Foo - Help with a condition...

Hello all, Well I will be starting college in a few days and one of my main concerns excluding anything school related, is getting cold sores while at school. I get really bad ones like ever 3 to 4 months and just wish I didnt have to worry about them anymore. I certainly dont want to freak out my roommate, or scare away any interested girls(there will be plenty) with the "he has herpes ewww" fallacy. Anyways, I have seriously considered taking a genital herpes medication even though I dont have genital herpes, my pediatrician said that he would prescribe them to me if the cold sores were really bad and a problem. Now I dont want to take a medicine to treat something I dont have, but I dont see any other options.I really dont want to get a cold sore at school, and having one less thing to worry about is always welcome. Any suggestions?

Wash your hands and face a lot?

Read up on some stress management techniques.

I dont get it

It's believed that stress leads to outbreaks, so if you can reduce stress, you can reduce the chance of outbreaks.

This doesn't answer your question, but here is some really interesting information on the similarities and differences between HSV1 and HSV2. It's really good information for everybody to know.

The Truth about HSV-1 and HSV-2 (http://www.herpes.com/hsv1-2.html)

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I read the article, and I honestly hate being lumped with an std. Ive been getting cold sores since the 2nd or 3rd grade, and I wasnt sexually active when I was 7 or 8. I think Im gonna get a prescription of a genital herpes medicine, I hope I dont feel the side effects.

I can only take solace in the fact that the severity and frequency of an out break diminishes as you get older.

Also, Ive gotten a couple of bumps on my lip awhile ago but they didnt blister or anything, and it hurt a little but nothing too bad. Is that a cold sore? does it have to blister to be a cold sore?

Why don't you get the medication for the lip one.

cold sores are a form of herpes you will have them for the rest of your life

I read the article, and I honestly hate being lumped with an std. Ive been getting cold sores since the 2nd or 3rd grade, and I wasnt sexually active when I was 7 or 8. I think Im gonna get a prescription of a genital herpes medicine, I hope I dont feel the side effects.

I can only take solace in the fact that the severity and frequency of an out break diminishes as you get older.

You don't have to be sexually active to get it. Sometimes an infected relative will kiss a child on the mouth when the blisters are flaring up. That is a common way kids get them.

And yes, Poopy is correct. It stays in your system and will flare up when under stress or your system is weak, such as when you feel a cold coming on. Hence the name "cold sores".