Question:
My sister has genital Herpes, and she doesnt have health insurance. Valtrex is too expensive for her, so I wanted to get info online to see if there are any over the counter treatments to soothe her pain. Does anyone know of a good product?

Answer:
I have the same sort of question...are there any at home or mail order treatments to take away the appearence of the sores and the burning sensation?? Because I can't afford to go out and spend large amounts of dollars each month on medication. What about blistex or polysporin for healing???

Answer:
I have read that cold, damp teabags applied to the affected area can be very effective. For some reason, Earl Grey tea is the best (I think it has the highest tannin content). The tannin in the tea is an antiseptic and can help the healing process as well as preventing spread. I'm just about to give it a go myself so will let you know how I got on!

Bathing the area in salt water has also been recommended. The Herpes Virus Association in the UK has a page of these and other self-help tips at:

http://www.herpes.org.uk/treatment.htm

Answer:
Thank you for the extra tips jenjenjen. Appreciate it much

Answer:
I'm having a chuckle because I accidentally bought earl grey tea few weeks ago and I hate it. Smells like soap to me. If I end up having herpes (I'm in the "not sure zone"), I'll be sure to put it to a good use!

Answer:
L-Lysine, 1000 milligram tablets twice a day. Take it with food if it upsets your stomach. It will relieve the pain and clear the sores up faster. It is a amino acid which you body requires anyway. It has no side affects other than an upset stomach and an occasional headache (just like valtrex), when taken with no food. You can buy it over the counter in any vitamin store. Buy the 1000 mg. tablets, they seem to work better than taking two 500 mg. tablets. When you get your initial symptoms start taking it immediately and continue for two weeks. If you start early enough you will not get an outbreak at all. It will halt your symptoms within 24 hours and you will feel normal, no pain, no sores (if you catch it early enough). L-Lysine if cheap, much cheaper than Valtrex, etc. I would not be suprised if it is the major ingrediant in valtrex. After a couple of months after opening the bottle of L-lysine, it seems to lose it's kick and you need to buy a new bottle. I would suggest buying the smaller bottle, because you may end up throwing them out after two months or so. L-lysine tablets breakdown when exposed to air fairly quickly.

If you are interested in why this works... On a cellular level, the virus requires arginine to replicate and cause a breakout. Arginine is found in many foods but especially in chocolate and peanuts, that is why you probably get an outbreak when you eat either. When you consume too much arginine and the arginine level rises in your system the virus begins to replicate itself, causing an outbreak. L-lysine counterbalances the arginine in your system, as long as your arginine level is lower than your l-lysine level the virus can not replicate and you cannot have a breakout. This does not mean that you don't have the virus or cannot spread it (that I know of).
I have not studied the long term affects of L-lysine consumption, however after several years of usage it appeared to have no side affects. I would not suggest taking it everyday as a suppressive therapy, as I don't know the side affects.

I am not dispensing medical advice, I am merely offering you what has worked for me in the past. Spread the word if it works for you too, you don't need to buy expensive prescriptions! This works for many people that I know, hopefully it will work for you too.

Answer:
So if we must each chocolate and peanuts, take L-Lysine with it. LOL :lol:

--MaryAsh

Answer:
For pain we have used Orajel. We apply it with a Q-tip which we throw away. It numbs the area quite well and is available over the counter. It's intended for tooth pain, but it works for genital herpes pain too :)

--MaryAsh

Answer:
Personally, I'm still experiencing my first episode.

Cold sores, small pimples here and there, some un-obvious rashes. Lower backache, lethargy.

I tried some Garlic pills cos' I read that they boost the immunity system and are also anti-viral with no side effects. They do work!!! Although they won't totally me of the outbreaks, they do substantially reduce the pain and numbers of rashes and itches. Also helped my backache.

For normal healthy people, 1 pill a day after food. For my case, 3 a day after food during this first outbreak.

Also, I find that using Dettol body wash liquid to wash the face helps to relieve the itch and sores.

Same goes for Dettol handsoap for washing my hands and arms.

Remember to buy the ones that says for Delicate Skin or it'll be too dry for your face.

Hope the info helps.