I am a 24 year old female and just got diagnosed with genital HSV type 1. I am a college student with big future goals and was not out looking for love but rather focusing on my future. Recently, I met a boy whom I may be very serious about. We developed serious feelings for each other mutually (and unexpectedly) the day before I experienced what I soon learned to be symptoms of a genital herpes breakout. I am assuming I contracted the disease from someone I hooked up with a month or so prior (he was my ex boyfriend from years ago, a good friend and years later we would occasionally hook up) via oral sex. I do not know if he knew he had HSV 1 or if he had an active cold sore at the time. It is such a common and misunderstood virus that although the consequences for me are awful, I do not blame him or anyone for my contraction of the disease. Hopefully if all goes well and I keep my immune system in good health, my outbreaks will be minimal. My problem now is, I need to explain to this man that I do have the virus and will for the rest of my life have the tendency to transmit it through sex or genital contact. My biggest question is : If during this conversation he says he has had a cold sore on his mouth (the typical and less intimidating form of herpes) is he still able to contract the virus from genital contact from me? Or is he immune to the virus even if I was experiencing asymptomatic shedding and we had sex and therefore the virus made contact with his genitals? If he already had the HSV 1 virus, can he have a genital outbreak just from contact with my genitals while the virus is active, knowingly or unknowingly? Also if he had type 1 HSV and only ever experienced oral lesions, had none at the time or in a while, and performed oral or vaginal sex on me while I happened to be shedding the virus, could he have a herpes out break from that?