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Why is herpes different?

When I was single, I lived in New York City. STD clinics (which are now almost useless due to budget cuts) did not test for herpes. (Now they do not test for anything.) Anytime I asked private doctors to perform a screening for herpes, they would ask me when my last outbreak was. Um. . . Hello? Never had one, thus the testing. I was frequently told that testing could only be done if I had a blister. This is inaccurate information. Testing done at the site of an ongoing outbreak is more reliable, but by the time I would have manifested an outbreak (if I had ever contracted herpes) I could have caused the infection of dozens of people. I was always dealing with 2-6 people, and they were also promiscuous. I got a lot of shit from medical professionals when I was just trying to be responsible.

Herpes is a weird one. I have never had either type. But I think something like 20% of the population is infected, and 80% of those infected contracted the virus while their partner appeared to have no symptoms. Every time I have rejected a potential partner because they have admitted to having oral herpes, they looked at me incredulously and asked if I'd never even once had an outbreak. When I replied that I had not, they'd roll their eyes at me and say, "You know cold sores are herpes right?" Duh. They would also try to convince me that it would be okay because they were not having an outbreak, and we'd use condoms. They also suggested skipping oral and kissing. For me, it's an unnecessary, unacceptable risk. And sex without oral and kissing isn't sex I want.

These days I do not get the strange looks from doctors because I do not ask to be screened for herpes; I am married. If my husband brings me a bug, it will just have to be our bug (after I beat him :wink:).

Anyway, why is herpes treated like it isn't a serious health concern? Why don't more people realize that condoms and dams may not protect you sufficiently? Why do doctors resist and sometimes even refuse to test for herpes if you have not yet had an outbreak?
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D
This is an interesting question. I'd like to see what people think about it. My doctor said that herpes simplex is extremely common and most people don't even know they have it. She said it can be spread to genitals through oral sex and using spit as lubrication. It caused me to rethink how I was playing....
 
D
For the last few generations, people have been conditioned, even brainwashed, to worship the condom. It's no surprise that people look at condoms as a get out of jail free card that allows you to do anything they want without having to worry that their actions might have consequences. They've been told since day one that their most fundamental human functions easily can and should be thwarted so they can go on fucking mindlessly and recklessly. Just look at how public schools handle it ... "Do whatever you want, just use a condom to prevent the natural results of your choices from affecting you." The truth, of course, is that condoms don't represent responsibility, but an effort to avoid responsibility. Unless trying to avoid the consequences of our actions is considered responsible. Personally, I think choosing to stay out of situations with consequences we're not prepared for is the truly responsible choice. Ah, but then we would have to hold ourselves to a standard and make the effort to instill values in our children - far more difficult than writing the question off with a shallow, one-size-fits-all piece of faulty advice.
 
A
I agree it is a very interesting question. Like FancyPants I will be interested in reading further responses.

I would love the luxury of being promiscuous because my libido is very strong but quite frankly I am afraid of catching something which has been detrimental to my sexual exploration, or lack thereof. I've been holding out for a monogamous relationship which hasn't gotten me anywhere so I've been reconsidering my options and I'm kind of nervous about it.

I think more doctors should offer complete screening panels with every annual physical just as a safety precaution, especially since herpes is so prevalent in society today.
 
AlteredEgo
travis1985;bt34154 said:
For the last few generations, people have been conditioned, even brainwashed, to worship the condom. It's no surprise that people look at condoms as a get out of jail free card that allows you to do anything they want without having to worry that their actions might have consequences. They've been told since day one that their most fundamental human functions easily can and should be thwarted so they can go on fucking mindlessly and recklessly. Just look at how public schools handle it ... "Do whatever you want, just use a condom to prevent the natural results of your choices from affecting you." The truth, of course, is that condoms don't represent responsibility, but an effort to avoid responsibility. Unless trying to avoid the consequences of our actions is considered responsible. Personally, I think choosing to stay out of situations with consequences we're not prepared for is the truly responsible choice. Ah, but then we would have to hold ourselves to a standard and make the effort to instill values in our children - far more difficult than writing the question off with a shallow, one-size-fits-all piece of faulty advice.
Click to expand...

That isn't how my public schools handled it. We were specifically told that there were illnesses which could not be prevented from spreading through condom use. Herpes, and genital warts are not thwarted by prophylactics. HPV is now discussed in schools, but it is a cause of genital warts.

Prudes assume that abstinence is a good value. The truth is, science shows that regular sex is physiologically and psychologically better for a person's well-being than abstinence.

A possible consequence of leaving your house is getting struck by a car. Reasonable people take precautions against this. However, using your logic, merely leaving your house indicates that you are ready to die. Is that true? I don't know about you, but, while I do not fear death, I am certainly not yet prepared for it. Should I be restricted to my home, or could that be unhealthy?

