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Do You Suspect Your Partner Has Genital Herpes: How To Approach An Unapproachable Subject
Genital herpes is a sexually transmitted disease affecting 45 million people throughout the nation who are 12 or older. Many people don’t even realize they have genital herpes and so it’s important to take extreme caution when having sexual intercourse, making sure you’re well aware of your partner’s sexual history.
Over the past decade, the number of Americans infected with genital herpes has decreased, however, it is still a very real and very common ailment. We need to be aware of its existence and make sure we’re taking the appropriate precautions to avoid becoming infected or infecting others.
Herpes can affect the genitals, mouth and lips with fever blisters which can be painful and awkward
Genital herpes can cause recurrent painful genital sores and for someone who’s immune system is not as strong as it should be, the symptoms from the infection can be rather severe and though rare, life-threatening.
It can also lead to potentially fatal infections in infants. For women who contract herpes during pregnancy, particularly in the third trimester, it poses a much greater risk of transmission to the baby.
The only sure way of avoiding genital herpes is to avoid sex, but for most of us, this is not an appealing option. For people who are in a long-term monogamous relationship, the odds of them contracting genital herpes is much lower. However, it is very important to have a clear understanding of your partner’s sexual history and to take necessary precautions until you can both be tested for all types of STDs.
The big question is, what do you do if you suspect your partner has genital herpes or your partner tells you that he or she absolutely does have genital herpes?
First of all, it’s important to understand that genital herpes are very common. Even if you were to leave your partner for a different sexual partner, the odds of you finding another person who is infected with genital herpes is 1 in 4 if your partner is a woman and 1 in 5 if your sexual partners are men.
It’s true that genital herpes is typically transmitted through sexual contact, however, it is possible for someone to be infected with genital herpes for years before any symptoms pop up, so it’s not an entirely fair assumption to make that your partner is infected with genital herpes because he or she has been cheating on you.
Of course, to know for sure, you really need to get yourself and your partner checked out. It’s important to make sure you know exactly what you have, if you even have anything, and how to prevent from passing it to others as well as how to treat it.
Tags: genital herpes, genital sores, genital warts, herpes symptoms, herpes virus, sexual transmission, sexually transmitted diseases, viral infection
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