So, if 90% of people infected people do noy know they have it - why should I even care ? No, honestly... It's like some will tell me : "you have terrible infection, but it does not show it's presents in any way, does not shorten your life, doesn't make any discomforsts. Although technically you can detect it" . I better not.

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:)

I assume you are talking about hsv2?

It's not a terrible infection for most - it's a nuisance for most folks who have it. You can easily control the symptoms with one pill a day. You can cut the risk of transmission in 1/2 to a partner with one pill a day too. If you don't want to commit to once daily medication, having medication on hand helps speed healing of recurrences so that you are uncomfortable for less days.

So why find out if you have it or not? Well it is important to know if you are female and are pregnant or are trying to become pregnant. Also one study showed that just knowing that you were infected, doubled the time until a partner was infected when you weren't taking any precautions other than avoiding sex during symptoms. For the vast majority of people, just getting a blood test done periodically if you aren't in a long term monogamous relationship, is an accurate way to know your status and help you be responsible about your sexuality.

It's also important to know your hsv1 status too. You want to take precautions around small infants if you have hsv1 orally and also you can transmit hsv1 to the genital area thru oral sex too.

keep asking questions as you have them

betsy

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ASHA Moderator