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Herpes Question (Please Help) - Thank You
About 7 months ago, I met a guy who divulged to me he has genital herpes (HSV-2). He told me that he's had it for four years, and never experienced an outbreak (I'm also a man). He explained to me he is on suppressive therapy, and also is very active in physical health, and maintains a healthy lifestyle.
I examined his genitals before engaging in any type of sexual activity. There were no visible sores, and I made sure that our genitals didn't touch. We engaged in protected anal sex for a couple of minutes (he was the receptive one), as well as anilingus, and oral sex (no cold sores were present).
We also masturbated each other, and then ourselves, and there was no hand-washing in between.
I have yet to experience any symptoms since the exposure, and I've been stressing and having anxiety ever since. I feel like I'm being irrational, and occasionally I'll feel pricks here and there, and it may be because I'm thinking about it so much and I'm feeling psychosomatic symptoms, and occasional back pain in my lower back, but it feels more like a strained muscle if anything - I stand up for work all day and it could be from that, maybe?
I haven't had any sort of fever, swollen glands, or flu-like symptoms.
I'm just having a really hard time with this anxiety and constant self-checking. There are some consistent red dots that appear to be pinprick size ingrown hairs on my thighs, too. I hope that's what that is.
*I mean, I've never experienced a cold sore either in my life, and I was wondering, are people less prone to show symptoms because 50-80% of people have HSV-1, so their body is able to fight off herpes?* <--(Please address this - Thank you)
My diet is pretty poor, my stress and anxiety levels, high (as I constantly await for something to happen), and I'm not physically active.
I just got over a cold recently, and so if my immune system was suppressed, would something have shown up?
I've told several of my friends about this, and they told me that something would have shown up by now, but I just don't believe them, because I've convinced myself I have it.
I constantly check for the areas I feel the occasional pricks and whatnot, and there's nothing there. My friends tell me it's because I'm hyper-focusing and everyone experiences those from time to time.
May I please have a specialist's/expert opinion on this to assess my risk?
Was I at high risk for contracting herpes since he told me and there was no genital to genital contact, rather hand to genital to hand contact, protected anal sex, and oral sex with no signs of a cold sore?
What do you think based on the information I've provided above?
If you have any questions for me, please feel free to ask.
Thank you so much for all that you do here; I greatly appreciate it. I've not been sexually active since this occurrence and I don't plan to be; I'm falling into a depression because of it.
Please answer at your convenience if not as soon as possible.
I examined his genitals before engaging in any type of sexual activity. There were no visible sores, and I made sure that our genitals didn't touch. We engaged in protected anal sex for a couple of minutes (he was the receptive one), as well as anilingus, and oral sex (no cold sores were present).
We also masturbated each other, and then ourselves, and there was no hand-washing in between.
I have yet to experience any symptoms since the exposure, and I've been stressing and having anxiety ever since. I feel like I'm being irrational, and occasionally I'll feel pricks here and there, and it may be because I'm thinking about it so much and I'm feeling psychosomatic symptoms, and occasional back pain in my lower back, but it feels more like a strained muscle if anything - I stand up for work all day and it could be from that, maybe?
I haven't had any sort of fever, swollen glands, or flu-like symptoms.
I'm just having a really hard time with this anxiety and constant self-checking. There are some consistent red dots that appear to be pinprick size ingrown hairs on my thighs, too. I hope that's what that is.
*I mean, I've never experienced a cold sore either in my life, and I was wondering, are people less prone to show symptoms because 50-80% of people have HSV-1, so their body is able to fight off herpes?* <--(Please address this - Thank you)
My diet is pretty poor, my stress and anxiety levels, high (as I constantly await for something to happen), and I'm not physically active.
I just got over a cold recently, and so if my immune system was suppressed, would something have shown up?
I've told several of my friends about this, and they told me that something would have shown up by now, but I just don't believe them, because I've convinced myself I have it.
I constantly check for the areas I feel the occasional pricks and whatnot, and there's nothing there. My friends tell me it's because I'm hyper-focusing and everyone experiences those from time to time.
May I please have a specialist's/expert opinion on this to assess my risk?
Was I at high risk for contracting herpes since he told me and there was no genital to genital contact, rather hand to genital to hand contact, protected anal sex, and oral sex with no signs of a cold sore?
What do you think based on the information I've provided above?
If you have any questions for me, please feel free to ask.
Thank you so much for all that you do here; I greatly appreciate it. I've not been sexually active since this occurrence and I don't plan to be; I'm falling into a depression because of it.
Please answer at your convenience if not as soon as possible.
To address your explicit question, yes if you have HSV1, then your body is ready to combat HSV2 such that many people experience no discernible symptoms if they are infected. Hence testing is required to be conclusive at 12 weeks.
With your partner doing all those preventative measures plus condom use, the odds of transmission given the activity you describe is extremely small, and impossible if it was one of the many if unknown days he was not shedding the virus. Couples in this position can go 30 plus years without infecting the other.
If you don't already have HSV then yes you're more likely than not to experience symptoms. Everything you describe is readily due to stressing.
Your best bet though is to have an IgG blood test 12 weeks after exposure.
If you don't already have HSV then yes you're more likely than not to experience symptoms. Everything you describe is readily due to stressing.
Your best bet though is to have an IgG blood test 12 weeks after exposure.
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Herpes spreads by oral, vaginal and anal sex.
Herpes sores blister, then burst, scab and heal.
STIs are the most common cause of genital sores.
Millions of people are diagnosed with STDs in the U.S. each year.
STDs can't be transmitted by casual contact, like hugging or touching.
Syphilis is an STD that is transmitted by oral, genital and anal sex.