Further, I wouldn't say that every promiscuous person is "fucking mindlessly"; I certainly wasn't, or I wouldn't need to even ask this question. I arrived at this question because I was thinking specifically about the dangers that casual sex posed to me and to my partners, and their partners, and when I sought to minimize the risks, I was constantly thwarted by the medical community.

Do you have any commentary on the actual topic? Doctors and clinics will test and screen for a myriad of STD/STI. They treat herpes differently, and make testing difficult to access, and costly. Why do you think that is?
 
AlteredEgo
FancyPants;bt34150 said:
This is an interesting question. I'd like to see what people think about it. My doctor said that herpes simplex is extremely common and most people don't even know they have it. She said it can be spread to genitals through oral sex and using spit as lubrication. It caused me to rethink how I was playing....
Click to expand...
Many people do not know they have it because the initial infection can be asymptomatic, or the symptoms may be mistaken as signs of a terrible cold or flu virus. The way it is spread aids in the unknowing carrier's ignorance too. Herpes spreads when it is shedding itself. Apparently, the simplexes go through life cycles, and at one stage, the illness dumps large quantities of itself from the body. This shedding has no accompanying symptoms, unlike an outbreak which is painful and ugly. During shedding, the carrier is EXTREMELY contagious, perhaps even moreso than during an outbreak. So you have 20% of the population walking around with herpes, right? And they all have the shedding stage every once in a while, right? That is why 80% of the people who have contracted one or both of the simplexes did not know their partner was making them sick. Well, that, and many people are too afraid to ask frank questions like, "Have you ever had a cold sore?"
 
AlteredEgo
ArtofDesire;bt34157 said:
I agree it is a very interesting question. Like FancyPants I will be interested in reading further responses.

I would love the luxury of being promiscuous because my libido is very strong but quite frankly I am afraid of catching something which has been detrimental to my sexual exploration, or lack thereof. I've been holding out for a monogamous relationship which hasn't gotten me anywhere so I've been reconsidering my options and I'm kind of nervous about it.

I think more doctors should offer complete screening panels with every annual physical just as a safety precaution, especially since herpes is so prevalent in society today.
Click to expand...

I was very promiscuous, but I do not have either herpes simplex. I got screened a while ago when an ex posted about cold sores in his blog. We'd had unprotected sex for six years, and though another six years had passed since then, there was just no telling when he'd been infected. Unlike me, he had not pushed his doctors to test for herpes. I can't really blame him. Doctors DO NOT like it when you press for a herpes test if you've never had an outbreak. They hate that shit. I really just have no idea why.

Anyway, potential sex partners may be pushy or offended if you insist upon proof or recent blood-work, but do it anyway. Tell yourself that you will take your platinum-class pussy elsewhere if you encounter someone who does not respect your desire to preserve your health. Personally, I expected my partners to submit to testing quarterly, but since doctors are weird about herpes testing, and insurance companies won't pay for it, I was cool with continuing to have sex with guys who only got tested twice a year for herpes. It's expensive. A few dudes told me they couldn't afford it. I reminded them that I was probably the least fiscally demanding of all their fuck buddies, and twice as much fun to know. Don't back down. Remind yourself (and them) you're worth it.
 
giantsfrey
the biggest reason for this is that Herpes is extremely difficult to test for, for several reasons. for one, you can test positive for herpes, but never ever get a herpes outbreak because the virus doesn't do anything to you. or it might go in and out of remission. or it might only give you a cold sore. if you test for herpes while you have a cold sore, you'll get a positive, and it will mean nothing to you. they asked if you had an outbreak, because that is really the only way to assess it. if you have a herpes sore, they can swab that, or just look at it, and determine if you've got it. also, if you do have genital herpes, and you test for it while you're not experiencing an outbreak, you can get a false-negative, too, which is even more scary, and could be a cause for liability for the lab.

even though there are 2 types of herpes, the strains are not confined to a certain region. both type 1 and type 2 can cause sores on both the mouth and the genitals, and be spread between the two.

Web-MD explains further that laboratory viral cultures often fail to exhibit the virus even when it is almost certainly present.

an antibody test can only tell you that you have been exposed to the virus at some point--not whether it is still present in your system

spinal fluids can sampled for PCR testing (most expensive, most accurate, and can differentiate between type 1 and 2) but the findings don't indicate whether the virus is harmful to you. i suppose you could ask for, or demand this, if you REALLY want to know, but it's almost a moot point. the best way to 'test' for herpes is to look at yourself regularly. if you an abnormal sore, go to the doc while it's still active
 
giantsfrey
also, i *think* genital herpes is an epstein-barr virus, which is a notoriously painstakingly difficult group of viruses to identify, classify, etc. wikipedia says:

