Cold sores - could I give myself genital herpes?

[Ilikeviognier]

I’m on my second batch of cold sores in a month and I’m completely fed up. They take two weeks to go, look awful and I feel fluey too. Can’t kiss the kids, constant washing and horrible throbbing burning lips.

I’ve just got back from holiday so I’m wondering if the sun is a trigger.

Does anyone know definitively whether I can give myself genital herpes when I have a cold sore? I’m literally washing my hands all the time and avoiding touching myself but it would really be useful to know the answer to this question.

Also any tips are welcome I’m taking lysine, and I’ve got Zovirax but I never get the tingle So can’t stop them in their tracks.

Give that Ive had two very painful batches id them in two months what are the odds of the GP giving me acyclovir tablets?

Aargh.

Unlikely if you are washing your hands all the time and being careful.

If you have a partner though, avoid kissing for now, and him being intimate with his mouth on your delicate bits!

Yes! Unfortunately the sun can trigger cold sores. I was recommended wearing a high spf for lips when I was younger, but seem to be growing out of them (if that can be the case). Definitely speak to your gp and see what they can do. I know how fed up and self conscious they can make you feel. X

I had them constantly when I was younger.

I’m sure I read if you have oral herpes you are immune to genital herpes.

Cheap aftershave or vinegar best for drying them up.

Unfortunately I'm prone to outbreaks when particularly stressed, so I completely understand your frustration. I can't answer your specific question, but you can buy the antiviral tablets online. This is what I've done, and not only did they clear up an outbreak almost overnight, the effects are long-lasting and I've had a few false starts with a cold sore here and there, with tingling and a small bump starting, but nothing further. It's been well worth the £20 or so.

I get aciclovir tablets from the dr, and pairing those up with Compeed cold sore patches seems to work really well for me. The good thing with the patches is that while they’re helping with healing they also keep it covered so you don’t have to worry so much about transmission or reinfection. Not cheap, but you should be able to get them somewhere like B&M or Home Bargains. I don’t usually get the tingle either so keep a stockpile in just in case!

I started getting them really badly, at least once a month, sometimes three in a row. I’d feel like I had the flu, then get the cold sore with swollen glands and feel horrendous for a couple of weeks each time. Couldn’t kiss my husband for sometimes six weeks at a time.
Tried lysine and Zovirax and it didn’t help.
After ten years of misery I got acyclovir which I take twice every day. Now I rarely get a cold sore, and they’re much less severe if I do, and usually because I’ve missed a dose of acyclovir during a stressful period.
I didn’t have any problem getting it from my gp.

And yes, you can give yourself genital herpes, as well as in your eyes.
Please stay away from babies if you have an active cold sore. Neonatal herpes killed my friend’s new born.

Thanks- yes I knew about the babies thing because my very first cold sore helpfully came along when my eldest was 3 weeks old. I was terrified of passing it to him .

I’ve been getting them ever since. Am going to ring docs first thing Monday and pester for acyclovir prescription. I can’t go on like this with them. As I speak I have one on each lip corner and they hurt like hell. I also feel like I have the flue. It’s bloody awful. Thanks all.

I have had them my whole life (I was hospitalised at 3 weeks old after a kind aunt gave them to me) and I have never had genital herpes but I am always very careful with handwashing. I have a course of tablets every few years to calm it down or for special events (I recently had a course in the run up to having my baby to ensure I didn't have an outbreak and pass it to her). Really worth chatting to your gp over and explain how you feel. Some people really do get 'just a cold sore' that's nothing more than a blister but for some us the pain and misery of them is awful. My gp was very understanding.

And yes, you can give yourself genital herpes, as well as in your eyes.
I disagree with this. But I don’t know for certain. I’m basing this on the fact I went to the GP once because my eye felt very odd and I had cold sores on my mouth at that time and I was worried I was getting a cold sore in my eye also (I had been hospitalised from cold sores in the past). He told me cold sores in your eyes are a completely different strain of the virus and wouldn’t have just spread from my lip to my eye.

@Ilikeviognier as you’re going to speak to the GP anyway why don’t you ask them? (And maybe report back so we know the answer too?)