Question:
OK OK. I have read some threads from people questioning how one can conceive while trying to protect his/her partner from contracting the virus. I'm not really looking for a preachy response "if my partner loves me, we'll get through it". I know my fiance loves me. But I simply want to ensure that we do all we can to protect him!

So here's my situation. I have genital HSV1. I only have had outbreaks during my first year of diagnosis, which was about 8 years ago. When I am feeling tired or weak, I don't want to have sex with him. We have never had sex without a condom. Once we get married, we will want to have a child. He is concerned about getting the virus. (He looked on the websites that shows the worst-case scenario pictures)

However, I have done a lot of reading that HSV 1 is not as easily spread in it's area "not of choice". Nothing is 100%. So my question is, if I take valtrex, and he takes valtrex, and since I have never had an outbreak for 8 years, isn't that the most we can do? Any other advice? Thanks!:cool:

Answer:
OK OK. I have read some threads from people questioning how one can conceive while trying to protect his/her partner from contracting the virus. I'm not really looking for a preachy response "if my partner loves me, we'll get through it". I know my fiance loves me. But I simply want to ensure that we do all we can to protect him! This was my favorite part of your post.I agree with you on the preachy part too.I have HSV2 and me and my man will be considering a child in the naer future and I have similar concerns as well since my man doesnt have it either.Although we do have unprotected sex and I am on Acyclovir.He has made it clear that he doesnt want it and I can respect that.I know he loves me but to be truthful I don't think that really has nothing to do with it.
What have you done to remain OB free for 8 years ? I know HSV1 is different from HSV2 but I'm still interested.

Answer:
If you are really worried about it and can afford it, maybe ask the help of a fertility doctor. There are other ways of conceiving a baby nowadays besides sex!!

Answer:
I have a healthy immune system and I have read that HSV 1 does not shed as much in it area of of "non-choice". Therefore, that's why this is all very frustrating for me. The chances of him getting it are slim.

Answer:
Karend, I just had my first OB of HSV1 genitally. I believe I got it from my partner of 4 years even though he has never had a cold sore that he can remember. Anyway, can you tell me what the OBs have been like for you? Mine was so excruciating, five days into the blisters the Dr gave me Famvir and it instantly made the blisters stop appearing. He gave me a RX so I can have some on hand in case I start with another OB. I am just wondering what I have to look forward to in the future.....thanks a lot!

Answer:
luckily i dont have this problem - my GF insists she loves me enough not to take precautions other then being vigilant for OBS.

its does worry me about her getting it, but she told me straight up that she would rahter have HSV then not have me,......

talk about putting a smile on someones face!

Answer:
I think taking the Valtrex at the very beginning is common when people are trying to conceive. Like you know it doesn't reduce all risks but it can help. If you are worried about side-effects, there are several studies looking at inadvertant exposure to acyclovir (which is very much like Valtrex) during the first trimester and so far (it would take really large studies to detect very rare effects) no bad effects on the pregnancies have been detected (i.e. the rates of miscarriage, etc are the same in people who didnt take any acyclovir). Plus, until implantation you are pretty safe for most meds, herbs, etc (think of all the babies that are conceived after a drunken night - thank goodness implantation takes a few days!). After implantation you start to feel preggo soon anyway (at least I did) and you can keep a pregnancy test on hand to stop the therapy as soon as the deed is done:) Do the deed a lot and it usually happens pretty fast as long as you're healthy!

He also has it in his favor that he is a man, and the female->male transmission rate is much lower.

Good luck!

Answer:
My experience...

My husband had oral HSV 1 outbreaks as a child. We've been together for 11 years and I've never seen him have an outbreak...he can't remember having one since he was about 11 or 12 years old. This past June, I contracted genital HSV1 from him...was a total shock! It had to be asymptomatic shedding.

We were just going to start trying for a 3rd child when I was diagnosed. I asked my doc about any precautions to ensure that I wouldn't spread this to my husband in the genital region. She assured me that everything would be fine as long as we waited to have sex until after my outbreak was gone...pretty much common sense.

Well, I thought my outbreak was gone...we had sex for the first time after my OB about 5 weeks after initial symptoms showed up (a good 2 weeks after I healed). Sure enough, he had a GENITAL outbreak for the first time a couple days after we had sex. :mad: I did get pregnant though. ;)

All that being said, I think the odds are in your favor since you haven't had an OB in so long and you seem to have the virus under control. I think in my situation, I was not 100% over the outbreak (still had a tingle, etc.) and was just too inexperienced with the virus to recognize that I was still contagious. Neither one of us is on suppressive therapy either.

However, if my husband hadn't had an outbreak in 18 years, we've been kissing and having oral sex for 11 years and I JUST NOW got the virus??? By the way, I still have never had an oral outbreak...just genital. Herpes is such a tricky virus to figure out! Good luck to you and I hope that when you do try to conceive, it happens quickly for you!

Answer:
I think if you have hsv1, as long as he doesnt have any chafing or microscopic tearing on his penis and he washed thoroughly after sex- he should be fine. He already has antibodies to the same virus, even the same strain of virus. He will be ok as long as he isnt exposed to a lot of virions.

I dont think I would have ever gotten ghsv1 if I didnt receive oral sex right after a bad yeast infection. I was very raw downstairs and it was a perfect breeding ground for a virus. Moreover, i usually wash after sex, especially oral, but didnt that time because I was a little sore and also because my bf didnt want me to. :| I think washing afterwards helps cut down on the virus sitting there.

It is very rare for a man to get hsv1 from a woman's genitals. I bet the men that have gotten it got it because they didnt wash afterwards.