Question:
Hello,

I am new to this board as I am newly dianosed with type 2 herpes. I have been getting the sores for about 5 yrs now (and was pretty sure what they were) but thought I should confirm the culprit once I got pregnant and got one.
I am now 17 weeks pregnant and am getting ob's like CRAZY! Normally I get then aprox twice per year and since I've gotten pregnant Ive allready have 5. 3 of the 5 have been in the last 4 weeks....I am going nuts!
Has anyone else experienced this? Did this persit the entire pregnancy? Does this mean I will need a C-section, or should valtrex clear them up towards the end even if Im getting this many ? Does anyone have any info on lysine and pregnancy...is it safe? does it really work?

Sorry for all the questions,

Answer:
you should def ask your doc these questions, and the pregnancy is probably the cause of your outbreaks, since it does put stress on your body.

most likly if you are having this many outbreaks and continue to, you will have to have a c section- cause a vaginal delivery would just be to risky for the child

Answer:
It's good that you're asking for advice about this before the birth. That said, you need to inform your doctor about what's going on. I think you can take antivirals during a pregnancy without harming your baby, but I'm not sure. In any case, get to the doc, control those OBs :)

Answer:
Thank you for the responces. A little background on my situation:

I go to a seperate clinic of all female doctors to have my yearly pap tests. 5 years ago when I first got the bumps I described them to teh doctor when I went in for my pap and she told me not to worry about them as they just sounded like razor burn. For 3.5 yrs I would get them every 6 months or so but always only the pubic area if I had not shaved in a while. However, for the last 1.5 years I have been getting them on my labia which worried me a bit more. When I got pregnant and got one I went back to this same all womens clinic to have a swab done and thats when I got the positive result back. (about 3 weeks ago) I made an appointment with my doctor and saw him earlier this week to tell him what is going on. My family doctor is quite old and a few years from retirement and he told me to be quite honest he is really not all that familiar with herpes and he wanted to send me to a specialist to confim that is what it is and also get advice from him on what our next move will be due to the pregnancy. To further complicate things, my family doctor is not who will be delivering the baby...he is sending me to a ob/gyn at 35 weeks and that is who will deliver the baby.!

So...I am asking these questions because I dont know how long it will be before the specialist can see me and I wont see my Ob/gyn until 35 weeks (presumably he will be more up to date on the virus then my family doc) and thats along way away!

I did find out on safe fetus.org though that L-Lysine should not be taken during pregnancy so I wont be taking that!

I was mostly just curious to see if it was normal for the ob's to become so much more frequent during pregnancy, and if anyone else had encountered this and how the pregnancy went/ended up for them. At this stage this entire thign is still very new to me and I have been doing a TON of reading this past few weeks which I have found very helpful in making me feel better about this virus.

Answer:
Hi there....

I was one of those who never ever had outbreaks and seriously began to question if I even HAD herpes.

Until I got pregnant.


when I was 6months pregnant, I experienced an outbreak so horrible, painful and just plain horrific, I was afraid for ME and my baby. My doc did prescribe me valtrex and it helped me somewhat, but I still had outbreaks. With the exception of hormones, there ARE no hormones in the world that can control the state your body is in when those pregnancy hormones kick in. Unfortunately, you will just have to try to stay as calm as possible (hard, I know) eat well, light excersize (swimming is GREAT while preggo!) and try the valtrex. It might work better for you than it did for me. Take your prenatal vitamins and DO NOT take lysine (I got off of those as soon as I found out I was preggo).

Many women who have hsv2 do have children vaginally and have no complications. The doctor (At the time of labor) will have to do a thorough visual inspection at that time to make sure there are not lesions. If lesions are present OR if you feel you are about to have an outbreak (the tingling sensation, achiness, etc.) by all means, have a csection. I had one with my youngest child (more because I am incapapble of vaginal delivery....my older child and I almost died ...big old drama story there...but that was the MAIN reason I had a csection...herpes was the icing on the cake!) and while it was tough, it gave my mind ease to know that 1) my infant would not have a horrible delivery like my older child did and 2) that there was no chance for herpes to pass onto my child via the vaginal canal. I like having my peace of mind...so....

I think it is admirable that you doc was honest with you about not knowing much about herpes and sending you to an OB/GYN. Many docs like to blow smoke up your ass and pretend they KNOW everything. It takes guts and integrity to say "hey, I am not sure about this, let me send you to someone who can give you more information". I say get into that ob/gyn asap. Definitely see someone else who can really help you with this and answer questions for you.

But yes, back to the hormone thing....like I said, I was one who had the HORRIBLE outbreaks during pregnancy. They were still pretty bad (once a month ) AFTER I had the baby too. I think it was due to nursing AND having my periods return. My body was a big ole mess for a while there. I tried the valtrex and acyclovir for a while, it really didn't help *apparently me and antivirals don't get along!* So I try to eat well, abstain from my trigger foods (in my case, oats) and I use Cloraphor when I DO get an outbreak. They have finally lessened quite a bit. Ironically, they lessened when I stopped nursing too. SO....(I am not saying don't nurse either.....just saying to do so, but be prepared....my stupid outbreaks were worth it in the knowledge that I provided my infant with the best of all nutrients and antibodies for protection. PLUS studies show that children who are breast fed tend to have higher iq's ;-) )

If you ever have any questions/fears/whatever, feel free to post here for me or email me privately. I am more than happy to help out a "sister" mother to be!

Answer:
Hi there
I had a caesar with my first child and if I thought I could survive a second I would have had one with my second child too. I just knew I couldnt go through a second caesar so I took valtrex from 6 months prego onwards. In the last month(this sounds gross) I put dry flannels in "there" to keep the area as dry as possible to prevent any lesions. I took 2 valtrex a day. I also used pawpaw cream. I did have a natural delivery and bubby was fine. PLUS...I could walk the same day as giving birth (I could not walk properly for weeks after a ceasar) so get properly diagnosed and on the valtrex.
Remember even with a lesion at time of birth there is a 2% chance your baby will get neonatal herpes. This helped me make my decision to go ahead.

Answer:
i have cold sores and when i was preg i had an OB every 2 weeks for 9 months. dr said take lysine. didnt help, man did i suffer! after my DS was born i didnt have one for 6months. i figure had something to do with breast feeding?? then they started to come once a month. been 5 years. tired oh so tired. been to many drs and none would do supressive therapy. now they will and i have no insurance. $188/month for valtrax.

Answer:
Have you considered Acyclovir ? It's the generic form of Valtrex.It is way cheaper and it does the same thing but you may have to take it more often. I think it is still cheap even without insurance.