Question:
Hi there, I'm really confused about oral herpes and whether or not I have it. Here's the situation as it happened. I kissed a girl last summer 8 months ago, and that is definately all we did. Not even oral sex. About a week after making out, the back of my tongue began to swell and I got a bad sore throat. I thought i was just sick, but it felt a little different. The sore throat got worse and on the back of my tongue I got a bit of a strange bump.

I went to the doctor who was worthless. He was vague about it, and honestly I was embarrassed and didn't question it much. He said it may have been from kissing a new girl. He prescribed acyclovir, which I filled at the pharmacy and that seemed to help.

Still not sure what was going on, I ended up kissing the same girl again (stupid I know) and the same thing happened. another dose of acyclovir and the problem went away. I stopped seeing her after that.

Now wiser to the problem, I haven't known what to think. I haven't kissed anyone, no sex, no oral sex in 8 months. I've been too afraid that I may have herpes and do not want to give it to anyone. But in that time I have had no other outbreaks or symptoms whatsoever. Is there a way to tell if I have it? Is it too late to show up in a blood test?

If anyone has any thoughts I'd be grateful. I dont want to spread it to anyone and I'm so mad at the girl for not saying anything to me, if she even knows.

Thanks

Answer:
You can get a blood test anytime. Just go to your doctor and ask for a blood type-specific herpes test. If anything, it could possibly be HSV1 (the one that usually causes oral herpes), but there's not really any stigma against having it orally.. You'll be fine. But you're doing the right thing! Being sure of your status will help you prevent spreading it (if you have it, of course).