I‘ve just found out that I’ve got herpes.
What treatments are available?

The first outbreak is almost always the most severe.
Many people experience no further outbreaks.
If you do have further outbreaks, your outbreaks will tend to be milder, heal faster and be less frequent over time.

When working out if you require ongoing medication, consider how often you get outbreaks and how painful they are. Another consideration is how bad they make you feel. Do the outbreaks get you down and really upset or annoy you?

There are two types of medication:

  1. Suppressive or preventative therapy which you take every day to help prevent outbreaks
  2. Episodic therapy which you take only when you get an outbreak to treat that outbreak

Taking antiviral medication every day might be a better option if:

  • You get a lot of outbreaks each year
  • The outbreaks are painful
  • You're sick of getting outbreaks at inappropriate times (such as when you're in a new relationship, during exams, during your monthly period or at other times when you're stressed out)
  • You're fed-up with being reminded each time you have an outbreak that you have herpes.

Suppressive or preventative therapy can reduce the frequency of outbreaks.

Outbreaks are more common in the first year and some doctors suggest using antiviral medication every day for the first 3-6 months to allow you time to adjust especially if the outbreaks are moderate to severe. After 3-6 months you can then make a decision if taking antiviral medication every day is right for you or whether you would rather take antiviral medication only when you get an outbreak.

If you think daily suppressive therapy suits you better, discuss it with your doctor and explain that you would like less outbreaks. Your doctor can provide you with a 'Less Outbreaks Information Kit' and a medication plan that is right for you.

Alternatively, if you only get outbreaks occasionally, if they are quite mild or if they don't stress you out too much, then you can take antiviral medication to treat each outbreak. The aim is to reduce the symptoms and signs of the outbreak such as genital itching, tingling, rash, blisters or sores, or a vaginal discharge.

Episodic therapy is a good option if you don't get many outbreaks in a year, if they are not very severe, or if they don't stress you out too much.

Again, discuss this with your doctor so you can develop a medication plan that works for you.