Signs of Herpes-What you should look for

You should never ignore the early signs of herpes, either your own, or those you may spot on a potential sexual partner.  Many people do, for a variety of reasons, but later on they deeply regret not paying more attention to what they shrugged off as nothing to worry about.  Herpes is most definitely not “nothing to worry about”.  It’s a serious sexually transmitted disease, and while it’s not fatal, and usually isn’t as debilitating as syphilis and other STD’s, the consequences are both unpleasant and long lasting.  Yes, it can be treated, and the severity of outbreaks can be reduced, but once you have herpes it will never go away completely.

Why do people ignore the signs of herpes?  Well, it’s a matter of debate as to what the number one reason is, but in many cases it simply boils down to ignorance.  Many people have no idea what herpes symptoms are, and therefore have no way of knowing if they’ve come down with it, or if they’re about to have a romantic encounter with someone who has it.  And there are a couple of reasons that lead to this widespread ignorance.  One is that a herpes infection doesn’t cause symptoms right away.  It can take up to three weeks for them to appear.  So it can sometimes be difficult for people to make the connection between the symptoms and the sexual rendezvous that led to them.

On top of that, the first stage of the outbreak can be relatively mild.  Not in all cases, of course, but in a large number of them.  They can be so mild, in fact, that many people don’t notice them, or ascribe them to some other, benign condition.  The first signs are redness and sensitive in the genital areas.  But it can be so slight that it goes unnoticed.  Most people don’t catch on to their herpes positive status until blisters begin forming.  But treatment is much more effective when it starts before blistering occurs, so it’s vital that you get treated at the first signs of herpes.