"Most people become infected with EBV and gain adaptive immunity. In the United States, about half of all five-year-old children and 90 to 95 percent of adults have evidence of previous infection.[8] Infants become susceptible to EBV as soon as maternal antibody protection disappears. Many children become infected with EBV, and these infections usually cause no symptoms or are indistinguishable from the other mild, brief illnesses of childhood. In the United States and other developed countries, many people are not infected with EBV in their childhood years. When infection with EBV occurs during adolescence or teenage years, it causes infectious mononucleosis 35 to 50 percent of the time.[9]

EBV infects B cells of the immune system and epithelial cells. Once the virus's initial lytic infection is brought under control, EBV latently persists in the individual's B cells for the rest of the individual's life.[7]"

it's extremely common and i think different forms of EBV can interfere with any of the herpes tests aside from the PCR test. ask your doc about this stuff rather than the LPSG forum, and then report back to us with the answers! i'm mildly familiar with and interested in this, but i don't even understand all the facets of it. ask different docs about it--you'll probably get a nice range of interesting responses, haha. ask about PCR (polymerase chain reaction) testing for the herpes virus, and the pricing, and the timeframe. i bet if you have a bad form of herpes, you'd experience the sores well before you get your test results and the bill from the lab.
 
giantsfrey
oh, and even if you get the PCR test done, and you turn up positive for it, the virus could be completely latent and never ever crop up again as long as you live. or it might. nobody knows. that's why the testing for herpes isn't very helpful. you should thank your healthcare provider for saving your time and money by not forcing these tests upon you :p

hope this was helpful

triple-post!
 
ladygaga1977
Dear i know this information of my fiancee,,,he works in heath care,,,,it is not 20% its actually at least 80% of people that have oral herpes (even if they not present symptoms they have it in blood) and another type of herpes much more dangerous in long term is Epstein Barr virus that at the age of 40 its estimated 93% of population has antibodies.
He has being treating people of this with a combination of pharmacy drugs and natural products that works fantastic. If u ever have a friend concerned about herpes u can ask and i will ask him to tell the exact combination.
He has plenty of defects but he is brilliant,,,he also has invented something to cure completely those skin ulcers that people that cannot move get so frequently. He cured his dying mothers back ulcer in just 1 month,,,and it was grade 4 almost reaching the bone.
If u ever need some medical advice please ask me dear and i will let u know and talk.
a big kiss
 
AlteredEgo
@ladygaga1977 , I was so busy in February that I never noticed this. (It is also possible I read it in my sleep. I check and delete messages in my sleep fairly often, actually.)
 
ronin001
Fingers crosses and happy to hear you did not have a reason to beat your husband, at least not for this reason :D
 
AlteredEgo
I once punched him in the face for tickling me too long. I didn't mean to. It was a reflex. Well, part instinct, part anger. He had been told to stop, and doesn't hold it against me. It's the only violence to which I ever subjected him.
 
N
I see that this blog is quite old but I'm definitely gonna add my two cents. Ae: preach, girl. In San Antonio it's very dismal too. Either Planned parenthood or a really. ..really shitty clinic downtown are your "feasible" options for STD screening.

I hate the look they give you when asking for a specific screening. Several times I've asked for a Hep C screening and they've literally oozed with disgust. "Well... have you been exposed?"

Probably..that's why I'm here right? Because I've either had a risky encounter or been irresponsible in some shape or form. May i have my test now?

"Oh. We don't do that here. " then why the fuck did you ask if I've been exposed?

Then of course there's the redirect to where you can get tested which is always very expensive or better yet you go there and guess what? Yup. Just like you said if you have no "symptoms" (bc so many do /sarcasm\ for things like hsv 1/2 or hepatitis ) they won't screen you!!

Great blog.
 
AlteredEgo
Oh, man. @Notthe7 , I feel you. I still remember a clinic visit from over a decade ago. I went because I was itchy. I'd never ever been itchy before. I'd had stupid, risky unprotected sex with an ex I thou2ght I was getting back together with. Sure, just the previous day we had each had other partners, but I thought our exclusive thing was back in and we hadn't used all of the box of 15 condoms we had bought at the very beginning of a relationship that had lasted 6 years together. So, a condom didn't even cross my mind. It turned out to be bacterial vaginosis which is really not a big deal, and can be contracted without sexual contact. But the doctor at the clinic was a total nightmare. He was extremely judgemental about the number of partners I'd had, rude about my presenting symptoms, just awful. I'm pretty thick-skinned, so it wasn't a huge problem, but his approach does nothing to encourage a more sensitive woman to be forthcoming with him, which is a major problem at a sexual health clinic! We must be thankful we had access at all, however. Think of all the women with no resources available. Anyway. Thanks for sharing.
 

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