i also get that "something is cowling under my skin" feeling...only in the genital area... it's very freaky and difficult to explain... when it's driving me too crazy and i'm home, i get a little cotton pad with alcohol on it and i gently dab the area...it seems to help...but i think i over did it on the weekend

[Belladonna]

Autoimmune diseases

Hi, I'm sorry you're having a difficult time. It sounds horribly uncomfortable and my heart goes out to you.

I was diagnosed with HSV-2 In June of 2005. I was diagnosed with Hypothroidism (Hashimotos, the autoimmune form of the disease) when I was a child. I take Synthroid for my thyroid condition and acyclovir for the HSV.

During my first year after the herpes diagnosis I experienced an outbreak every month, sometimes twice a month. When I went to the doctor to refill my acyclovir prescription they gave me a TSH test (Thyroid Stimulating Hormone, a common test for thyroid patients).

My test results showed my thyroid levels to be completely out of wack, (this has been going on my entire life, I'm used to having to change my synhroid levels often). My doctor informed me that when an auto-immune disease is especially on the fritz it does affect your body's overall immune system; which can trigger HSV outbreaks. (In a similar way that a cold or flu can do the same, by weakening your immune system).

I used to be lazy about getting my TSH lab work done, but now it's a HUGE priority and I've seen a big difference in frequency of outbreaks since I've been handling my autoimmune disease better.

I know it's not as simple to manage other autoimmune diseases as it is to manage Hashimotos, but I highly recommend doing as much research on your autoimmune disease as possible. I've learned that there is an acid in cruciferous vegetables, (broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, brussel sprouts) that aggrivates autommune diseases - so I avoid them, something you may think about doing.

As i said earlier, my heart goes out to you and I hope you find ways to manage all of your conditions. It is important to learn how your diseases affect one another.

Take care and hang in there!

[Ms.Informed]

Hi, sunny1 and Belladonna,

Thanks for your kind replies! I have been having those episodes of skin crawling and prickly sensations only since "this" started and only in the specific area of my genitals that is affected. It's very strange that this started at my vaginal opening on one side and clustered all the way up the entire side of my genitals but it has stopped spreading dead center. But that whole side just won't let up. I KNOW I can't put alcohol on it. Oh My GOD!!! It hurts when my silk pajama pants hit it the wrong way. You are brave, sunny1!!(Not REALLY silk..more like silky).

You sound like you're having quite a battle yourself, Belladonna. I'm not familiar with your thyroid condition but know a little about autoimmune disease in general. I have crohn's disease (very mild compared to most) and uveitis which is an inflamation of the inner eye. I didn't develop the uveitis until much later than the crohn's but it has been very chronic and sometimes debilitating as the light causes blindness and extreme pain when the inflamation is bad. The point is, they are both autoimmune conditions and if you have one it's not uncommon to have the other. I do wonder how much it sets me up for other things such as herpes... When I get TESTED I will finally get proper treatment.. I hope.

Also interesting to know about the veggies. I eat a ton of broccoli!! Raw, cooked, in salads. Now that might be an issue. If you know of any sites that have any info re herpes and autoimmune please let me know. I am really not as frail as it may sound. I am very active outdoors and work alot at a physiotherapy clinic etc. so, compared to others, I have nothing to complain about. You girls take care. Hope we chat soon and you have a good night. Ms.

[sunny1]

unbelievable!

you girls are amazing...i feel like a whiner now... hey i do take synthroid also...i will get my doc. dto do some blood works on my thyroid just in case...thanks.. and i'll try not to become an alcoholic:rolleyes: sunny1

[gutted.]

i read things like these and wonder why i moan about it all all

i get 3 - 4 outbreaks a year.. one or two little "pimples" that last 3 days max.

[Ms.Informed]

Hey, it's all relative. We all have our own issues to carry. It's all in the outcome. Every condition that we mentioned is permanent and episodic but it is what it is, when things flare up we all whine and when they settle again it's wonderful and I get on with life. If you don't ask for comfort and support from people they won't know you need it so it's not whining it's sharing and reaching out and EVERYBODY has a right to do it sometime. This is obviously a good place to come for that purpose.