Criteria:

Open to any and all individuals over the age of 18 who have been diagnosed with HSV.
Reach out to schedule a screening.
Fill out paperwork that will be sent to you upon scheduling the screening.
The screening/registration will cost $25 and take approximately 25-30 minutes.

More information about this group:

About HSV

HSV, or herpes, is a virus that enters the body through a break in the skin or through moist membranes, oftentimes around the genitals or mouth. Infection usually causes blisters, ulcers, or swelling, but sometimes it may also not show any of these. The virus can be spread from mouth to mouth, body contact, or mouth to genital or vice versa during oral sex.

HSV Facts

Herpes is caused by the herpes simplex virus, which is why it is also known as HSV.
While HSV-1 (or HSV Type 1) is commonly referred to as “oral herpes” and HSV-2 (or HSV Type 2) is commonly referred to as “genital herpes,” it is possible to get either type on any part of your body. However, it is most common for HSV-1 to be transmitted through mouth to mouth contact and for HSV-2 to be transmitted through genital contact. Oral sex is a common way for HSV-1 and HSV-2 to be spread from mouth to genital or vice versa. About one third of herpes on genitals are actually Type 1. Having HSV-1 or HSV-2 does not prevent you from also contracting the other type. This is why it is important to get checked and find out which type you have.
There are at least 6 different herpes viruses, including the one that causes chickenpox and shingles.
HSV Type 1 and Type 2 usually cause outbreaks around the mouth and genitals – these are sometimes called “cold sores” or “fever blisters.”
Approximately 17% of U.S. adults, or between 40 and 50 million adults, have genital herpes, and between 50-80% of American adults have HSV-1. About 90% of adults will have been exposed to HSV-1 by age 50.
Globally, an estimated 3.7 billion people, or 67% of people under age 50 have HSV-1 and 491 million, or 13% of people aged 15-49 have HSV-2.
One million new cases of genital herpes occur each year.
More than half of people with genital herpes don’t know they have it, since symptoms are often mild, mistaken for another condition, or nonexistent.
Genital herpes is transmitted sexually and can be spread even when there is no visible outbreak.
If you touch sores or fluids from the sores, you may transfer the virus to another part of your body, so avoid touching sores or fluid from them and if you do, wash your hands quickly and thoroughly.
Though there is no cure, there are treatment options available that can reduce the severity, frequency, and duration of outbreaks, as well as minimize the risk of infecting sexual partners.
You can not get HSV from toilet seats, bedding, or swimming pools or from touching silverware, dishware, soap, or towels.

Initial Outbreak

Classic symptoms of an initial HSV infection are painful sores, blisters, or ulcers. These lesions will heal in about 2-3 weeks. Flu-like symptoms may also occur during the first outbreak. Some infections, however, produce few symptoms, and these may be mistaken for another problem. Therefore, if you’ve recently been infected with HSV you may not know. Outbreaks can appear in places other than the mouth or genitals, including thighs. The initial outbreak is often the most severe.

Recurrence

Subsequent episodes, if they occur, are often milder and shorter in duration than first episodes, due to your body’s production of virus-fighting antibodies. Outbreaks can occur rarely or several times per year, and can be caused by stress, menstruation, prolonged or intense exposure to sunlight, or a variety of contexts. The number of outbreaks a year depends on the type of HSV you have and whether you take a suppressant or episodic medication (medication for just when an outbreak occurs). On average, people with HSV-1 experience one outbreak a year and people with HSV-2 experience 4-6 outbreaks a year. Over time, it will become easier to tell what may make outbreaks more likely to arise.

Some experience signs before an outbreak. For people with HSV-2, there can be a tingling, burning, or itching sensation where they have outbreaks. For those with HSV-1, they may notice redness, swelling, heat, pain, or itching in the area where the outbreak will appear.

Preventing Transmission

There will always be some level of transmission rate with penetrative sex. Genital infection is more easily transmitted from men to women than from women to men via penetrative sex. While there is no cure and some risk is always there, there are some ways to minimize that risk. The first is to avoid penetrative sex completely during an outbreak, if you feel one coming on, and within 7 days after sores heal or scabs fall off. Other important steps to take to prevent transmission are to take daily antiviral medication and to use a condom. It is also important to note that HSV can be transmitted in ways other than penetrative sex. Although condom use can help prevent transmission, HSV sores can occur in areas that condoms do not cover and skin can release the virus from areas that do not have visible sores. Any direct contact with a sore or fluid from sores can transmit the virus. This includes oral sex and even transmission from one part of your body to another if you touch a sore and then touch something like your eye. This is why it is especially important to wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water should you touch a sore or fluid from it.

Facts about transmission:

In studies with couples where one partner had genital herpes, the other partner became infected within one year in 5 to 10% of the couples.
The people in these studies only rarely used condoms, though – and if they did, it was mostly during an outbreak.
One study showed that infection occurred in an est 1 out of 1,000 sexual acts.
3 factors shown to influence transmission rate:
Consistent condom use
Condoms can reduce transmission by 96% men > women
and 65% women > men.
Daily suppressant medication
People with symptomatic herpes who take suppressant medication are almost 50% less likely to transmit the virus to others than non-medicated people.
Talking to your sexual partner about herpes
Communicate about safe sex
Communicate about expansive sex
(lesbians transmit less than bisexual women – could be discounting arousal level with condoms leading to less consistent condom-use – could be because of alt sex like digital penetration and sex toys)

Treatment

Prescription medications can shorten the length or an outbreak or, if taken early enough, can even prevent outbreaks from occurring. Some people choose to take antiviral medication daily. This can reduce the number of outbreaks or even prevent them completely. Discuss your options with your healthcare provider.

Having HSV does NOT mean you are defective, tainted, unlovable, damaged goods, or reduced to a life without sex. Having HSV DOES mean you have a very common, chronic, yet manageable skin condition.

HSV Testing

Many healthcare providers don’t include HSV testing in regular STI or STD testing. They can diagnose HSV by looking at or taking a sample from the sore(s) and testing it. If there are no sores present, HSV can be detected using a blood test. A blood test cannot tell when you got the infection.

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Herpes Support Group