Possible genital herpes? Input appreciated.

[onefreeday]

hi, i'm an 18 year old female. i've had 2 sexual partners in my entire life and have always used precaution. last week, i had sex with a guy i was interested in. we used a condom. no sores were present on his penis. two days later, i'm sick with a headcold (no fever). i did have a sore throat and the beginnings of a cold prior to the sex, however.

just today i noticed one very tiny sore spot on my vagina on the outer part of my labia by my clitoris (i dont know if i'm labeling this correct). it's not raised, red, oozing, or anything. just very small. it's sore like it's from chafing i would normally assumed -- barely the top layer of skin is missing. it's less than half the size of my pinky nail. it doesn't even really hurt to the touch either. i have not experienced any symptoms otherwise. no tingling, no real pain, no pain from urination, etc.

i'm curious if anyone would add in their first time experiences. i read that the first outbreak is the worst so i don't know if this is a fluke and i'm being paranoid or not. i'm going to look into being tested asap, obviously.

[gracefromHHP]

yes, blood tests are the only way to determine herpes status without symptoms.

[onefreeday]

thanks, grace. i'll definitely look into the pills. them being cheaper definitely appeals to me.

and i'm very inclined to agree with you about him not being tested. how are herpes tests administered? blood? the small sore i saw a day ago has nearly vanished over night. i think i'm pretty safe with this scare but i'm going to go get tested for everything just so i can legitimately feel secure in telling people i'm clean.

[gracefromHHP]

the pills work much better than the ointment does!  You also don't have to take them every 2-3 hours while awake like you do applying the ointment to get results. they are also WAY cheaper!!!  

odds are your partner has never been properly tested for herpes, if he's even getting properly tested for std's.  

[onefreeday]

i have zovirax ointment.

we have discussed things and he told me he was STD free. i will possibly go and get tested in a few days. i don't have any cold sores as of now and the spot i was worried about has already healed and it nearly invisible. i don't know, maybe it was the paranoia in me thinking i had one coming in.

[gracefromHHP]

you using zovirax pills or ointment?

if you are still on talking terms, why not ask that you both go for type specific herpes igg blood testing and share your results with each other?

grace

[onefreeday]

thank you for the advice, grace. i'll look into the 1-day cold sore treatments. i normally use zovirax and it's not too bad, but doesn't seem like a 1 day treatment. i haven't had a break out in months. it normally happens with a fever or high UV exposure.

i am not serious with the partner but we are still friends and still talking; he wasn't a random person but i still didn't know him well enough to have sex. the tiny spot on my vagina is almost gone now. i think this was just a scare and i let the paranoia get the best of me. lesson learned. huge, huge, huge lesson learned.

thank you all for your time. it's greatly appreciated.

[gracefromHHP]

if you know  you are starting to get a cold sore, call your provider today and ask them to phone you in a prescription for the cold sore dose of one of the herpes antivirals. when you take them when you start to feel the tell tale signs of an impending cold sore, they help speed healing and sometimes can even head off a full blown cold sore for you. for valtrex and famvir it's a 1 day cold sore dose. for acyclovir , it's 2 days.  

Your symptoms could be hsv2 but  also are more likely not to be.  The odds of contracting hsv2 from a one time protected encounter are very low.   are you still in contact with this partner?

grace

[onefreeday]

thanks again for the response. i've got a lot going on with my body lately: fever and sinus cold and it's 'that time' of the month for me right now and i'm overwhelmingly stressed. i'm thinking the single spot (by my clitoris on the outer part of my vagina) is nothing to worry about. i'm guessing it's either from chaffing or from the discomfort of a maxi pad. it has been there for 2 days now and looks like it's shrinking. no ooziness, no scab, no 'vessicle' pattern.

i know for a fact i have hsv-1 (i have a cold sore brewing in a usual spot as i type) and i have had it since maybe 12.

i'm curious how soon after contact will symptoms show? i keep reading "2-20 days" but my one red bump showed BARELY 2 days after intercourse. this seems a little soon for the virus to incubate. i don't know.

i'm going to look into an appt. tomorrow for peace of mind.

[petal130]

No, you're not paranoid at all; you have symptoms and are unsure what's causing them.

Your cold symptoms have nothing to do with any STD; you had them prior to sex.

As to the sore spot, it could be many things; irritation, fungal, bacterial. It doesn't sound like herpes, and you had protected sex which while isn't 100% protection, it helps (condoms reduce the chance of herpes transmission by 30%). Are you using a good lube? Just a bit of dryness can easily cause a sore spot!

At this point if you are concerned, best to be seen when you have symptoms. Secondly, both you and your partner can be tested for herpes with an IgG type specific blood test to truly know each others herpes status.

[onefreeday]

i appreciate your response. i think i'm just paranoid but you can never be too careful. woke up this morning and nothing has worsened at all. no redness, no nothing. i intend on getting tested for peace of mind regardless. thanks again.

[confusednewby]

You are being paranoid. If you are concerned visit your doc for closer examination its not possible to diagnose via a description. Primary outbreak would likely be much more severe than 1 sore.