AIBU to work from home because of a cold sore?

Vics vapour rub & i-lysine tablets from Holland & Barrett

Mine are gone within 2 days and I've suffered horrendously all my life

You're being utterly ridiculous. It's a cold sore, not the bubonic plague. 🙄

Is it really acceptable to be in public with a weeping sore that’s contagious? Wouldn’t you be grossed out by it??!
As long as you're not in the habit of going around snogging randoms on street corners, or sharing a cup with someone else, you're fine.
I would barely even notice, or care. You're right, you are vain.
I'm on team get a bloody grip.

Ridiculous I started a new job and within a week I’d had a really bad accident during which I’d landed face first knocking out my teeth and causing extensive bruising and I turned in to work - get over yourself

If you go in to work be prepared for b1thchy people to ask you faux concern, what happened and to tell you they are afraid of catching it. Have a stock answer and a hard stare ready to shut them down

To all the people saying 'go in to work' would you prefer someone to be miseranle and uncomfortable at work.

I always went in to work with head colds, where I felt dizzy and weak. I would take a day annual leave during the week. The whole place often had the cold by the time I had finished my week😁But I 'showed up and went to work' and 'it was only a cold'.

I don't have coldsores and have never been repulsed by seeing one on someone else, but I would probably want to work from home too

I get them too, and hate going out with them. If I could work from home I would.

I think compeed patches extend the length of the cold sore by keeping it damp. Maybe take it off at home

I think you’re confusing “valid” with “actual”.
Embarrassment might be OP’s genuine reaction to her cold sore but that doesn’t make it reasonable.

Well I do have health anxiety so I’d be grateful if I worked with you that you stayed away but…

Private GP for a cold sore?
I've heard it all now

I'm not sure what's unreasonable about not wanting to be in public with contagious, objectively ugly, weeping sores on your face? Many people might not mind, but it's an unpleasant experience for others as they may want to look their best - not necessarily in an 'attractive' way, but in a 'healthy' way.

Maybe but embarrassment is hard to rationalise away.

I think there's a middle ground between 'you are being absolutely ridiculous' and 'poor you stay in forever'.

I'm taking the middle ground on this.

I appreciate nobody else may care but I hate them and they make me feel yucky.

Got one right now as it happens.

I find washing my hands a lot helps. Not just to be hygienic but it makes me feel better psychologically when I get them.

This has to be a wind up mo one on the planet can be this vain. God help us if this is the working population attitude now a days

Absolutely no need to contact the GP, but I would work from home if you could because if you do rub the cold sore without realising then you could put gunk from it where your colleagues touched.

I caught cold sores from a boy at Uni, I don't wander around thinking I have herpes. I know it's the same virus but it's not on my genitals I just get cold sores. I keep a tube of zovirax and usually if I apply as soon as I feel a tingle then they are barely noticeable. No need for prescriptions or any drama. Dh has never caught them from me and neither have my children. I did have cold sores when bothered newborns because giving birth made me quite under the weather. I just washed my hands lots and didn't kiss them. I've certainly never taken time off work for them. I work with teenagers and they have never commented on them either.

you have my sympathy, they are horrible things to have and can be painful too. If you can WFH without causing any problems, then why not?

Btw I buy the tablets privately from independent pharmacy online (there are lots of options) and always have them on hand - if you take them at the first sign of a tingle then it won’t even develop. Don’t wait for one to emerge before going to the private GP.

Hope you feel better soon.

My point is that OP doesn’t want to be around anyone with cold sores either. So should those of us that get them be housebound until they heal?

DD unfortunately got them every time she was stressed. No way she could avoid going to school with them.

So either a patch, agree, get the branded ones, or the cream, carefully applied with a cotton swap a couple of times a day (she got them in the mouth corner).

Maybe do wfh tomorrow and see how they are but my work would be not supportive for something like that skipping the mandatory days in-office for it.

Herpes is very common but can be very painful
if you don’t feel well, stay at home. If you feel ok don’t worry about what your colleagues think, they’ll likely have had some form of it themselves xx

Weeping? I thought the patch contained it? I'm really taken aback by the idea of WFH otherwise. I've worked with issues (including severe dental that made me incredibly self conscious but I had to go in) that I would've preferred not to, but...

Hi,

I get really bad cold sores and have done since I was very young, they are extremely painful and make me feel terrible, so I completely sympathise with you.

The best treatment I have found is called Urgo Filmogel, (Amazon) you paint it on and it completely seals the wound. I’ve used Compeed patches for years and sometimes had to use two at once. But this stuff is amazing, if you catch it quick enough it doesn’t make it past the small bump stage. It’s a French product and not always available so I sometimes used a different product called Herpatch, which is also very good.

Just thought this info might be helpful for any other sufferers.

I'm just interested to know how much a private gp phone call costs.

If you can work from home anyway and this is needed due to a medical issue then it’s perfectly fine. The details are irrelevant, you have a right to medical privacy in your workplace. Go for it!

I’ve done it because of a spot before

It depends how bad they are
I suffer from really bad cold sores and their placement means I am unable to speak properly or eat anything or smile etc without cracking and bleeding everywhere
I put multiple patches on per day and whilst still working have to change my tasks on really bad days

Personally if it’s that bad I would wfh. I once got an eye infection - not an ordinary one but one where my entire eye went blood red and swelled up. It was before the days of wfh and so had to go in. I felt awful and everyone looked at me weirdly. I looked like i had been punched but I wasn’t ’unwell’ so didn’t feel I could call in sick. I would definitely wfh if anything like that happened again!